# Basic ESC cooling on a kayak **URL:** \ **Category:** Kayaks, SUPs, Surf\ **Created:** [September 29, 2026, 12:27pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662 "2026-09-29T12:27:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![alon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f05b48/32.png) [@alon](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/alon)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 12:27pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662/1 "2026-09-29T12:27:28Z")
Hi, I’m using m200 on my Kayak, with basic ESC and LifePO4 12.8V battery. The ESC is in a sealed box (separated from the battery box) together with the control board, located inside the kayak hull. When running in full throttle for about 30min or more, the sealed box is warming up significantly. I don’t know the exact temperature. Ventilation is not practical in wet environment. Any suggestions to either improve thermal distribution? I also considered adding a thermometer inside the box, connected to the ESP32 board, so if temperature goes above specific value, it will notify or shut down the motor. Thanks for your help! ---
**Author:** ![tony-white](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/tony-white/32/18385_2.png) [@tony-white](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/tony-white)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 3:38pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662/2 "2026-09-29T15:38:05Z")
Hi @alon - The ESCs can handle being quite toasty! It is a good idea to provide a path for the heat. Clamping the ESC heatsink to an aluminum or copper bar, and securing this to the wall of the box will greatly improve heat dissipation, even if the box is plastic. If that areas of the box is in the water, even better! You could also use the larger basic ESC 500, which would be using less of its capacity and so stay a bit cooler Happy motoring! ---
**Author:** ![alon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f05b48/32.png) [@alon](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/alon)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2026, 7:13pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662/3 "2026-09-29T19:13:12Z")
Tony, Thanks for the prompt and detailed answer! ---
**Author:** ![EliotBR](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/eliotbr/32/6937_2.png) [@EliotBR](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/EliotBR)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2026, 12:33pm UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662/4 "2026-10-01T12:33:16Z")
Hi @alon, To clarify, is your current setup failing because of this, or are you mainly trying to avoid discomfort? > [@alon](#): > > I also considered adding a thermometer inside the box, connected to the ESP32 board, so if temperature goes above specific value, it will notify or shut down the motor. Noting that if our Basic ESC gets above 140℃ it has built in functionality to reduce the motor power output as a thermal protection mechanism (as described in the technical details on [the product page](https://bluerobotics.com/store/thrusters/speed-controllers/besc30-r3/)). That level is also possible to [customise](https://bluerobotics.com/learn/basic-esc-r3-firmware-files-and-customization/). > [@tony-white](#): > > securing this to the wall of the box will greatly improve heat dissipation, even if the box is plastic. Adding to this, a thermally conductive box material (like metal) more quickly allows heat to travel away from the electronics (even if that’s only through a section, like the lid). A confined volume of air is a pretty good insulator, so @tony-white’s suggestion uses conduction to pass heat directly to the box walls, instead of relying on convection through the air or radiation through the space (both of which can bounce around inside the box instead of immediately being absorbed by the walls). Having the outside of the box wall in contact with the water is the same idea again, just one step further out. ---
**Author:** ![HaleyV](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/aeb1de/32.png) [@HaleyV](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/HaleyV)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2026, 5:48am UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662/5 "2026-10-02T05:48:26Z")
We’ve been doing some work with a Blueboat for full days in very hot conditions in Queensland. We have laptops and batteries inside the hulls, so it can get pretty warm in there! We actually just put a couple of those flexible ice packs in the hulls, wedged down in the keel to not be too close to any of the batteries or electronics, and it does a good job keeping the temperature a couple degrees cooler in there. We haven’t had any issues with condensation etc. yet. Not sure if that will work with your setup, but it is pretty quick and easy! ---
**Author:** ![nuballawalla](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/flex019/user_avatar/discuss.bluerobotics.com/nuballawalla/32/5489_2.png) [@nuballawalla](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/nuballawalla)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2026, 9:49am UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662/6 "2026-10-03T09:49:54Z")
I put ESCs and other electronics in an ABS junction box. I drilled holes in one side of the box and epoxied a thin sheet of aluminum over the holes. This dissipated heat pretty well. ---
**Author:** ![alon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f05b48/32.png) [@alon](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/u/alon)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2026, 9:03am UTC](https://discuss.bluerobotics.com/t/basic-esc-cooling-on-a-kayak/23662/7 "2026-10-04T09:03:04Z")
🙏