Last year we purchased an Everstart Maxx 31 group battery from Walmart for $70 and I guess it did us OK, but before a year was up it would no longer charge. Cutting to chase, I need to buy a new battery for our pop-up and I want to buy a decent one this year, but don't want to waste money on more than I need. Our pop up has a fridge, lights, may use the heater fan some, can't really think of anything else... we never camp more than 3 nights...
I'd love anyone's feedback who may have similiar power usage as us...
Thanks all!
Desera
'00 Coachmen 1280
I have great success with Interstate batteries on both my boat deep cycle trolling motor and on the popup. I buy mine at Gander Mountain stores, but they are available nationwide. http://www.interstatebatteries.com/cs_estore/
I've had a few Wal-Mart deep cycle batteries, and like yours after a year or so they just give up. I also have Group 24 batteries in other brands that have more power than a WM Group 27. I won't buy a Wal-Mart deep cycle again...
My parents camper has 2 Energizer Group 27's that they got at Sams Club, and they hold a charge for a looong time.
I've had very good luck with Interstate Batteries. They stand behind their product - I had a warranty issue with one and they made it right. I have one that is on it's third or fourth season and still going strong.
http://www.interstatebatteries.com/cs_eStore/content/product_info/marine.asp?id=RVs
A second brand that has worked well for me is Deka.
http://www.eastpenn-deka.com/default.aspx?pageid=480
The best RV battery out there is an Optima Blue-Top, but at almost $200 it's very expensive.
http://www.optimabatteries.com/optima_products/bluetop/specs.php
I hope this helped!
Batteries are a coin toss no matter what you buy. Basically.....you get what you pay for.
If you want a cheap battery, go to a big box store. If you want a little less risk, I also vote for Interstate (they are definitely a step up) but it will cost you a little more.
I hate fussing with batteries and I don't like being concerned about counting watts, turning off lights and freezing my ares off in the middle of the night.
I spent extra to have the best batteries that I could find and a decent solar system to keep them charged. In the long run, I think we each spend about the same, it's just a matter of how many times that you want to have "New" batteries........:p
Go out, buy a battery (or 2) and don't lose too much sleep over it.
I only have room on the tounge for one battery and the knowledge for dealing with one battery... so, with just one battery... which group size should I get? Looks like I'm going to go with Interstate (unsure if I'm going to splurge for the optima or not). Either way - advice on group size for regular insterstate and for optima?
Thanks again, I've tried reading the "specs" and that's overwhelming - I just want someone to point and I'll buy :p
Thanks!
Des
It's been my experience that battery care is far more important than battery brand.
Its just as easy to ruin an expensive battery as a cheap one.
Deep cycle. If your box/tray is big enough for a 31, continue with a 31 if you can find one.
Call the local interstate store and ask about blemished battery.
Last time I checked Sam's, they sold interstate deep cycle.
I'm with Wayne - I love Interstate batteries
How about joining the 21st Century and moving on? Lead acid batteries are so...canvas tent! Get an AGM battery like the ones OPTIMA makes.
There are many advantages to an AGM battery vs. lead acid. My house battery is an optima and now I realize that my cars should be too. Costco carries them.
If the battery is only a year old, it should be under some type of warranty...take it back to Wally World and exchange it for a new one. Make sure that you take the receipt so that you can prove when you bought the battery.
Take care of the replacement and save your coins so that when it dies, you'll be able to upgrade to the interstate or optima of your choice.
Just my .02
An AGM or Absorbed Glass Mat is a type of lead-acid battery. There are distinct advantages and disadvantages to all three of the main lead-acid battery types being manufactured and sold today. (Flooded cell, Gel-Cell, and AGM.) For a pretty good comparison of the different technologies, I found this site helpful when I was looking to make the same decision last year.
http://blog.batteryweb.com/blogroll/vrla-vs-gel-vs-agm-heres-the-answers/2009-07-13 (//%22http://blog.batteryweb.com/blogroll/vrla-vs-gel-vs-agm-heres-the-answers/2009-07-13%22)
We ended up going with a set of Trojan T-105s.
Ran down to the interstate batteries warehouse near my house for a battery. The gentleman working in the store didn't feel the optima was worth the extra money for just a pop up w/ the few battery draining devices we have and said he advised just going with the group 29 battery. Then I asked if he happened to have a "blemish" battery. He happened to have one left, it has a small gash in the plastic, nothing but cosmetic - assured me it was perect. I walked out paying $38 INCLUDING the $10 core. WOW. Thanks Coach for the advice - I'd never even heard of them!
Desera
'00 Coachman 1280
With the exception of the Deka's and the Trojan's all of the brands of batteries that have been mentioned are manufactured by JCI (Johnson Controls Inc). I sell their batteries and a factory rep told me main difference is the label. As said before maintenance is the key to long life.
http://www.themanufacturer.com/us/profile/204/Johnson_Controls (//%22http://www.themanufacturer.com/us/profile/204/Johnson_Controls%22)
Glad you got a deal on a blemmie
I heard about em on a forum, They've never had the right size for me!
Quote from: Rauch0812;217012Ran down to the interstate batteries warehouse near my house for a battery. The gentleman working in the store didn't feel the optima was worth the extra money for just a pop up w/ the few battery draining devices we have and said he advised just going with the group 29 battery. Then I asked if he happened to have a "blemish" battery. He happened to have one left, it has a small gash in the plastic, nothing but cosmetic - assured me it was perect. I walked out paying $38 INCLUDING the $10 core. WOW. Thanks Coach for the advice - I'd never even heard of them!
Desera
'00 Coachman 1280
Rauch, I'd never buy anything from "Coach" again, since he seems to not have any experience about using Optima batteries. Using my Optima for a 200W stereo and three light fixtures is a similar use for your popup application. I have used lead-acid and AGM, for motorcycles and house battery use, and I'd NEVER go back to lead-acid batteries for either application, there are simply too many good reasons not too. My Optima will long outlast a lead-acid battery, twice as long or longer yet it doesn't cost twice as much (including a $20 rebate). My Optima battery never needs a battery box since it doesn't leak liquid sulfuric acid that can corrode and damage paint, metal, plastic and wood. My Optima battery charges twice as fast as a lead-acid battery without damage. My Optima battery doesn't degas H2, so it can be safely stored in my garage or used in an unvented enclosure. My Optima battery is smaller and weighs less, so it costs less to transport and takes up less room to store. The place where lead-acid batteries shine is if you have room for two 6-volt golf cart batteries wired in series to make 12V. The added capacity of the golf cart batteries due to their cost makes two of them superior to AGM, providing you have the storage capacity to house two 6V batteries and a leakproof, vented enclosure.
Quote from: tplife;217000How about joining the 21st Century and moving on... Get an AGM battery like the ones OPTIMA makes.
I posted about Optima's a few posts above yours. I agree with you 100% Optima batteries are the best if you can afford them.
Then you posted "Rauch, I'd never buy anything from "Coach" again, since he seems to not have any experience about using Optima batteries."
Rauch0812 bought
nothing from Coach. No need to bash
him for "not having any experience about using Optima batteries". Coach merely suggested looking for a "blemished" battery to save some money. The gentleman working in the store Rauch0812
went to didn't feel the optima was worth the extra money and sold them an Interstate.
The advice in your last post was spot-on, and 100% accurate.
I am not trying to start a fight here, just try reading more clearly what others have posted and maybe try to word stuff a little less abrasively. This is the 21st century after all...
Quote from: copcarguy;217081I posted about Optima's a few posts above yours. I agree with you 100% Optima batteries are the best if you can afford them.
Then you posted "Rauch, I'd never buy anything from "Coach" again, since he seems to not have any experience about using Optima batteries."
Rauch0812 bought nothing from Coach. No need to bash him for "not having any experience about using Optima batteries". Coach merely suggested looking for a "blemished" battery to save some money. The gentleman working in the store Rauch0812 went to didn't feel the optima was worth the extra money and sold them an Interstate.
The advice in your last post was spot-on, and 100% accurate.
I am not trying to start a fight here, just try reading more clearly what others have posted and maybe try to word stuff a little less abrasively. This is the 21st century after all...
My grandmother said, "If you can't stand the heat, stay OUT of the kitchen!". (She was a century ahead of her time!)
"The gentleman working in the store didn't feel the optima was worth the extra money for just a pop up w/ the few battery draining devices we have and said he advised just going with the group 29 battery. "The advice "Coach" gave shows he has no experience with the AGM-type batteries. He said the Optima was not cost-effective, or not a better value for a low-draw application. That's clearly bogus considering the proven performance of AGM batteries for a variety of reasons, low draw or high. And that was before I had one and discovered from experience that all the claims were true. Even if you can't afford them, you're paying more in the long run for a lead-acid application, outside of dual golf-cart batteries. That's not from me but from the RV users. Nobody is here to fight, but we'are all here to share information based on experience and good advice.
:tent:
Quote from: tplife;217111My grandmother said, "If you can't stand the heat, stay OUT of the kitchen!". (She was a century ahead of her time!)
"The gentleman working in the store didn't feel the optima was worth the extra money for just a pop up w/ the few battery draining devices we have and said he advised just going with the group 29 battery. "
The advice "Coach" gave shows he has no experience with the AGM-type batteries. He said the Optima was not cost-effective, or not a better value for a low-draw application. That's clearly bogus considering the proven performance of AGM batteries for a variety of reasons, low draw or high. And that was before I had one and discovered from experience that all the claims were true. Even if you can't afford them, you're paying more in the long run for a lead-acid application, outside of dual golf-cart batteries. That's not from me but from the RV users. Nobody is here to fight, but we'are all here to share information based on experience and good advice.
:tent:
The only advice he gave was looking into a blemmished battery and location...not type ,a specific size or anything else.
Give him a break. :%
Quote from: tplife;217111My grandmother said, "If you can't stand the heat, stay OUT of the kitchen!". (She was a century ahead of her time!)
Did she teach ya anything about the truth?
I think this was my advise
'It's been my experience that battery care is far more important than battery brand.'
I regret you decided to be misinformed and miss quite.
I still think the OP got a deal @ $38. I wish optimas where so reasonable priced.
Yikes... just for the record I did ask for a blemish optima while I was at the INTERSTATE BATTERY STORE and he had already sold the last one. So then it came down to $250 or so for the Optima or $38 for the blemish group 29 marine battery... I took the $38 since the man AT THE STORE thought it worked out to be the better deal.
As for battery care I purchased one of the battery minders a few years ago that run about $160 to try to take good care of my batteries. So care was a big part in my decision... we have two other boat batteries that need to be placed on the charger along with the camper battery (hubby will somehow run the together - that's above my head) but you can not mix battery types on the same charger. So, my hope is that we take good care of our $38 battery and it works out well for us and we still don't have to purchase another battery charger.
I think I got a great deal (of course only time will tell - but worth a shot either way) and I was VERY appreciative of Coach's advice.
Desera
Quote from: Rauch0812;217118Yikes... just for the record I did ask for a blemish optima while I was at the INTERSTATE BATTERY STORE and he had already sold the last one. So then it came down to $250 or so for the Optima or $38 for the blemish group 29 marine battery... I took the $38 since the man AT THE STORE thought it worked out to be the better deal.
As for battery care I purchased one of the battery minders a few years ago that run about $160 to try to take good care of my batteries. So care was a big part in my decision... we have two other boat batteries that need to be placed on the charger along with the camper battery (hubby will somehow run the together - that's above my head) but you can not mix battery types on the same charger. So, my hope is that we take good care of our $38 battery and it works out well for us and we still don't have to purchase another battery charger.
I think I got a great deal (of course only time will tell - but worth a shot either way) and I was VERY appreciative of Coach's advice.
Desera
Once again you prove my point. OPTIMA AGM bateries have no "care" required other than don't discharge below the minimum voltage. I have 4 2Amp "battery tenders" float-chargind my Hog, my House Battery, my wife's BMW, and a "spare" for the other cars, they are less than $15.00 at WalMart. And I bought my Optima new for $120.00. $160.00 for a float charger and $250 for an Optima batter? "Coach" must be putting his kids through college at the prices he charges and the advice he give folks...
Quote from: tplife;217133"Coach" must be putting his kids through college at the prices he charges and the advice he give folks...
WOW
still not getting it... :eyecrazy: Scary.
Coach, I'll take 3 Optima Blue-Tops and 2 Interstate Group 27's from your "store". LOL
Quote from: copcarguy;217138WOW still not getting it... :eyecrazy: Scary.
Coach, I'll take 3 Optima Blue-Tops and 2 Interstate Group 27's from your "store". LOL
Sir, would you like a $160.00 Battery-minder for each one of those batteries? Looks like my youngest is going to need braces... :theking:
Quote from: copcarguy;217138WOW still not getting it... :eyecrazy: Scary.
Coach, I'll take 3 Optima Blue-Tops and 2 Interstate Group 27's from your "store". LOL
Hey, tp get a life.
I don't sell batteries and I wish you'd stop associating the comments made by some sales person with me.
It makes the rest of your info drivel when you misquote and slander.
Quote from: coach;217146Hey, tp get a life.
I don't sell batteries and I wish you'd stop associating the comments made by some sales person with me.
It makes the rest of your info drivel when you misquote and slander.
coach.................coach..........:banghead:
Get a grip.....no one
was paying any attention to him............the operative word being......"WAS".....:rolleyes:
Quote from: coach;217146Hey, tp get a life.
I don't sell batteries and I wish you'd stop associating the comments made by some sales person with me.
It makes the rest of your info drivel when you misquote and slander.
Written word = libel
speaking = slander
Just for clarity ;) Carry on
Sorry, I thought the discussion topic was about batteries. Saving money on them can be distracting, but I'll focus here alone with on the picayune.
:sombraro:
Coach: Sr. RV Club Battery Adviser
Store clerk: Pimple-faced kid who uses lots of batteries in his Nintendo DS
Tplife: Camping fanatic who researches too late into the night
Wavery: Pirate Snorkeler
Rauch: Camping World stalker and Deep Pocket Gotta-have-it dude
CopCarGuy, Oreo & GrifsDad: Seriously Into the details
And a supporting cast of characters...
:swear: :J :Y :rolleyes: