Well here's the answer...
Charged it in the RV - plugged into 110VAC for 16 hours. Checked with the on-board batter indicator - only 2 lights out of 4.
Removed battery, took it into garage, measured voltage - 11.3. Ugh...
Charged it with my automotive charger for 2 hours, measured voltage - 12.1, down to 11.7 within 5 minutes. Double Ugh - battery is history.
It's not the original battery - it's a Super Start 27DCM, bought last summer. Bad luck!
Anybody have suggestions about battery brand or type? Regular vs. AGM? Brand? - I have Sears, Advance Auto, Napa, Bond near here. Plus an RV dealer.
I normally recomend Costco but the closest is 70 miles to Colchester
Is there a Walmart close? Just be sure to get the DC trolling not the marine deep cycle starting.
AGM is a bit spendy but if OK I recommend Lifeline.
Good time to verify what your charging system is doing and if an upgrade would help.
Dunno if you have an Advance Auto in your neck of the woods, but they have a heavy group 27 lead-acid deep cycle. I liked them well enough to buy 2 last year for the Tiger's house batteries. They're about 10 lbs heavier than a competitor's so-called deep cycle, which AIUI is a mark of a true deep cycle. So far, I'm well-pleased with them.
Jim, "Mo' coffee!"
'06 Tiger CX 'C Minus' on a Silverado 2500HD 4x4, 8.1 & Allison (aka 'Loafer's Glory') www.tigervehicles.com
The advantage of AGM over the standard RV deep cycle is that the AGM is pretty much maintenance free - no water levels. Make sure you have room for the AGM. You seem to know what you are doing with the batteries so you will be able to go into an auto store and be able to find the correct true deep cycle and not cranking battery. I would go to the RV dealer, but that is just me as I would not attempt to change a battery on my own or be sure that I was being given the correct one at an auto shop, that may or may not understand the needs of a coach battery.
If you go with an AGM battery, you may need to change your converter, depending on what type you have. You will need one with a smart charger, so you don't over charge the AGM battery, and toast it.
ptourin wrote: Well here's the answer...
Charged it in the RV - plugged into 110VAC for 16 hours. Checked with the on-board batter indicator - only 2 lights out of 4.
Removed battery, took it into garage, measured voltage - 11.3. Ugh...
Charged it with my automotive charger for 2 hours, measured voltage - 12.1, down to 11.7 within 5 minutes. Double Ugh - battery is history.
It's not the original battery - it's a Super Start 27DCM, bought last summer. Bad luck!
Anybody have suggestions about battery brand or type? Regular vs. AGM? Brand? - I have Sears, Advance Auto, Napa, Bond near here. Plus an RV dealer.
If it is a "Super Start 27DCM" bought in VT where you are from, and used in the heat of summer down south --- that will cause exactly the failure you described.
I was very pro-AGM because you don't have to check the water -
But when I started looking at details, I couldn't find AGM's with high reserve capacity. I think that's what you would want for a house battery - you don't need high cranking capacity, but you want a deep discharge battery that will go a very long time before the voltage drops too low. So in the end I think it's going to be an Interstate SRM-27B for me - 180 minutes RC is about as high as I can get without spending a serious bundle. Thanks for all the advice - it helped me sort it out quickly.
Quote: Reserve capacity is the number of minutes a battery can maintain a useful voltage under a 25 ampere discharge. The higher the minute rating, the greater the battery's ability to run lights, pumps, inverters, and electronics for a longer period before recharging is necessary. The 25 Amp. Reserve Capacity Rating is more realistic than Amp-Hour or CCA as a measurement of capacity for deep cycle service. Batteries promoted on their high Cold Cranking Ratings are easy and inexpensive to build. The market is flooded with them, however their Reserve Capacity, Cycle Life (the number of discharges and charges the battery can deliver) and Service life are poor. Reserve Capacity is difficult and costly to engineer into a battery and requires higher quality cell materials.
For instance, Rolls, Surrette and Lifeline use thicker lead grids (the plate's skeletal structure) to support additional positive plate oxides which are compressed into a denser form in order to add battery reactive material for greater Reserve Capacity and Cycling Performance. In addition, these plates are separated by indestructible separators. These mats hold the active oxides tightly in place during the cubical plate expansion which occurs during deep discharging, instead of allowing the oxides to shed off and precipitate to the bottom of the battery. Construction materials such as those raise the Reserve Capacity of a battery and increase the battery's Cycle Life.
http://www.dcbattery.com/faq.html
Deep Cycle:
Quote: Unfortunately, the term Deep Cycle has been overused by the battery industry as a sales tool to imply a heavy duty product. This has led to confusion and difficulty in battery selection. One must understand that any battery may be termed deep cycle as all batteries may be fully discharged and charged. However, a true deep cycle battery, such as Rolls or Lifeline, is capable of thousands of these hard cycles during its life without losing its capacity. Comparatively, many advertised deep cycle batteries composed of thin plates, excessively porous separators, and low density plate oxides will suffer permanent capacity loss after a few dozen cycles and will shortly sulfate or shed plate material and fail. Batteries without substantial materials designed for true deep-cycling will lose more than half of their capacity after only a few cycles. A 200 Amp-hour battery will shortly become a 100 Amp-hour battery for the remainder of its shortened service life. What initially may seem to be an inexpensive battery to purchase, now costs twice as much per Amp-hour. True Deep cycle batteries will perform well as cranking batteries, however, cranking batteries will not survive deep cycle use.
Deep cycle batteries can be used in any application and exhibit a long service life, while cranking batteries are limited to starting applications only. Cranking batteries exhibit poor service life in cycling applications.
Rating Batteries:
Quote: 1) BATTERY RATINGS
How are batteries rated and what do the ratings mean in battery selection?
ANSWER:
The most common battery rating is the AMP-HOUR RATING. This is a unit of measurement for battery capacity, obtained by multiplying a current flow in amperes by the time in hours of discharge. (Example: A battery which delivers 5 amperes for 20 hours delivers 5 amperes times 20 hours, or 100 ampere-hours.)
Manufacturers use different discharge periods to yield an different Amp-Hr. Rating for the same capacity batteries, therefore, the Amp-Hr. Rating has little significance unless qualified by the number of hours the battery is discharged. For this reason Amp-Hour Ratings are only a general method of evaluating a battery's capacity for selection purposes. The quality of internal components and technical construction within the battery will generate different desired characteristics without effecting its Amp-Hour Rating. For instance, there are 150 Amp-Hour batteries that will not support an electrical load overnight and if called upon to do so repetitively, will fail early in their life. Conversely, there are 150 Amp-Hour batteries that will operate an electrical load for several days before needing recharging and will do so for years. The following ratings must be examined in order to evaluate and select the proper battery for a specific application: COLD CRANKING AMPERAGE and RESERVE CAPACITY are ratings used by the industry to simplify battery selection.
I would spend the money on an AGM. The Interstate that Pleasureway uses is the same one that the Lark Scooters and most electric wheelchairs use.
Its specs will surpass any other style except for perhaps certain Optima batteries that would be heavier and most not likely fit the box Pleasureway uses.
We use Optima's in our Off Road Class VW. In that pounding environment they will only last about two years. The Interstate AGM will last about four years in the Sprinter.
Our Pleasureway's charger does have a smart charge/conditioner built in and the van is kept on shoreline 24/7.
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