Thread: Marine batteries as starter and auxilliary batteries? Any good?

I've been using a Supercharge AllRounder hybrid starter 760 CCA /deep cell (105AH). Don't use it other than for starting. Have a second one in the back charged with a Drivesafe SCR80 magic box to run the fridge/lights/laptop etc. No winches etc...yet

I have been running a marine battery in my D2 for about 18 months no problems. From memory it is about 720 CCA and 100Ah. Bought it because was the cheapest option for those specifications. The guy at Supercheap (not necessarily an expert on batteries) said it would be fine and it has been. I have it to start the, but also to run the fridge/ lights overnight when we go camping.

My 2nd battery is a century marine battery[runs fridge 7 days a week]and led roof lights[seldom used], purchased at supercrap with a 24 month warranty and $9 cheaper than there deepcycle with i think 6 month warranty. I use a abr sidewinder isolater[$79] with an over ride switch and led and would gladly reccomend

Originally Posted by redrovertdi

My 2nd battery is a century marine battery[runs fridge 7 days a week]and led roof lights[seldom used], purchased at supercrap with a 24 month warranty and $9 cheaper than there deepcycle with i think 6 month warranty. I use a abr sidewinder isolater[$79] with an over ride switch and led and would gladly reccomend

Cheers, I think I'm just about to go to battery world and buy two of them, they'll match BCF's special of $183.20 each (I'll try and beat them down more ).

I'm planning to just keep the starter and auxilliary batteries the same, as they'll both need high current for the winch, good to know they are suitable as deep cycle too

Cheers
Will

Hi Will

The prolem with deep cycling batteries is that they cant release their charge as quickly as cranking batteries. Similarly the cranking batteries don't like being discharged too low.

Most battery manufacturers have batteries in their range that give good all round performance with cranking/winching and deep cycling.

e.g. in Exide Orbital ORBITAL SEALED DEEP CYCLE AND STARTING



I just bought 4 batteries for my FFR from a battery wholesaler. 2 X US made 12" deep cycling and 2 X N70ZZ (12") the lot for $520. He would probably sell them to your Dad's business but not direct to the public.

Originally Posted by Lotz-A-Landies

Hi Will

The prolem with deep cycling batteries is that they cant release their charge as quickly as cranking batteries. Similarly the cranking batteries don't like being discharged too low.

Most battery manufacturers have batteries in their range that give good all round performance with cranking/winching and deep cycling.

e.g. in Exide Orbital ORBITAL SEALED DEEP CYCLE AND STARTING



I just bought 4 batteries for my FFR from a battery wholesaler. 2 X US made 12" deep cycling and 2 X N70ZZ (12") the lot for $520. He would probably sell them to your Dad's business but not direct to the public.

Hi Diana,

Yeah that's what I've been reading up on, hence I'm leaning strongly towards marine batteries, for their high CCA and deep cycle capability.

Any chance of getting the whole-saler's details off you?

Thanks
Will

Hi (again) Will,

The spiral wound batteries such as the one Diana points out are really very good. Their robustness and high CCA for their size are probably their best attributes, on the down side the comparable AH rating when compared to a N70 is small.
The Exide orbital has a rating of 50 AH (20 Hr rate) which is about half that of your average N70 4WD battery so keep this in mind when dimensioning your system.
A big (and often overlooked) advantage with spiral wound batteries is their fast charging capability. Where a 'normal' battery may take 6-8 hours or more to fully charge from half flat the spiral wound battery will fully charge in 1-2 hours (with a capable charging system). This can be really important when camping and moving on in short hops.
I used 66 AH Optima spiral wound batteries on the Oka for several years and they are the only batteries I have used that have lasted more than 2 years without failing due to the vibration of travelling on outback dirt roads.
I replaced the Optimas with a pair of SuperCharge marine batteries earlier this year before travelling outback including the Anne Beadell 'highway', which IMO is the worst corrugated road/track in the country, using the Optimas as my 3rd or 'house' battery. All batteries lasted the distance without failure. I think I paid about $165 each for the new SuperCharge marine batteries. Marine batteries are typically better braced internally than auto batteries making them more suited to rough terrain driving. Also they tend to be more of a 'semi' deep cycle battery which is also useful when camping/touring.
Caterpillar brand batteries are reputed to be extremely robust and very suitable for off road use but I have not used these.

Deano

Originally Posted by DeanoH

Hi (again) Will,

The spiral wound batteries such as the one Diana points out are really very good. Their robustness and high CCA for their size are probably their best attributes, on the down side the comparable AH rating when compared to a N70 is small.
The Exide orbital has a rating of 50 AH (20 Hr rate) which is about half that of your average N70 4WD battery so keep this in mind when dimensioning your system.
A big (and often overlooked) advantage with spiral wound batteries is their fast charging capability. Where a 'normal' battery may take 6-8 hours or more to fully charge from half flat the spiral wound battery will fully charge in 1-2 hours (with a capable charging system). This can be really important when camping and moving on in short hops.
I used 66 AH Optima spiral wound batteries on the Oka for several years and they are the only batteries I have used that have lasted more than 2 years without failing due to the vibration of travelling on outback dirt roads.
I replaced the Optimas with a pair of SuperCharge marine batteries earlier this year before travelling outback including the Anne Beadell 'highway', which IMO is the worst corrugated road/track in the country, using the Optimas as my 3rd or 'house' battery. All batteries lasted the distance without failure. I think I paid about $165 each for the new SuperCharge marine batteries. Marine batteries are typically better braced internally than auto batteries making them more suited to rough terrain driving. Also they tend to be more of a 'semi' deep cycle battery which is also useful when camping/touring.
Caterpillar brand batteries are reputed to be extremely robust and very suitable for off road use but I have not used these.

Deano

Hi again Deano

I have looked into the spiral wound fibreglass mat batterys such as the optimas, however the gigantic purchase price quickly made me look elsewhere.

This is what I'm thinking about: http://www.bcf.com.au/online-store/p...m=571491#Cross

Battery World have told me they'll meet/beat this price, so two marine batteries for the price of 1 optima sounds pretty tempting...

Cheers
Will