BigBendFishing.Net

charge your batteries before you go fishing. I made the mistake this weekend of going to the boat ramp totally unprepared after a 3 month fishing hiatus after having a baby and it cost me a much needed day of fishing. Got up early Saturday and threw the equipment in the boat, turned the battery switches and circuit breakers on, turned the key and had good ignition. A quick flashback to Friday night: "Maybe I should go and plug the charger in and give the batteries a good charge....nah, the battery switch has been off and they will be good!" At the ramp, the crowded ramp, Saturday morning: Backing the boat in the water and turn the key only to hear the dreaded clicking sound of a starter not getting enough juice to turn the motor over. No fishing today . I decided to turn the bad fishing day into a good day of cleaning, repairing, and replacing all my electrical connectors and batteries. I found 3 bad connectors barely hanging on and cleaned a good amount of corrosion off my terminals and battery posts. Charged all the batteries up and everything is 100% for Sunday's redo. All systems were good and fish were caught! Check your stuff out, don't assume anything when it comes to your equipment, and save yourself some grief at the ramp. BG

Amen....

Replace old cable too!
I had a dragging starter, but all connections and the inside of the started were immaculate, and the battery was good.
Corrosion in the old connection cables was causing too much resistance.
Starts with just a click now.

I used some CRC Corrosion Inhibitor on all my connections and it looks like it will help with the corrosion.

Good advice ... been there with a dead battery with the boat in the water.

Someone told me I should use dialectric grease on electrical connections — including for lights. So I bought a tube, but now I don't know what to do with it.

Does it do anything, and ... how?

Putting grease on a light before jabbing it in the socket would seem to be a good path to darkness, not light.

Dielectric grease in a light socket will keep moisture and corrosion out. That is a good thing. A good coating over wire connections and battery terminals is also a good thing as it keeps out moisture and corrosion. It does just what an oil spray does but is much thicker and stays on better and keeps more junk out.
Paint it on with a small brush and don't be shy with it.

Thanks, F-in-F.

I used dielectric grease on my trailer light-pigtail connections and it made more of a mess. I guess because of road grime when not plugged in. I used it on a TM i cleaned and reconnected and it worked good there.

there are water prof wire nuts quick simple they work great