Advice on batteries

[vorwart]

Hello Everyone,

I have two different battery choices readily available in my area, but I am having trouble finding enough information to comfortably choose one over the other. I'm hoping that your experiences can help my decission:

My Choices are a Crown 27DC36 (12v 115 AH @ $64.95 each) or an Energizer GC2 (6v 220 AH @ $61.48 each)

I've read some good comments about the Sam's Club golf cart battery here, but no mention of any Crown batteries. The Crown Batteries seem like a good choice, especially after viewing the PDF

They are both pretty close cost per AH after figuring the extra cables needed for the GC2s.

My system will be 12 volt, with somewhere around 1000 AH total storage needed. I have three small turbines (about 100 watts each) and plan to eventually tie in a 50 watt solar panel. This will run my exterior lighting.

Any advice, thoughts, and comments from the more experienced will be much appreciated!

[SamoaPower]

If "... somewhere around 1000 AH total storage needed." is true, then you're going to need a lot more charge source to keep them up if you plan to take much power out of them. It really depends how much power you intend to use.

For example: my 320 Watts solar (enhanced) and a 100 Watt wind machine are just able to keep up a 400Ah bank, using 50Ah per day. I still have to run the mains charger 2-3 times a month.

Crown batteries are an unknown quantity to me. I highly recommend the Trojan T-105 as being the best buy. They've been around a long time and have a good reputation. In any case, golf cart batteries (6 Volt) are generally considered to give better service than 12 Volt types.

See:

http://www.fieldlines.com/story/2006/1/23/8428/49319

[ghurd]

Opinions are like inverters.  Everybody has one.

Anyway, I have a lot better long term results with the ~220AH 6V's, than ~110AH 12V, regardless of brand.

The VERY abused 6Vs in the shop are ~3 years old? Act good as new. Used to kill a like sized set of 110AH 12V every year or so, and back when we were a lot nicer to them than we are now.

I have had similar results from quite a few other systems.

I won't argue about it and did not hook up a watt hour meter... but we get a lot more hours of use at about the same loads from 2 of the 220AH 6V than 2 of the 110AH 12V.

It's a no brainer for me.  Go with the 6Vs.

Also, oversize the battery bank some.  If it needs 4 6V batteries, buy and connect 6 at once.  Many people wish they would have done it that way.

BTW, here, Sam's has gone to 8V golf cart batteries, and the cost per watt-hour went WAY up.  Dang.

They clearanced out the last of the 6V for $18 each. And I missed it. Double Dang.

G-

[Volvo farmer]

Hmmm, I was there two weeks ago and saw a pallet full of 6V ones. They did say Energizer on them but looked just like Exide ones I bought a few years ago.

The other reason to go with 6V is to limit your parallel strings. For 1000 Ahr, about five strings (still too many in my opinion) but much much better than ten batteries in parallel.

[K3CZ]

The comment abt. SAM'S CLUB  discontinuing their 220ah golf cart batts. may not be true across the whole store chain.  I have 2 SAM'S stores abt 10 mi. apart, and one did indeed discontinue the GC2 (Everready 3200, I think) and did not restock.  But, the other did restock with a very similar, but not identical fresh battery line as recently as a month ago.  At $57 with a trade in, they are still a considerably better  price than the Trojan T105 which is pushing $100 in this area.  The T105, with similar ratings, does apparently have a better long-term prognosis, but by the time these GC2's wear out, I will probably be ready to step up to L16's at a much stiffer price per amp-hr., gaining life and firmer voltage for my 4kw-24v system. Good Luck!!  Van  K3CZ

[vorwart]

I'll be requiring around 30 Ah per day (actually night) - most of the 1000Ah will be reserve - that is if I figured correctly. But your right, I may end up considering adding more than just one solar panel - I want enough charge/capacity to be reliable without including a back up.

Very interesting reading in that link: much to think about. Thank you.

[vorwart]

I thought that using 2 6v 220 Ah batteries in series equals 12v 220 Ah? So won't I end up with the same amount of parallel strings?

Forgive my inexperience - I've been reading as much as possible on this and may have crammed too much to keep my facts completely straight. That's where you guys come in - thanks!

[ghurd]

The batteries here are back in a hole. The price caught my eye. $82? Don't remember.

So I went in for a closer look. 8V. About the same measurements.

The 8V was all I needed to see. I can't use 8V.

[Volvo farmer]

You will end up with the same amount of batteries but you will have five parallel strings and five series strings. I also have about 1000Ah of batteries, 700W of solar, and it's barely enough to get through absorbtion somedays.

If you only have one solar panel and no generator or other means to bring these things up over 14.4V every day for a couple hours, I wouldn't use that large a bank.

[ghurd]

They got the 6V 220AH back in. $61.50.

The 8V are 100AH, $73.  Ouch.

G-