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kmandley

House Batteries

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I've owned a 2001 Damon Ultrasport for about 6 years.  It has six, 6 volt house batteries that now need replacement.  Researching on the internet, it seems that what I'm looking for are golf cart batteries.  Looks like AGM batteries are the least problem in terms of taking care of them, but they're also significantly more expensive.  In flooded cell batteries, I found 210 ah batteries at Costco for $110 plus core exchange, 225 ah Interstate batteries at Camping World for $227 a battery, 215 ah batteries at Batteries Plus for $150 and 230 ah batteries for $170.  So, not being much of a mechanic, and having not had to deal with this before, how important is the 20 ah difference between the Costco battery and the more powerful Batteries Plus version.  I'd love to avoid the extra cost if possible.  I usually am on shore power but occasionally stay in a Wal Mart parking lot as I travel.  

Edited by kmandley
missed a word when i was typing

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Welcome to the forum. I think for your use the ones from Costco should be just fine. I have used Duracell ECG2 batteries and I don't remember where they cane from Sam's or Costco.

Bill

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I have had the Costco/Interstate for 3 1/2 years and they have been doing fine. We don't dry camp a lot except when the CEO decides to "Visit my sister" who lives about a mile from a casino. So we will park for "Free" for several days. Some times those haircuts are expensive.

The best thing for your lead acid batteries is to keep them topped off with water. I have a Flow-Rite system on my 4 batteries and it only takes a short time to fill them, and no mess.

I was set to buy Trojan but I just couldn't justify the cost. I also talked to an Interstate store and asked about the difference between the GC2 that they sell and the Costco/Interstate and he said that they were the same battery but the amp hours are just advertised lower on the Costco. When I bought them at Costco they only had two in stock with the same date on them so he gave me a choice of waiting two days for all four the same or taking potluck.

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I currently run a Newmar Diesel pusher with 4x Costco 6V batteries. They work great, are inexpensive, and easy to source. Of course Interstate batteries are also great.

As others here have pointed out, if you rarely dry camp, it's largely a moot point. Just be sure to maintain the electrolyte level and keep the terminals clean.

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I got 9 years out of my Interstate 225 AH batteries; I replaced them with the 210 AH Interstate batteries from Costco 2 years ago and all is good at this time. I 'll be happy if I get 1/2 the life as my first set.

Jim

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We spend most of the winter off grid with four 6 volt batteries from Sam's Club and 660 watts of solar. If you have easy access to your batteries, go with flooded lead acid batteries.

 

Richard

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