The Guide for The Perfect Marine Battery Box

Minn Kota – Best on the market

Built-in power meter, 2 circuit breakers, 15amp accessory plug

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Newport Vessels Smart Battery Box

Durable, quick-mount for cables, charging station and power outlet

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Attwood Standard Battery Box

Contains a large capacity that’s fit for grouping 24-size batteries

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Not everyone catching bass is doing so from a $50,000 bass boat. As you may have noticed from our pond fishing section, Bass Blog is here for anglers of all types. 

For the small boat anglers out there, those of you with jon boats and maybe even large kayaks, one unique piece of equipment you’ll likely invest in is the battery box.

What is a battery box?

It’s more than just a box for a battery. Since your average jon boat won’t feature a compartment for a battery on the boat itself, a box is useful to easily carry the heavier than crap battery, makes connecting and disconnecting trolling motor cables easy, and more. It’s a helpful little tool that’s pretty light on the wallet, and many come with a lot of neat features. T

Box vs. Tray

First and foremost, don’t get a box and a tray confused. They are definitely not the same thing and not designed for the same purpose. Trays are meant to be drilled into the fiberglass of a boat for permanent storage of battery. Boxes are meant for batteries on smaller boats that don’t offer a safe place for permanent storage.

This is why the primary goal of a box is to make carrying and connecting/disconnecting the battery from trolling motors, fish finders, etc. as easy as possible.

Recommendations

Minn Kota’s Battery Power Center will get the job done for you. It has external access to terminals for easy connections. An external power meter will also give you power levels at the push of a button, which is handy, especially if you’re in a small boat that depends on one single battery and electric motor as its only source of power. 

If you’re in need of something less expensive, Attwood makes a box that can be procured for under ten dollars. It will protect your battery from the elements and not much more, but that’s all you’re looking for at that price. 

If you want the whole nine yards (why isn’t it the whole ten yards? It’s ten yards for a first down. Maybe it’s not a football reference) the Newport Vessels Trolling Motor Smart Battery Box is a great option. This offers everything the Minn Kota does as well as some additional features, like a USB port to charge your phone. It’s also about the same price. 

What To Consider When Buying A Battery Box?

Key Features of a Good Battery Box

• External access to battery terminals
• Battery switch​
• ​Circuit breakers
• Must be acid resistant
• Vented
• Weather and waterproof
• Tight straps for the battery to properly attach it to the boat

Do you want Barebones? Or the whole shebang?

Battery boxes will offer a wide range of features. Some are barely more than just boxes, others are surprisingly feature-heavy for such an apparently simple product. After you know the dimensions of the box you need, it really becomes about features you want. How important to a charge meter to you? How important is a USB port to you? And so on.

Quality

The quality of the battery box will depend on the material being used. Many boxes are made of polyethylene and polypropylene and are made with high densities of those materials. Polyethylene boxes are widely used by many due to its price, but can easily damage when the batteries heat up. What’s worse is that it may also absorb water.

Thus, it may not be a good option for long boat rides. On the other hand, polypropylene is extremely tough for withstanding heat as it’s a thermoplastic – making it perfect for more intense use.

Weight

Take note that installing and carrying the battery is already a hard thing to do due to the product’s weight. That’s why you need to consider the weight of the product and the boat as a priority as well if you really want to have a faster ride. The weight of the box is also affected by its thickness, but note that thickness means protection as well. So be sure to balance those two out.

Dimensions

This one should be obvious but don’t buy a box that your battery doesn’t fit in. Be absolutely certain of dimensions before moving forward. 

Key Features of a Good Battery Box

• External access to battery terminals
• Battery switch​
• ​Circuit breakers
• Must be acid resistant
• Vented
• Weather and waterproof
• Tight straps for the battery to properly attach it to the boat

That’s about it. Battery boxes are not terribly complicated pieces of equipment, but they’re definitely worth investing in if you’re a small boat owner.