Battery question

[Dvajax1776]

I have the chance to get to 105 amp hour batteries 12 volt for $150 they are both holding 12.93 volts of power. is this a good deal also what solar panels charge controller and inverter would y'all recommend.


Andy

 

[highdesertranger]

we need more info.
how many batteries? never mind I see 2.
are they true deep cycle or marine?
what do you want to run with the inverter?
12.93 is a little high for resting voltage, are you sure it wasn't just taken off a charger?
2 watts of solar per 1 amp hour of battery is a good ration. but the more solar the better.
150 is to high for used marine batteries in my book
highdesertranger

 

[Dvajax1776]

AGM 2x 12v 105 Ah batteries is a bad deal.

 

[Dvajax1776]

They look like this.

 

[Dvajax1776]

Sorry

 

[B and C]

Are those telecom batteries?
How long were they in service?
If you have a link it would help.
Not much info to go on here in cyberville.

 

[regis101]

Ya makes yer choices and ya pays yer money, but I'm shaking my head.

The OP post appears to have limited info about the 12v side of life ? Please correct me if I'm wrong.

Just some thoughts.

 

[B and C]

Yep, not all AGM's are created equal. That is why I was trying to find out who made them. New AGM's that size can go for between $200-$400 each. A good one from a telecom place that was very seldom cycled would be a good purchase. I got mine at 5 years old and they have worked well.

 

[Dvajax1776]

I know nothing but what I've read about solar. Only 12v knowledge I have is from car repair. I was a electronics tech in the Navy but nothing that low power.

Andy

 

[regis101]

Everybody was in that same boat at one time. No worries.
I googled up 105ah agm ups battery and looked at hundreds of pictures. I surmise they are UPS batteries due to design, lack of advertising, generic look.
Would you happen to know where the batteries came from.? Maybe a Mitsubishi or Schneider or Eaton UPS system or something.
To expand on the first post, what is it that your trying to achieve since you asked about panels, CC and inverter ?

 

[highdesertranger]

you need to remember there is no guarantee with used batteries. if one of the takes a dump in 2 months what are you going to do?

that's what I meant with we need more info, what are you trying to do? we need some details.

highdesertranger

 

[Dvajax1776]

I have to have a fan and CPAP to sleep. Other than that just charge phone and lighting.

 

[Dvajax1776]

Found the battery type DataSafe HX400 batteries.

Andy

 

[regis101]

I found this, http://www.batteryuniverse.com/media/HX400/HX400-product-data-sheet.pdf , not that its the exact one but darn close. Scroll down near the bottom to get into the HX series. The spec is for an 8hr rate. Within my knowledge, this tells me it might be a high rate battery. There are build differences between them and true deep cycle but I do not know if its a deal breaker. Plus, I only see a 94 ah rating for the -400.
Anywho, just trying to help.

 

[B and C]

Those are indeed telecom type batteries. Those are pretty close to what I am using. Mine are 125Ah and weigh 100 Lbs each. I am a retired telecom guy if you can't tell.

I don't use the humidifier on my CPAP. I stopped using it after the first week after I got it. Too much trouble to clean and not sure what benefit it was providing. The humidifier will be a big draw on the batteries because it is an electric heater and will require an inverter to run it, double whammy on battery usage. I never tried using the humidifier mobile off batteries. I got the 12V car adapter for my CPAP and only use that. Low amperage draw. I don't remember exactly but low enough I don't worry about it and no power conversion losses. A 12V fan won't draw much power either. Any lighting should be LED, no incandescent bulbs. Use a 12V car charger for your phone. The fewer power conversion you make, the better off you will be.

Most telecom batteries are only in service for 5 years max and may never see a discharge cycle. There are there for backup and not primary power. Mine are going on 9 years old but I haven't used them much the last two years.

I would offer $125 for a pair and grudgingly give in if they won't budge on price. You should get at least two years use out of them and probably more. Sounds like a deal to me but others will probably disagree.

200 watts of solar minimum with a good MPPT controller should keep the batteries happy. When you start adding more electrical load, plan on adding more panels which means get enough controller to handle additional panels. A 30 amp solar charge controller should handle 400 watts of panels. That is what I am using (400 watts and a 30 amp MPPT controller).

 

[Dvajax1776]

I don't use my humidifier either. And I watch TV on my phone. So I shouldn't use much. 200 watt solar sounds like what I need. What do you recommend as a inverter or would I be better if sticking to 12v. May add a 12v tv later. I also have a 3400 watt generator.

Andy

 

[B and C]

Anything you can run natively from 12V is a big plus. I have a MSW 350 watt inverter that I don't remember the last time I turned it on. I got an LG 24" smart TV. It was the only one I could find that had a seperate power brick. It runs off 19.5V DC so I got a laptop car charger that put out 19.2 volts with enough amps for the TV and cut and spliced the two together. Only one conversion from 12V to 19.5V instead of two that the inverter would require (12V to 120V to 19.5V). 12V TV's can be pricey but are probably built more rugged than one meant for stationary use. They are built for the trucking and RV folks.

If that generator of yours is an open frame (noisy) one, sell it and get an inverter generator. A 1000 watt one would probably work for you but a 2000 watt one would future proof you some. Those open frame contractor generators are cheap but loud. No one will want to be anywhere near you when you run it and you will soon tire of hearing it drone on and on. There are a couple of threads on here about generators. There are some that don't cost an arm and a leg.

 

[Dvajax1776]

I would only use generator in the daytime to charge batteries. Not at night. My CPAP is 12v compatible. I also plan to grab 2 small 1 amp fans for cross ventilation.

Andy

 

[B and C]

Please don't park anywhere near me if you are going to run an open frame generator. A generator droning on for a couple of hours (even if it is daytime) is very irritating and noise carries a long way. National parks have a Db limit that generators can be and there are generators approved for use in the the National Parks. My generator is a 2800 watt unit (Onan) approved for NP usage. It is not as quiet as the inverter generators but a whole lot quieter than an open frame unit. generator.

 

[regis101]

I always seem to get the camp site that's on the dead side of some body with a genny and the exhaust always seems to point directly at me. oy vey