Helping with trolling motor

Hello all, I plan on taking my old town canoe out for it’s first outing of the season this Wednesday. Over the winter I received an outboard trolling motor. I was curious, what extra equipment will I need to get this motor running? What I have now is the (unopened) trolling motor, a 12v deep-cycle marine battery (with charger), and the motor mount. Also, any insight on the process would be much appreciated.

Seldom-thought-about aspects

– Last Updated: Apr-22-13 7:29 PM EST –

First, I think every state's boating regulations are virtually the same as the Coast Guard regulations, and that means the battery must be fully enclosed but vented (one of those plastic battery boxes will take care of this), AND secured to the boat in such a way that it can't slide around or tip over. Hardly anyone bothers with that, but without that you'll get a fine if a game warden or sheriff's deputy gives your boat a look. Second, with both the battery and motor secured to the boat, the canoe's built-in floatation may not be enough to keep it at the surface in the unlikely event of swamping or a capsize. You could lose the whole shootin' match if you have an accident on the water and haven't installed additional flotation. How much flotation your boat already has will depend on the model, but most don't have very much and I'd be leery of trying to support around 120 to 150 pounds of battery and motor with the flotation that's likely present.

You already have the bracket, so I guess just make sure it fits. Old Town used to sell such brackets (probably still do) and many people make their own.

Since you've made it a motorized boat, you'll need to register it as such. In some states you need to do that even if it's not motorized. Maybe you've got that part covered.

As a motorized boat, you'll need a complete set of lights for nighttime use. That'll be a red-green combo for the bow, and a white light (high enough to be visible from all directions) at the stern.

That about covers it.