battery recomendation

[herm0016]

I need to purchase a battery for my camper tomorrow and have O'rielies, AutoZone, Napa, Walmart, Kmart, Car quest, and one local place to choose from.

The battery will be used with a 120 watt solar array and will be hooked up to my camper only. I will be able to use jumper cables to charge the battery from the truck if the voltage gets too low. i would like to get a deep cycle battery that will last me a bit, but not break the bank like an Odyssey or Optima will. this battery will make its way into a split charge system in the truck next month when I have another week off and can work outside.

brands like: duralast, champion?, everstart, limited selection of diehards, napa, carquest/ngt.

what brands do you like best?

 

[Safeway]

Optima or bust. You want a true deep cycle battery that will last? Optima.

We have an array of Optimas hooked up to solar panels and a couple of wind turbines on our property in west Texas. We venture there several times a year to hunt and care for our little cabin. The batteries have lasted for years, and they're always charged. We bring a Honda sin-wave inverter generator for the air conditioner and refrigerator, but the batteries take care of all other electrical circuits.

 

[LTC8K6]

I need to purchase a battery for my camper tomorrow and have O'rielies, AutoZone, Napa, Walmart, Kmart, Car quest, and one local place to choose from.

The battery will be used with a 120 watt solar array and will be hooked up to my camper only. I will be able to use jumper cables to charge the battery from the truck if the voltage gets too low. i would like to get a deep cycle battery that will last me a bit, but not break the bank like an Odyssey or Optima will. this battery will make its way into a split charge system in the truck next month when I have another week off and can work outside.

brands like: duralast, champion?, everstart, limited selection of diehards, napa, carquest/ngt.

what brands do you like best?

They are all made by just 2 or 3 companies. Get one with the longest free replacement warranty.

 

[Eli]

They are all made by just 2 or 3 companies. Get one with the longest free replacement warranty.

Except Optima.

Optima is a good bet for locally available, but $$$.

Avoid Exide. Johnson Controls makes good batteries.

You can get Energizer brand group 29 batteries made by Johnson Controls at Sam's Club for $75 bucks.

I'm sitting here looking at one. Model 29HM. About 105Ah att a C/20 rate. 210 minutes (R)eserve (C)apacity @ 25A, or 88Ah @ 25A. They're OK for the price. Overall, you get what you pay for though.

Costco has a Kirkland battery that is the same. Wal-Mart probably has one too, but it may be made by Exide. Check the label.

If you want longevity, you can get 6V golf kart batteries at Sam's for about $130 each IIRC. Two and you have a 12V, 210Ah bank that should last a long time. You could get a Trojan SCS150, which should last 7-10 years with proper maintenance, for about $200... 100Ah. Dunno where locally though.

The lower the depth of discharge, the longer any battery will last... so be mindful of the voltage.

 

[Apex]

I've had better luck with Odyssey than Optima, but they're not too different. Both are AGM type batteries, though Odyssey's setup tends to be denser, power wise.

Sears Diehard Platinum are made by Odyssey (who in turn is made by EnerSys), if you want an easier to find (and often cheaper) choice.

The Autozone Duralast Platinum AGM battery is made by Johnson Controls (the company that bought Optima, though manufacturing is in different locations).

 

[Eli]

Johnson Controls bought Optima?

I did not know that. Good to know.

Not only does Exide seem to make under-par batteries, but I have a beef against them - they bought Edison's Nickel Iron battery division, and promptly scrapped it in favor of the more disposable lead acid. Bastards.

 

[Railgun]

Yes, optima is expensive, but as the saying goes...

I've had mine (yellow top), with lots of winter storages, and now long term storage, as well as perfect summer performance for about six years with no issues whatsoever. Granted you don't want to pay a lot, but better than having to get another one in a few years.

 

[CraigRT]

Whenever I have to replace a battery I always go Kirkland from Costco. They seem to work great.

 

[Apex]

Johnson Controls bought Optima?

I did not know that. Good to know.

I don't think it makes that much of a practical difference. Optima still manufactures their batteries in a facility completely separate from all of the rest of Johnson.



Side note: I recenly replaced the battery in my car with a lithium iron phosphate (LiFePo4) battery. Works amazingly well for something of that size. Won't work in this case (probably too small for the OP's application), but it's an amazing development in an area where technology tends to progress very slowly.

Here it is next to my teacup.

3 lbs, 28Ah lead-acid equivalent, and 500 CCA.

 

[Eli]

LiFePO4 batteries are great. They've been around for a while though.

I doubt they'll replace the lead acid anytime soon unfortunately, unless their price comes way, way down.

Looking foward to the day I can have a LiFePO4 pack to replace the NiMH cells in my cars.

 

[herm0016]

well, i basically put off my decision, I grabbed a used deep cycle battery for $10 from a local place. the battery was replaced recently from a camper and tests good. I am sure it will work for at least a few trips. Thanks for the advise though. I think I will be trying to pick up an Odesey or optima if i see a sale somewhere.

 

[Apex]

LiFePO4 batteries are great. They've been around for a while though.

I doubt they'll replace the lead acid anytime soon unfortunately, unless their price comes way, way down.

Looking foward to the day I can have a LiFePO4 pack to replace the NiMH cells in my cars.

Yeah, been around for what, 15 years or so? Except for the last 5 years or so, no one used them in automotive though.

That 3 lb one was $225, much cheaper than all of the competitors. It was expensive, but way WAY cheaper than dropping 40 lbs using carbon fiber parts.

Bigger ones are still very costly. For instance, check out one manufacturer's 21 lb model:

http://www.braillebattery.com/index.php/batteries/490l/

 

[Eli]

I've seen Braille's batterys before. Very nice.

This made me LOL though.

Up to 50 HP Faster
Efficient Charging + Better Electrical Performance + Lower Center of Gravity + Less Weight = Performance improvement equal to adding up to 50 horsepower!

Uh huh.

 

[LTC8K6]

I've seen Braille's batterys before. Very nice.

This made me LOL though.



Uh huh.

Yeah, the claims on the site guarantee one thing for me. I won't be buying.

 

[wirednuts]

optimas used to be tops, no question. but while johnson controls does want to uphold their reliable reputation, they are definitely a company that will skim anywhere they can. i should know, i used to work with johnson all the time (and know about their lawsuits for their various products too)

just go to sears and get their top o da line die hard platinum. yes, its over 2x the cost of a regular battery. yes, its about 100x more awesome. it literally made me laugh when i started my truck the next morning after leaving my built in computer on all night. on a regular battery, i might get 2 hours at best before the truck wouldnt start... and after a year or so those regular lead acid batteries might run my computer for 30min before the truck wont start.

the platinum battery just makes a joke of it all. no more headlight dimming when running my sub. faster starter speed too with the lower resistance in the battery compared to regular types. and its not effected by cold weather! another huge plus for me... it can be 10 below and bam bam bam VROOOOM! every time.

 

[LTC8K6]

Some cars now come with AGM batteries like the DH Platinum.