What is the best leisure battery

themountaintiger · 29-04-2010, 21:46

Not sure if I should have attached this post to the other, but an easy question for the experienced motorhomers... what is the best leisure battery?? Im thinking of buying a new one as second leisure battery and a replacement one.

After some research Ive found out that 110 is better than 85 and that the deeper charge ones are better, and that gel ones can also be better.

So what are the best batteries I should be buying irrespective of cost

what are the best batteries should i be buying thinking of cost

easy peasy question I know!!

Geo · 29-04-2010, 21:58

Easy

Two schools of thought possibly more

Mine here
Cheap and cheerfull lead acid, easy to maintain, cheap to replace, 110amp £49.00 at the shows this year with two years warranty

If you go the realy deep cycle or gel type you are going to need the correct charging equipment to maintain them, and live and breath battery care
bttery care is the only secret to long long battery life
Flatten em and you will kill em no matter what they cost

Geo

Snowbird · 30-04-2010, 06:22

Heres my tupenyworth, I have had mine now for about 4 years and they are still perfect.
Got them from ebay, they are ex UPS,very expensive new but about £35 used.
Have never had a problem with them,and my solar panels keep them in good condition.
Agree with Geo,if you flatten em,they are goosed no mater what you pay for them.
One of the reasons for buying ex UPS was that they are normaly thiner than normal batteries and I could get an extra one in the locker.
The down side is you have to collect them or get a courier to collect becouse of weight.
The up side is,when you pick these up and compare with normal batteries you know why they are expensive....very heavy.

ScotJimland · 30-04-2010, 07:15

I'm in Geo's camp, cheap and cheerful, I have four 85ah , cost £30 each five years ago and have been used full time for three years.. still going strong.

Don't waste money on GEL. they do not perform as well as FLA's. they are designed for applications where it is imperative that acid and fumes can't escape..

Another con is the warranty , don't pay a premium for a 5 year warranty, because that is all it is, a premium, not a better battery.
If it fails after 4 years you won't get a new battery, you MAY be lucky and get a pro rata discount on a replacement but only if you can prove it wasn't damaged in use, which is nigh on impossible.

Unless you can afford proper heavy duty deep cycle golf cart types such as Trojan, and we are talking serious money, don't waste money on brand names.

Douglas · 30-04-2010, 07:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Geo

Easy

Two schools of thought possibly more

Mine here
Cheap and cheerfull lead acid, easy to maintain, cheap to replace, 110amp £49.00 at the shows this year with two years warranty

If you go the realy deep cycle or gel type you are going to need the correct charging equipment to maintain them, and live and breath battery care
bttery care is the only secret to long long battery life
Flatten em and you will kill em no matter what they cost

Geo

I too strongly agree this, pound for amps lead acid comes out on top every time and for those that don't really understand about the use and maintenance of batteries I would urge you to study the subject, if you live (even part time) in a boat or a motor-home your batteries are the most important piece of equipment you have.

Doug...

Ralph-n-Bev · 30-04-2010, 07:43

We were given 2 Trojan batteries by a mechanic friend of Ralph's.

He fixes fork lifts and diggers etc and services Ralph's pick up .
Ralph's given him stone , blocks and bits n bobs in the past.
They were used , but like new.
We needed them as we found the Webasto (diesel heating ) drained the normal ones over the - temps at Xmas , when we wernt on hook up.
We have a good solar panel fixed to the roof to which keeps them topped up nicely. Ralph says they are brilliant.
The kids and I just use the power oblivious

Bev

JeanLuc · 30-04-2010, 08:05

I am sure many people get excellent results from FLA batteries and can understand their logical choice based on value for money. Here are a couple of thoughts based on my experience.
When we bought it, the Hymer had 2 x 80Ah Exide Gel batteries - it was then four years old. After a couple of years one battery failed and we needed to replace both. I chose Elecsol 110Ah batteries for two reasons: 1. they would fit in the battery tray whereas most FLA batteries that I could find were too high (this can also be a problem when batteries are fitted under seats); 2. Elecsol claim they are capable of deep discharge without harm.
The 5-year guarantee seemed like a good idea too, but I accept that it would probably be "honoured" on the basis of time-discounted value.

I would not consider gel batteries as they are just too expensive for the apparent benefit of not spilling in the event you turn the motorhome over in an accident. Also, don't think that gel batteries will not gas. They will if the charging voltage is too high, or (and this happened to me) if a cell fails. It was the experience of having a van full of Hydrogen Sulphide that made me realise one battery had expired. On this point, whatever batteries you fit, unless they are in an outside vented locker that is sealed from the habitation area, make sure they are fitted with vent tubes. Although Elecsol are described as "sealed", I still have them vented in case of cell failure.

Finally, in answer to your question of "best regardless of cost", I have read that traction batteries (as used in fork-lifts) are the bees knees" but they are very expensive.

Philip