Matching two leisure batteries (1 Viewer)

[Stewart]

I have a Banner 115/135 leisure battery that was fitted in June 2016. I would now like to fit a second leisure battery and I recollect reading that they should be identical and the same age i.e. both new. How critical is this? I am more than happy to get another Banner of the same spec., although I am a bit reluctant to buy two and discard the nearly new one.

 

[icantremember]

If it was me, I would put in two new batteries and sell the older one.

 

[Boringfrog]

I would say just get another Banner, make sure the older one is fully charged before fitting the new one.

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[pappajohn]

Size/capacity doesn't matter.
Manufacturer doesn't matter.
Age isn't critical if one is only a year or so old unless it's been repeatedly deep discharged..
Don't mix lead acid/gel/agm....they charge in different ways.
Don't throw old batteries away.....the scrapman will give you around £8 each.

 

[Hotelman]

Size/capacity doesn't matter.
Manufacturer doesn't matter.
Age isn't critical if one is only a year or so old unless it's been repeatedly deep discharged..
Don't mix lead acid/gel/agm....they charge in different ways.
Don't throw old batteries away.....the scrapman will give you around £8 each.

Take your old batteries to Mallory at Seamer, you’ll get more than £8. It’s a cheque, to avoid ‘illegal transactions ‘ ! !

 

[pappajohn]

Take your old batteries to Mallory at Seamer, you’ll get more than £8. It’s a cheque, to avoid ‘illegal transactions ‘ ! !

Been a while since I took any but £8 back then.
I believe it's a cheque to stop the 'pi keys' bringing in stolen copper etc.
They already have my personal details on record.

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[Ivory55]

You can take the cheque to cash converters if you’re worried about it going through your bank.

 

[pappajohn]

You can take the cheque to cash converters if you’re worried about it going through your bank.

And get a 30% service charge !!!!

 

[Ivory55]

Depends how much you have to avoid the bank or traceability. Some people need this type of service.

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[two]

I have a Banner 115/135 leisure battery that was fitted in June 2016. I would now like to fit a second leisure battery and I recollect reading that they should be identical and the same age i.e. both new. How critical is this? I am more than happy to get another Banner of the same spec., although I am a bit reluctant to buy two and discard the nearly new one.

There’s a lot of mixed opinion about this. Matched batteries are most important when placed in series than in parallel, in theory, but I have found that mis-matched batteries seem to fail prematurely. If you put a new battery with a duff one, the duff one will absorb energy from the good one and reduce the performance of the good one. So my simple thinking is that even a poor battery will have some detrimental effect on the rest. Ideally, identical batteries are best. If you don’t use identical batteries I believe you will be compromising the combined output to a degree (but I have no measure of by how much). If I had a battery that was relatively new, I might get another the exactly same as a partner but recongise that they may fail together at the demise of the oldest. Its life may have already been shortened if it has been through many deep discharges and, if there was any doubt about its history, I’d rather buy all new in that case. So I am with Brian (#2) on this one.

 

[Lenny HB]

I added a third battery to my one year old Gel's not shure I would have done the same with flooded cells. I would be tempted to replace the Banner with a couple decent batteries such as Varta.

 

[Pausim]

I would buy a second identical battery. Banner lead acid leisure batteries have heavy duty plates and it should still be in good condition after one year. When the Caravan Club cut several batteries open a few years ago, they only found 2 makes that were proper leisure batteries rather than re-labelled starter batteries. Banner was one of the 2.

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[Stewart]

I think I will do just that, Pausim - buy an identical battery and keep the original. The existing battery has never been deeply discharged and the solar panel keeps it topped up all the time. Thank you all for your input.
As an aside, I bought the Banner because the Caravan Club comments.

 

[Stewart]

Continuing on this subject, where can I get good battery terminals that will take two heavy current cables and the various other smaller cables from solar panel etc.?

 

[PhilandMena]

Agree with other! Buy a second identical battery and if your first one has been reasonably well looked after you will be fine. You may just want to confirm your onboard charger is man enough to deal with the combined Amps.

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[PhilandMena]

Continuing on this subject, where can I get good battery terminals that will take two heavy current cables and the various other smaller cables from solar panel etc.?

Here you go.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/Leisure-Ba...Motorhome-2x-3way/1583165810?iid=401182827948

 

[Stewart]

That is what I am using at the moment. I guess I can double up on the 8mm fitting. It always seems strange to me that I use a cable big enough to pull the Queen Mary and I fit it to the battery post with an 8mm bolt.