Which leisure battery

[David and Judy]

Hello everyone,
We are newbys on this forum and we are hoping for some help choosing leisure batteries. We do over half our camping off grid and from what we have read we should look for AGM batteries with an A rating from NCC and ideally over 100ah.
The two Banner 58001 80ah batteries which fit very snugly under the fixed drivers seat of our Fiat Ducato van conversion need replacing. They appear to be AGM Leisure batteries and NCC give them a C rating (not ideal but better than no rating) but suggest they will provide 350 50% life cycles (which seems quite good).
Our problem is finding replacement AGM batteries that will fit the limited space under our drivers seat. We have not found any NCC A rated batteries that will fit. So far we have found the following options -

https://advancedbatterysupplies.co.uk/product/advanced-agm-lp100-leisure-battery-100ah-12v/ This Advanced LP85 AGM battery will fit, it appears to be AGM and is 100ah .. but has no NCC rating or info on life cycles. I was not impressed when I phoned them for more info.


This dual purpose Fisch 110-AGM Leisure and Marine Battery 12V 110AH may just fit, and is 110ah .. but has no NCC rating. It states 300 life cycles.

Fuller Powerstation 110-AGM Leisure and Marine Battery 12V 110AH 800CCA Sealed from County Battery. Buy Online Today.

Fuller Powerstation 110-AGM Leisure and Marine Battery 12V 110AH 800CCA Sealed is a Leisure and Marine Battery from County Battery. Buy Online before 2pm for free, same day dispatch.

www.countybattery.co.uk

This dual purpose Fuller Powerstation 110-AGM Leisure Battery 12V 110AH may also just fit, but again has no NCC rating. It states 500 life cycles.

On the face of it the Fuller is the best bet if it does give 500 life cycles and if we can find an extra 2mm length (!!) under our seat but we can find little independent information about any of these makes of battery. We would be very grateful to hear from anyone who knows of them and also for any advice that might help us. Our fallback option is to buy Banner 58001 batteries again.

Many thanks.

 

[Jim]

Hi David and Judy
Just to let you know that you aren't being ignored. Your post has only just this minute gone live. We manually check and approve new members' first few posts that have links within just to ensure they are not spammers. Your post was just approved; people can see it now Thanks.

 

[funflair]

Hi David and Judy

Welcome to Fun,

Re batteries, you won't find many fans of AGM batteries on here I'm afraid, other than the physical size the next thing you need to check is what your charger will charge, if it has a Gel setting I would go for those unless you really want to splash some cash and go LiFePO4.

I believe that a good guide to a decent battery is it's weight and for example an Exide 80ah ES900 Gel battery weighs 27kg compared the the 100ah example you have highlighted that is a mere 23kg so what's missing? they have also managed to get all this power into a smaller case than Exide who in my book know a thing or two about batteries. Of course Gel's are more expensive but I think you get what you pay for.

Martin

 

[Kannon Fodda]

You'll find that many funsters don't like AGM. The claimed and actual performance are often markedly different. Interestingly the Banner site suggests your current batteries are orientated to Stop Start engine use, rather than leisure. Stop start is likely to involve lots of high loads for very short periods. Leisure use requires prolonged gradual discharge followed by a recharge.

The next issue is depth of discharge itself. The traditional lead-acid batteries can only be used to around 1/2 their full capacity. Yes you can use more but the battery lifespan will be diminish and full discharge very likely to be damaging. You also need to look at the rate of discharge. More expensive than lead-acid or AGM is GEL and those can usually be taken down to around 20% of capacity, with higher loads. GEL can be the happy medium.

The "mutts nuts" has to be Lithium. That can stand lots of deep discharges, often at higher loads. It comes at a cost. But, for some one larger LifeP04 might offer the capacity and load, that for the space (and weight) needed it is a better deal than the batteries needed from Lead-Acid, AGM or even GEL.

With any battery you need to be sure your charger systems - engine, electric hook up (EHU), solar, are compatible. Some chargers will have settings that can be altered to suit the battery type. If off gridding, the rate of recharge will be important, be it solar or engine. Just driving for 1/2 hour isn't going to restore a heavy discharge. Just as you have a discharge rate on a battery it also has a recharge rate, and appropriate voltages look after the battery.

Would one big battery fit better than trying to get two small batteries into the space?

 

[Phill D]

Hi welcome, i dont have the deep pockets needed for LifeP0 batteries so i favor Gel over wet lead acid or AGM which are primarily designed for stop start vehicle use.

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[Richard n Ann]

Another vote for Exide gel batteries I took the advice on here and our new gel battery is awesome

 

[Phill D]

Another vote for Exide gel batteries I took the advice on here and our new gel battery is awesome

not wanting to hyjack the thread but which exide and size did you buy and where from please?

 

[Lenny HB]

Firstly forget about the NCC approved battery list it is total boll*cks they do not test the batteries just rely on the manufacturer's figures. If you use the forum search there are several threads about how useless the scheme is.

AGM batteries are really bad news for leisure use and Banners are the worst, they are not suitable for leisure use.

Depending on the options on your charger are will determine what type of battery you can fit. I take it you need a low profile battery.

If your charger supports Gel they would be the best option either an Exide ES 900 or Sonnenschein GF12065Y, almost identical spec & both made in the Sonnenschein factory.

If it doesn't support Gel it should support Flooded Cells and a good option there would be a Varta LDF90.

 

[Bobby-gg]

Exactly what Lenny HB said above, ignore the NCC advice

But if you fancy some late night reading before making your decision

Battery Technology Advances mean big savings and better batteries for Caravans/Motorhomes

The best Leisure Battery is also one of the cheapest - Powerframe Varta LFD90 and Bosch L5. A Deep cycling and Starter battery in one.

www.aandncaravanservices.co.uk

I've used a pair of Varta LDF90's on my previous van without issues, and only went with an efb battery on my current van as I only have space for one.

 

[Phill D]

the varta is a very good battery but will need venting and may not be suitable for underseat location.

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[David and Judy]

Thanks for all the replies so far. After all the articles we have read we are surprised to see the negative comments about AGM batteries which we thought allowed more discharge. We have considered Gel but it is also difficult to find Gel batteries that will fit under our seat.
The dimensions need to be within 317mm long, 175mm wide and 190mm high so the Exide ES900 is too long. Also worth mentioning we have a single solar panel.

 

[ambulancekidd]

 

[Bobby-gg]

Thanks for all the replies so far. After all the articles we have read we are surprised to see the negative comments about AGM batteries which we thought allowed more discharge. We have considered Gel but it is also difficult to find Gel batteries that will fit under our seat.
The dimensions need to be within 317mm long, 175mm wide and 190mm high so the Exide ES900 is too long. Also worth mentioning we have a single solar panel.

AGM's have fallen out of favour as no one was told about their specific charging requirements

You can fit a pair of Varta LDF60's in the space you've available

 

[Lenny HB]

Thanks for all the replies so far. After all the articles we have read we are surprised to see the negative comments about AGM batteries which we thought allowed more discharge. We have considered Gel but it is also difficult to find Gel batteries that will fit under our seat.
The dimensions need to be within 317mm long, 175mm wide and 190mm high so the Exide ES900 is too long. Also worth mentioning we have a single solar panel.

Are you sure about that as the 3 batteries I mentioned are all 353mm long and loads of manufacturers fit them under Fiat Ducato seats.

 

[Richard n Ann]

not wanting to hyjack the thread but which exide and size did you buy and where from please?

The 80ah one has a new name now, maybe the ES900 I think. Got it from Tayna batteries mail order for about 170

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[Speve]

Hello and welcome
Of course if you are not strapped for cash you could consider lithium ? But that is very expensive.

 

[David and Judy]

Are you sure about that as the 3 batteries I mentioned are all 353mm long and loads of manufacturers fit them under Fiat Ducato seats.

It's possible one of those might fit, but I'm pretty sure 2 won't

 

[ManTheVan]

Try batterymasters for a LiFePO4 replacement. They are more expensive but work out cheaper in the long run, for leisure batteries, as they are true deep-discharge units and can be recharged from deep discharge many many times. They also weigh about half of the equivalent lead-based alternatives and there are no gassing issues.

 

[poppycamper]

Try batterymasters for a LiFePO4 replacement. They are more expensive but work out cheaper in the long run, for leisure batteries, as they are true deep-discharge units and can be recharged from deep discharge many many times. They also weigh about half of the equivalent lead-based alternatives and there are no gassing issues.

They also can be fitted on their sides or ends.. Therefore maybe allowing you fit a larger one than you could a conventional battery... Even maybe squeeze two in if you need that much power and are prepared to fork out that much for them.

 

[WynandJean]

Hello and welcome from West Midlands.

Wyn

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[Dazzlin]

These Varta and Bosch batteies are the size you are looking at and AGM.

F21 Varta Silver Dynamic Start-Stop Plus AGM Car Battery 12V 80Ah (580901080) (110 AGM)

F21 VARTA Silver Dynamic AGM Car Battery <i>Innovation with Purpose, Premium Experience, Powerful History</i> VARTA was founded in 1887 Germany, and was established fully in 1904 by delivering the first electric vehicle battery, famously driven by Thomas Edison. Soon after, VARTA delivers the...

www.tayna.co.uk

S5 A11 Bosch AGM Car Battery 12V 80Ah Type 115 S5A11

S5 A11 Bosch Car S5 Battery - AGM (Absorbent Glass Mat) Bosch Group are one of the leading battery manufacturer companies in the world and have been delivering quality German engineering in the automotive industry for more than 100 years! Bosch is a world renown company name that have and still...

www.tayna.co.uk

Many on here do not like AGM, but we had 2 Leoch AGM batteries for nearly 5 years while full timing in our van. We very rarely used hook up and relied on solar, but, we did have a dedicated AGM charge setting on the Votronic solar regulator.

AGM need to be charged at up to 14.7/14.8v and will give good service if charged correctly. Most motorhome onboard chargers do not provide this.

I would have AGM batteries again.

Edit - just found this made by Leoch and just a few mm smaller.

Xtreme Start Stop Series XR-1600 AGM Battery 80Ah 1600A XR1600

Xtreme Batteries are extremely high power dual purpose batteries made by Leoch. They can be used as starter batteries and are suitable for vehicles with start-stop technology due to being AGM. They can also be used for deep cycling purposes. Features of the Xtreme range:- <li>Durable and...

www.tayna.co.uk

 

[ManTheVan]

BTW, if you become paid members you’ll be able to post more than the maximum 5 as free members. It is worth the subscription and you also get access to the online monthly magazine.

 

[Lenny HB]

It's possible one of those might fit, but I'm pretty sure 2 won't

2 should fit if not you fit one under the other seat.

 

[MitchandJenny]

VARTA.
Mitch.

 

[lukebolger]

Hey guys,

I'm looking for a new leisure battery as mine is shot.

I don't know if my charger supports gel or not. How would I know? I would be mainly charging it via the solar and driving through the alternator

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[Phill D]

Your solar controller/regulator will have selector key / keys depending upon what model it is.
It will be visible externally on the controller.

 

[Lenny HB]

Hey guys,

I'm looking for a new leisure battery as mine is shot.

I don't know if my charger supports gel or not. How would I know? I would be mainly charging it via the solar and driving through the alternator

Tell us the charger make & model.

Your solar controller/regulator will have selector key / keys depending upon what model it is.
It will be visible externally on the controller.

Only on some, CBE chargers which are fitted to a lot of vans you have to remove the cover to select battery type.

 

[IRHP]

Anyone have any thoughts or experience of lead carbon agm?

 

[Lenny HB]

Anyone have any thoughts or experience of lead carbon agm?

Nope but they are not a lot cheaper than Lithium and anything to do with AGM I steer clear of.

 

[Stealaway]

Hey guys,

I'm looking for a new leisure battery as mine is shot.

I don't know if my charger supports gel or not. How would I know? I would be mainly charging it via the solar and driving through the alternator

I like Hankook

Leisure Batteries - Cheap Leisure Battery - Next Day Delivery

Looking for a Leisure Battery? We have the largest range of leisure batteries in the UK, stocking all of the large brands such as Varta and Exide. We offer next day delivery across the UK and we also offer fast delivery across Europe at very competitive rates.

www.tayna.co.uk

Hankook Leisure Batteries - Leisure Batteries

Tayna Batteries supply all types of Leisure Batteries. Browse our full range of Hankook Leisure Batteries here. We aim to be the cheapest supplier of Hankook Leisure Batteries in the UK.

www.tayna.co.uk

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