What second batteries do people use ???

Thanks Mundy

The fridge has worked well so far and never hit the low volt cut out. But has never been really tried out on a really hot weekend ! Worst so far would be about 30 Deg C.

So far most of our trips have have been for a weekend and everything has worked really well, I might be cheating a bit as I freeze everything I can in the home freezer and have the waco on freeze the night before turning to normal keep the beer cold temp after adding the frozen stuff.

Fridge doesn't have to do anything for the first day. I think my point would be that the starting battery will be adequate for this style of camping or a long road trip where the vehicle is used daily, or even a starting point for anyone with limited funds.

I'm planning for solar panels and a few batterys in the van soon and the imfo on here is invaluable, the van will proberly get deep cycle (depending on funds).

Thanks again Andrew

Clean32,
If you have a 144Ah starter battery, for 10% discharge you'd get 14Ah usable, for 20% discharge 28Ah. You need to look at the battery specs to see what a particular regular discharge pattern of use does to its recharge cycles. It might cut them down by half possibly (I have no idea; its battery dependent). For a deep cycle giving 28Ah usable based on 70% discharge you'd need a 40Ah battery (in theory).

What you need depends on what type of camping and motoring you do and how many things you connect to it. So, like Adonuff, if you are usually driving every day then a smaller battery will suffice and a large starter battery will probably be OK. An advantage of 2 starter batteries is that, if your main crank battery does cark it, you are likely to be able to start the vehicle with the second battery if its not too discharged. You usually can't do it with a standard deep cycle battery, even if its fully charged, because you can't get the amps out of it.

If you do a lot of camping for days at a time and don't start the car, then a large deep cycle is probably best. Either way, in my view, you need to get the biggest (in Ah) battery you can fit in and afford, which ever type suits your use and risk profile.

Just a technical note so we're all on the same page, an Amp is the rate at which the current flows (like water in litres per second) and AmpHours is the volume or amount of electrical energy used/needed (like 50 litres of water).

Cheers
Mundy

i have two starter batteries would not waste my money on a deep cycle one , when i am out in the caravan i put the second starter battery in the caravan and use a generator for charging etc

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Mundy

Clean32,
If you have a 144Ah starter battery, for 10% discharge you'd get 14Ah usable, for 20% discharge 28Ah. You need to look at the battery specs to see what a particular regular discharge pattern of use does to its recharge cycles. It might cut them down by half possibly (I have no idea; its battery dependent). For a deep cycle giving 28Ah usable based on 70% discharge you'd need a 40Ah battery (in theory).

What you need depends on what type of camping and motoring you do and how many things you connect to it. So, like Adonuff, if you are usually driving every day then a smaller battery will suffice and a large starter battery will probably be OK. An advantage of 2 starter batteries is that, if your main crank battery does cark it, you are likely to be able to start the vehicle with the second battery if its not too discharged. You usually can't do it with a standard deep cycle battery, even if its fully charged, because you can't get the amps out of it.

If you do a lot of camping for days at a time and don't start the car, then a large deep cycle is probably best. Either way, in my view, you need to get the biggest (in Ah) battery you can fit in and afford, which ever type suits your use and risk profile.

Mundy

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thanks for that.

funny thing, we drove up charging the new battery say 1.5 hours, and that night only running the fridge ( which was on mains untill we left and every thing inside was frozen anyway). the next day no start, switched over started then switched back a couple of klms down the road. never had a problem after that.

we ussaly drive everyday eather on the move or doing the traps, we are not much for sitting around ( not with minime)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by clean32

thanks for that, if i have a 144 amp truck type battery what capasity would a deepcycle of the same size be?

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Hi
Sorry I dont have enough experiance with deep cycle batterys to answer ? Some one out there might??

I am fairly sure ( Father was Vic. State manager for Lucas Batterys) that a badly discharged battery will not fully recover to a fully charged state using only the altenator, might at best get 90%. A good slow charge using a battery charger will help it to recover and aid it's lifespan.(I am only applying this to starting batterys).

Dont take my word for this however, but would suggest talking to a good auto elec.(If you can find one), Making sure you give all the details as to what you are going to do to the battery and your expectations?

I always use a hydrometer on my batterys and if they are not in the green after a week end away put them on a long slow trickle charge using a 240 V charger.(Never on the concrete floor, Bad for them).

So far so good, Works so far.

Andrew