Your favorite house battery?

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by moseriw

ranger42c
What do you mean by the "truck batteries" you are recommending for OP?

Products | Commercial Vehicles | Promotive Silver | VARTA

Thanks. Looks like 8Ds. I asked because around here big trucks often use G31s, 4Ds, or 8Ds.

Originally Posted by Clipper4730

Our system is set up as follows. Large 600+amp/hr house bank consisting of three 6d sealed agm charged by either engine, gen set, or 600watt solar array tied to a midnite Kidd mppt charge controller that only charges the house bank.

6D?

-Chris

[moseriw]

Thanks. Looks like 8Ds. I asked because around here big trucks often use G31s, 4Ds, or 8Ds.

Sorry no infos on US-Standards VARTA is an Austrian product that is absolutely accepted all over the EU.
They are encapsulated lead acid AGM - that is why I said truck batteries - just take some cheap AGM's and keep them continously charged and discharged as AGM's do not have lifecycles.

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by moseriw

Thanks. Looks like 8Ds. I asked because around here big trucks often use G31s, 4Ds, or 8Ds.

Sorry no infos on US-Standards VARTA is an Austrian product that is absolutely accepted all over the EU.
They are encapsulated lead acid AGM - that is why I said truck batteries - just take some cheap AGM's and keep them continously charged and discharged as AGM's do not have lifecycles.

Ummm.... yes, AGMs have life cycles (our oldest bank of AGMs is finally going down the tubes, at the end of 11 seasons)... but your point about keeping them charged seems to track with what others have said about AGMs on boats.

We enjoyed the parts of Austria we visited when we lived next door, but unfortunately never got to Vienna.

-Chris

[moseriw]

Ummm.... yes, AGMs have life cycles (our oldest bank of AGMs is finally going down the tubes, at the end of 11 seasons)...

Well it is said thst AGM's have about 1000 to 1200 recharging cycles.
Hmmm how come that your batteries lasted 11 years AND it is recommended to charge/discharge them continously. assuming one cycle per day (solar charging) the banks shoud have been done 1200/365 = 40 month.

11 years are about 4000 cycles then.

[mitiempo]

Originally Posted by moseriw

11 to say 13,8V is the range all electric and electronic units operate not the specification of a battery type

You referred to batteries that can be drawn down to 2 volts - what are you referring to?

[sailjumanji]

Originally Posted by Uncle Bob

Hi, my take on this would be, if you achieved ten years out of your bank you have done VERY well and if they have done everything you require, why would you not replace like for like.

Exactly my thoughts too. That said, I had three Deka AGM batteries that lasted twelve years before one gave it up. Replaced all three with identical. They were well taken care of with both three stage solar controller and three stage charger, bit occasionally when tuning both outboards had to deal with high charge voltages. I never considered any other brand AGM for replacement.

[zeehag]

i use 6v golf cart batteries--here i use lth
in usa i used trojan.
lth are found throughout mexico readily.

[moseriw]

just for all and out of common experience: if one old battery is done and you replace it be prepaired to replace all others within a short period as they will give up soon.

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by moseriw

Ummm.... yes, AGMs have life cycles (our oldest bank of AGMs is finally going down the tubes, at the end of 11 seasons)...

Well it is said thst AGM's have about 1000 to 1200 recharging cycles.
Hmmm how come that your batteries lasted 11 years AND it is recommended to charge/discharge them continously. assuming one cycle per day (solar charging) the banks shoud have been done 1200/365 = 40 month.

11 years are about 4000 cycles then.

You can look up AGM life cycle info on the various AGM battery manufacturers' websites.

When we bought that bank, Odyssey cited up to 400 cycles to 100% depth of discharge, or up to 500 cycles to 80% DoD. I think they've begun citing cycles to 50% DoD since then. (These being "lab cycles" -- not real-world cycles.)

These are dual-purpose batteries, too... so probably not like the "truck batteries" you mention... which I'd guess are starting batteries, likely not dual-purpose, and very likely not deep cycle (but I didn't go back to check your link to confirm).

Our battery usage is relatively lightweight. No solar, but we're plugged into shorepower much of the time... and recharging 2x/day with the genset when we're away from the slip. And we've nursed than bank along, this last year, perhaps a whole year beyond what Odyssey would have classified as "end of life."

-Chris

[sneuman]

We've been cruising on 6v lead-acid golf-cart batteries (Precision) for the past year+ and have been very happy with their performance. We have four of them, 2 per bank, wired in series to get 12v.

[Tayana42]

Like others, I'm happy with the batteries I have. They are four Deka 6v GC batteries. (Nominally 460 AH) They are now 4 years old. For 3 years we were cruising with roughly 2/3 time on the hook and 1/3 in various slips. We used our portable Honda eu2000i to charge every second day for 3 or 4 hours when at anchor. About once a week they got an overnight charge from shore power. No solar (which would have been good).

There is nothing definitive or even comparative about my information. When I need to replace these I'll likely go with 6v GC batteries again.

[StuM]

Originally Posted by moseriw

Ummm.... yes, AGMs have life cycles (our oldest bank of AGMs is finally going down the tubes, at the end of 11 seasons)...

Well it is said thst AGM's have about 1000 to 1200 recharging cycles.
Hmmm how come that your batteries lasted 11 years AND it is recommended to charge/discharge them continously. assuming one cycle per day (solar charging) the banks shoud have been done 1200/365 = 40 month.

11 years are about 4000 cycles then.

Because rated cycles for batteries are a myth. They are based on a specific discharge/charge regime which never happens in real life. The first issue is what constitutes a "cycle". If your battery spends most of its life drifting between 80% and 100% SOC, and/or sometimes sits connected to shorepower for extended periods what constitutes a "cycle"?

[DumnMad]

We have 600AH golf cart batteries, have run them too low a few times but no problems after 5 years mainly on shore power.
We don't have much room for solar so if we were going to leave the marina permanently I'd be looking for fast charging using the motor and would consider up dating to LiFePo4.
Not much point having LiFePo4 if your boat is marina based.

[Safari38LH]

Originally Posted by moseriw

Almost all electric units work between 13,8V (fully charged) and 11V. It makes no sense to use batteries that can be discharged down to 2V.

Therefore my choices are cheap 12V 225Ah AGM Truck batteries and a perfect charging - discharging system. I expect to use them for 15 years.

That's a great comment. I never thought of it that way. Ya, what good are your batteries below 11v?

[StuM]

If you're letting your LA batteries get down to anywhere near 11V, you are going to kill them fairly quickly. Keep them above 12V.