Best RV/Camper battery????

[66fj40x2]

I recently bought a truck camper, a '92 Lance in very good condition. Only a couple little things to fix.

The first is the battery. Lance recommends an 85 amp hour battery. Looking at various deep cycle and RV batteries and I came across a "Scrubber" brand, 12 volt, 210 amp hour, deep cycle. They also make a 140 amp hour and a 105 amp hour.

Which would the better battery for camping? I would think the larger would last longer, but I may not be right on that ......

Any other recommendations?

Thanks,

 

[rusty_tlc]

Amp Hours are the measure of how much energy the battery can store. The bigger the number the more energy. Deep cycle means the battery is designed to be completly discharged over a long period and recharged many times, this kills starting batteries quick.

The 85 AH recomendation may be based on how much space is available. Larger AH batteries are usually bigger.

I'd go for the battery with the largest AH rating you can fit in the space available.

 

[rusty_tlc]

Just thought I'd mention a couple of other things.

Dual batteries help on extended trips or if you use a lot of electricity.

If you decide to do this consider two 6V batteries in series instead of two 12V batteries in parallel. Six volt batteries with the same base dimensions will be a little taller but will usually be rated for 25% more AH than a similar 12V battery.

 

[Mike S]

I would use the largest marine/deep draw type battery I could get. Or two. I use two 105 AH marine batteries in my trialer, and an on board charger, works for me.

Mike

 

[bumperdoggy]

6V is way to go

I will second Rusty. I had two 6v on my 5th wheel. Simply awesome. The 6v is a forklift battery and made to be discharged. Marine batteries lose 70% of capacity after the first or second discharge. I used Trojan brand. Very nice. Great bang for the buck.

The only down side is two 6v's are twice as large. If space is an issue, I would consider Trojan 12v.

RV websites have volumes of data on this.

Good luck.

Bump.

 

[honk]

Two 6 volt golfcart batteries can supply twice the power of most any "RV/Marine" 12 volt available. good ones can give around 400 ah each. Not sure why they don't make a 12 volt like they do 6 volt ones. Don't be put off by heavy weight. In batteries, weight is good - the heavier the better. You want lead in there, not some techie substitute.

It's all about how much stuff you want to use and for how long. Heaters, microwaves, and hot water are big users. Get as much reserve power as you can find room for if you plan on much more than a day or two away from a plug.

Be sure to isolate your camper battery(S) and set up a charging system from the truck. Lots of people have woken up to dead truck batteries on go-home day.

 

[66fj40x2]

That's excellent information, Thank You. I could easily fit two motorcycle batteries in the compartment and two more under the camper in front of the water tank.

My biggest amperage user is the Kenmore fridge that the PO replaced the 2-way Domestic fridge with. I'm looking for a good used propane/electric now.

If the weather stays descent this weekend I'll get to re-wire the truck connection. Sorta thinking a switch either on the side or under the camper to disconnect it from the truck. The truck already has a 6 lug RV plug in the bed, but the plug is not accessable with the camper in the truck.

 

[rusty_tlc]

Two 6 volt golfcart batteries can supply twice the power of most any "RV/Marine" 12 volt available. good ones can give around 400 ah each. Not sure why they don't make a 12 volt like they do 6 volt ones. Don't be put off by heavy weight. In batteries, weight is good - the heavier the better. You want lead in there, not some techie substitute.

It's all about how much stuff you want to use and for how long. Heaters, microwaves, and hot water are big users. Get as much reserve power as you can find room for if you plan on much more than a day or two away from a plug.

Be sure to isolate your camper battery(S) and set up a charging system from the truck. Lots of people have woken up to dead truck batteries on go-home day.

As I mentioned, for the same base dimensions a 6V with a higher AH rating will be taller. The AH rating is a function of plate surface area. To increase the AH rating you need bigger plates or more of them. So the battery is heavier and may be bigger. I say "may be bigger" because a lower AH battery might have the same form factor but fewer plates.

 

[Rich]

The amp hour rating is more closely related to the total plate mass, as opposed to the plate area. Plate area does have a big effect on the CCA rating. Deep cycle batteris tend to have fewer, thicker plates than starting batteries. A reasonably accurate comparison of battery amp hour capacity is the battery weight. Its really all in the lead. Check out the weight of the optima batteries, and one will see why the amp hour ratings are so poor compared to standard "square" batteries. There is a bunch of empty, weightless space inbetween the touted spiral cells. Round is an ok shape for flashlights, not so efficient for a car battery when space is tight.

 

[atavuss]

another thing to consider is if that the battery/batteries are buried in a compartment with poor access I would recommend maintenance free type batteries so you won't have to worry about checking the water level. Optima makes a great but pricey deep cycle battery.

 

[honk]

That's excellent information, Thank You. I could easily fit two motorcycle batteries in the compartment and two more under the camper in front of the water tank.

My biggest amperage user is the Kenmore fridge that the PO replaced the 2-way Domestic fridge with. I'm looking for a good used propane/electric now.

If the weather stays descent this weekend I'll get to re-wire the truck connection. Sorta thinking a switch either on the side or under the camper to disconnect it from the truck. The truck already has a 6 lug RV plug in the bed, but the plug is not accessable with the camper in the truck.

Not motorcycle batteries. Those are just smaller auto batteries and don't have much storage ability. As I said, golfcart batteries are good. They're designed for a long steady rate output, and almost all good ones will have the lead to hold a great deal of juice. As these posts above all say, weight is a good indicator of both storage and quality. Deep cycle batteries weigh a ton!

Oh, golfcart batteries are not smaller than auto batteries - they're usually about a group 24, I think, but taller.

 

[rusty_tlc]

The amp hour rating is more closely related to the total plate mass, as opposed to the plate area. Plate area does have a big effect on the CCA rating. Deep cycle batteris tend to have fewer, thicker plates than starting batteries. A reasonably accurate comparison of battery amp hour capacity is the battery weight. Its really all in the lead. Check out the weight of the optima batteries, and one will see why the amp hour ratings are so poor compared to standard "square" batteries. There is a bunch of empty, weightless space inbetween the touted spiral cells. Round is an ok shape for flashlights, not so efficient for a car battery when space is tight.

Very true, I was trying to show that the total volume of the battery can limit the AH rating.
The thickness of the plates also affects the charge / discharge rate. Thicker plates cannot supply current as fast as thinner plates. This is why a starting battery is better for winch applications, the thinner plates release their charge faster.

As far as mounting batteries inside, I would re-locate them outside if they are currently inside. I know they mounted batteries inside in some older tent trailers, but I wouldn't want the gasses building up inside. There should be room on the tounge for a battery tray.