# Troll motor wiring question



## pearow (Dec 12, 2012)

I haven't seen this question on any of the other discussions concerning troll motor wiring so here goes:
I am wiring a 40# thrust troll motor on my 14 foot flat bottom, motor in front, battery in rear. I purchased some #10 wire but have now concluded its too small for the run front to back. My question is:
can I solder the ends of two runs of #10 wire front and rear and thus make it the equivalent of #5 wire? I'm thinking that, in order not to have to buy more wire I can simply double the #10, both for positive and negative that it will give me ample wiring capacity to operate the troll motor.
Also, a related question:
I am using an old dimmer switch to turn the troll motor on and off while fishing. The two leads coming from the dimmer switch back to the negative wire run would be #10 wire. Will the 3 foot run(or 6 feet doubled) of #10 wire have an adverse effect on the troll motor's performance?( I am a dummy when it comes to figuring electrical capacities)  -p-


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## russ010 (Dec 12, 2012)

I don't know if you can look at that being 5ga wire or not by doubling it up.. I would think that it would be a little better than 10 ga, but you will still have some loss when they separate after the solder. I think you would probably be closer to #8 or #9. But for the size of trolling motor you have (40# Thrust), the 10ga by itself will probably suffice for that long of a run. If you move up to a 55# or higher, I would recommend just using straight 6-8ga wire. When you start combining wires, you open yourself up to a lot more instances for something burning up.

The short distance for the dimmer switch with 10ga wire should be fine.


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## Bugpac (Dec 12, 2012)

Dimmer switch likely will not last, at best its rated for 20 amps, you need about 30 minimum.


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## pearow (Dec 13, 2012)

I am going with a big foot; omitting the dimmer. I don't like the big foot because the rubber wears out in about a year, leaving it useless, but a 20 amp dimmer will probably not last any longer. thanks for the help; appreciate it-p-


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## kofkorn (Dec 20, 2012)

Take a look here: 

https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=26975&p=277661#p277657

I accomplished the same thing you are trying to do with the dimmer, but with a Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) controller that is made to control DC motor speeds. It has worked great on two separate trolling motors for me. It costs about $25 on Ebay.

To answer the original question, I don't think that you can simply add two #10 wires together to make a #5, as the Gauge #'s are based on diameter. However, if a #10 wire is rated for 30A, and you run two wires side by side, you can run up to 60A. The trick here is that you need to make sure that your connections are rated for it. Soldering two wires together and running them through a 30A connector would be a bad idea. If you had two completely separate parallel systems, no issues.

Good luck!


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## Bob Landry (Dec 21, 2012)

Look in the manual for your TM and use the size wire it recommends. I haven't seen a manufacturer that recommends smaller than #8 and most recommend #6. Trying to save $10 on wire and risking a failure or worse, a fire from overheated cable while on the water is poor economy.
That said, the general theme on this board is not what is needed to do a quality installation, but rather how cheap it can be done. Being in the marine business, I tend to look at this type of stuff a little different than most, or should I say, my liability insurance carrier looks at it differently.


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## maldo (Dec 26, 2012)

Doubling the wire may seem that it would help and it may a little bit but the reality is that the same amount of draw will be going through each wire; therefore, the draw will be about the same and heat could affect each wire. I would recommend getting a larger gauge wire to avoid any issue. It should not affect the trolling motor performance but the issue is how the wire will hold up to the draw given by the trolling motor. I hope this helps. Good Luck!


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## New River Rat (Dec 27, 2012)

maldo said:


> Doubling the wire may seem that it would help and it may a little bit but the reality is that the same amount of draw will be going through each wire; therefore, the draw will be about the same and heat could affect each wire. I would recommend getting a larger gauge wire to avoid any issue. It should not affect the trolling motor performance but the issue is how the wire will hold up to the draw given by the trolling motor. I hope this helps. Good Luck!





X2


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## Bob Landry (Dec 27, 2012)

New River Rat said:


> maldo said:
> 
> 
> > Doubling the wire may seem that it would help and it may a little bit but the reality is that the same amount of draw will be going through each wire; therefore, the draw will be about the same and heat could affect each wire. I would recommend getting a larger gauge wire to avoid any issue. It should not affect the trolling motor performance but the issue is how the wire will hold up to the draw given by the trolling motor. I hope this helps. Good Luck!
> ...



Not really. Voltage is the same on two wires in parallel, but the current may not be. That's determined by the resistance of the wires, and there can be differences in wire condition, oxidation, connections, etc., and it's possible to have enough resistance in one of the wire to cause a heating problem. Get the correct wire for the job and save the #10 for another job.


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## New River Rat (Jan 7, 2013)

Bob Landry said:


> New River Rat said:
> 
> 
> > maldo said:
> ...




TL, are we agreeing or disagreeing?


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## bassmasher (Jan 18, 2013)

This is directly from Minnkota


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## JMichael (Jan 19, 2013)

bassmasher said:


> This is directly from Minnkota


That's nice and all that, but until you post a legible copy of it, it's going to be hard to determine if it would be helpful or not.


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## lefty (Jan 19, 2013)

I can read it just fine. Very helpful


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## JMichael (Jan 19, 2013)

lefty said:


> I can read it just fine. Very helpful


Well maybe you'll be kind enough to transcribe it to a more legible form for those of us with inferior eyesight.


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## redbug (Jan 19, 2013)

JMichael said:


> lefty said:
> 
> 
> > I can read it just fine. Very helpful
> ...


open up the page and use yoour tools tab to zoom in to about 200% then you should be asble to read it.


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## JMichael (Jan 19, 2013)

Don't see a tools tab anywhere but I didn't realize you could make it any bigger than what the + magnifier would do when you first clicked on it. When I found the little "expand to actual size" button up top that made all the difference in the world. I can read that perfectly even with these old eyes. :mrgreen: Thanks.


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## johnnybassboat (Jan 22, 2013)

yes you can double up conductors to gain a higher amperage rating. A #6 wire is raterd at 60 amps and is usually the most common wire size used for remote trolling motor wiring. A#10 is rated at 30 amps so if you double your #10 you should be fine. These numbers are being quoted from memory but I am pretty sure they are right, but you can search them to be sure. This is a practice often used in industrial plants because if you have ever tried to pull real heavy, stiff wire you know how hard it can be. A lot easier to pull two smaller wires than one big one. Hope this helps. good luck and good fishing


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