We camp without hookups and use a small Yamaha generator to recharge a deep cycle battery that runs furnace, lights, and water pump. Our battery has gone missing; meaning I think someone stole it. I am willing to pay a premium to get a good one, but which is best? My friend bought a premium one that failed in less than a year. I just want a good reliable battery that has good storage capacity. Thanks in advance.
bought several of the Kirkland (Costco) dual type for my trucks and trailer so far. They're on their 6th or 7th year already, still going strong. I do desulfate them though. About 100 Ah. Thinking size 27 but not sure. It's good peace of mind to know you can start the truck with it.
What's your power consumption need? If it's under 50 amp hours before recharge, an inexpensive Marine/Deep cycle works great, and I like the ones from Costco. If it's over that, you need to spend on more capacity and likely two 6 volt golf cart type batteries wired in series will work better for you.
The key ingredient for making any of these batteries last is a good battery "maintainer" like a BatteryMinder. If you keep your battery always at an optimized state of charge, and add water once and awhile as needed, they last a really long time. I have some 3 year batteries that are 7 years old and still good for use.
The best money I ever spent on a battery was the money I spent on a 2 amp BatteryMinder. It keeps 6 batteries in 3 trucks in suspended animation with no problems.
With a good maintainer, you can actually use fairly cheap batteries and they will always be ready for use and in very good shape.
No batteries last forever though, so don't go overboard on the high dollar batteries.
Cruiserdrew makes many good points, one of the most important is to maintain the battery water level. Be sure to use only distilled water NOT drinking water.
I have a 100ah Odyssey for dual duty right now but after some research I've decided on a Lifeline group 31 for my #2 battery this spring when I get the 2 battery system rigged up.
I've learned that following charging specs is very important for longevity. And that you must return the amp hours you took and not just focus on a voltage number, that can be achieved without actually reaching full charge
I have a 100ah Odyssey for dual duty right now but after some research I've decided on a Lifeline group 31 for my #2 battery this spring when I get the 2 battery system rigged up.
I've learned that following charging specs is very important for longevity. And that you must return the amp hours you took and not just focus on a voltage number, that can be achieved without actually reaching full charge
Those little solar jobs are great for battery maintainance but look closely at the maximum charging rate if you expect it to charge the battery in a reasonably short period of time - deep cycle batteries range from 650 to 900 amp hours capacity - a 900 amp rated battery 50% discharged requires 50 amps for 10 hours, or 25 amps for 20 hours, or 5 amps for 100 hours to fully recharge it.
Most campers however come factory equipped with a power inverter which both provides 12VDC for lights and such and also will charge the battery in 24 to 36 hours when the camper is plugged into A/C power.
In the event your camper is not equipped with an inverter I would recommend a basic 30 amp "Automatic" automotive battery charger for normal charging needs and if you can afford to equip it with a solar charger also that will eliminate the need to plug the unit in and charge it regularly ( at least 3 days once every 3 months ).
Those little solar jobs are great for battery maintainance but look closely at the maximum charging rate if you expect it to charge the battery in a reasonably short period of time - deep cycle batteries range from 650 to 900 amp hours capacity - a 900 amp rated battery 50% discharged requires 50 amps for 10 hours, or 25 amps for 20 hours, or 5 amps for 100 hours to fully recharge it.
Not really. I just got a Pronautic 50A charger to make sure I've got that covered. I thought it would be better to keep the monster CCA battery (1150CCA Odyssey) in the start position, and the lower CCA but widely known deep cycle as the house power.
Edit: Forgot to say that the two batteries use somewhat different designs. Odyssey uses lots of thin plates which helps make high amperage, where the Lifeline uses traditional deep cycle thick plate technology. I wanted to try a heavy plate house battery this time.
@Jackie B
Those specs you mentioned above got scrambled in the translation. You've got CCA and AH mixed up. Please either correct your post or delete it. Thanks.
