Best Bang for the Buck Batteries?

[RogerD]

There are so many options that exist for batteries.

Anyone care to say which batteries they believe offer the best bang for the buck?

 

[capt_caveman]

Im way not an expert but this is what im going for 

[font=verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Universal 12v 100AH Deep Cycle AGM Battery for $170[/font]
[font=verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]I figure if I burn it up it wont hurt so bad LOL[/font]

[font=verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif]https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...dcffc22e0eac53f071fe888929deb84[/font][/SIZE]

 

[Land-Pilot]

Check out Lowes too, they have some good prices on various RV & deep cycle batteries.

 

[John61CT]

Used for what?

For deep cycling House bank usage, the best battery value by far is Duracell (actually Deka/East Penn) FLA deep cycle golf cart batteries, 2x6V, around $200 per 200+AH pair from BatteriesPlus or Sam's Club.

AGM don't last as long, more easily damaged, more fiddly to care for and good ones are pricy. Only use them if you really need them if budget is an issue.

 

[Trebor English]

It is my opinion, and well worth what you have paid for it, that the best value is flooded deep cycle lead acid.  

Reason 1:  the price.  The per useable amp hour is cheaper than AGM, gel, or lithium.  LiFePo4 can be cheaper on a per cycle basis but the starting price is high.  

Reason 2:  robustitude.  If you water them, 10 minutes per month,  you can get away with mistreating them more than other kinds of batteries.  

Reason 3:  testability.  With a $10 hydrometer you can measure the chemistry.  The sulfur in the plates vs the sulfur in the sulfuric acid can be directly imeasured.  With sealed lead acid batteries it takes expensive electronics to measure the current in and out and the voltage over time.  Those can estimate if programmed correctly.  LiFePo4 bms systems can do a good job because those batteries are well behaved.

 

[John61CT]

Only buy local, if your money is spent on shipping you're getting poor value.

 

[John61CT]

Big box consumer and automotive retail does not sell true deep cycle batteries in 12V.

Some people work the warrantee policy, but I think better to just buy good quality in the first place.

 

[wayne49]

John,
Any general recommendations on where to shop for "good quality" locally?
Ruling out big box (Walmart, Home Depot) and automotive retailers (Autozone, O'Reilly's, NAPA) leaves not much locally.
There is an Interstate Batteries dealer locally.
Interstate website only shows CCA, CA, and RC, for "deep cycle" batteries. Useless information.
Thanks in advance,
Wayne

 

[John61CT]

John,
Any general recommendations on where to shop for "good quality" locally?
Ruling out big box (Walmart, Home Depot) and automotive retailers (Autozone, O'Reilly's, NAPA) leaves not much locally.
There is an Interstate Batteries dealer locally.
Interstate website only shows CCA, CA, and RC, for "deep cycle" batteries. Useless information.
Thanks in advance,
Wayne

Did you catch:

>> Duracell (actually Deka/East Penn) FLA deep cycle golf cart batteries, 2x6V, around $200 per 200+AH pair

>> **from BatteriesPlus or Sam's Club**

?

Otherwise call the quality trustworthy makers, and ask for those dealers closest to you.

For FLA, that means

Rolls / Surrette top of the line

Superior, Crown and U.S. Battery.

Trojan and Deka.

And that is all.

Avoid Interstate and Cosco even 6V, maybe a bit better than big box / automotive, but I believe actually manufactured by JCI , meh. . .

Unless you're scamming the guarantee (meh again)

For those overseas or otherwise far from civilization, ask at local golf courses, industrial suppliers of mobile refrigeration, truck electric EPUs, electric scrubbers & forklifts etc

UPS / standby / telecom batts are **not** designed for deep cycling, so don't buy new, but sometimes are found secondhand for next to nothing, sold on a rotating schedule with a few years' life left in them.

 

[becida]

Walmart sells a 12v battery that says "122 AH" on the label, the battery sold for $86.  The price & AH size was good, I bought two.  I don't recall the model number or size,  take a look where the batteries are kept, they are towards the end..  
If you have problems there are Walmarts (almost) everywhere and they stand by their warranty.

Two of those worked well for me.

 

[highdesertranger]

flooded lead acid gets my vote. Jason and John already posted why so I won't go there. one thing I will repeat, a true 12v deep cycle is hard to find and expensive if you do find one. marine, dual purpose, trolling motor, etc. are NOT deep cycle batteries. highdesertranger

 

[John61CT]

Walmart sells a 12v battery that says "122 AH" on the label, the battery sold for $86.  The price & AH size was good, I bought two.  I don't recall the model number or size,  take a look where the batteries are kept, they are towards the end..  
If you have problems there are Walmarts (almost) everywhere and they stand by their warranty.

Two of those worked well for me.

Will be fine for a while but all things being equal will last less than half as long as the 6V GCs, so end up more expensive.

Still could be 3+ years though, many happy with that.

But if abused, you may need that. guarantee

 

[becida]

Will be fine for a while but all things being equal will last less than half as long as the 6V GCs, so end up more expensive.

Still could be 3+ years though,  many happy with that.

But if abused, you may need that.  guarantee

My pockets were not a deep as yours. 

I could afford the $86 (for one 12v battery) and that got me going.  Going now was "good enough" rather than waiting for best.

 

[wayne49]

I was hoping for an option that did not require a long drive to Vegas and maybe joining a shopping club.
I see the Duracell 6V at B+.
Have to think about it at that price level.
Something to bookmark.
Thanks.

 

[John61CT]

The Duracell / Deka are ~$1 / AH at 12V (in pairs)

Far from the best, in fact grossly inferior to say Rolls Surrette, and much cheaper than quality AGM.

"122 AH" on the label, the battery sold for $86.

So $172 rather than $180-220.

Difference in price is less than a fast-food meal, difference in lifetime may be 4 years.

I'm not arguing with you specifically here, and certainly not just for the sake of arguing.

Just pointing out - for the sake of others reading, or for your next bank when the Wally's need replacing - these GCs are **the cheapest** starting point for a bank to be used for deep cycling.

 

[capt_caveman]

Walmart sells a 12v battery that says "122 AH" on the label, the battery sold for $86.  The price & AH size was good, I bought two.  I don't recall the model number or size,  take a look where the batteries are kept, they are towards the end..  
If you have problems there are Walmarts (almost) everywhere and they stand by their warranty.

Two of those worked well for me.

you have a link cant find one that cheap with 122 AH ?

 

[becida]

So $172 rather than $180-220.

You seen to be having trouble with the concept .... I had $100 I could spend on batteries that month, I bought one & hit the road. 

It was right there. It was affordable. It worked. I had lights at night & could recharge my phone & run my laptop all within my budget.

 

[becida]

you have a link cant find one that cheap with 122 AH ?

You are going to have to go down to walmart, find the auto section and look...

 

[WalkaboutTed]

I have that UPG 121000. Three on the van, four in the trailer. I needed AGM because the batteries are where they can't be ventilated well. I've have the ones in the van for almost two years and still haven't fried them with the AZ and NM desert summer heat. No complaints so far. I figured that if I was going to commit batterycide with my first set, I would use cheap ones.

I am neurotc about their care and feeding though. Adjustible charge controllers are helpful. Hubby got four 6volt AGM Vmax tanks (450ah with 540w of panels), which is way more than he needs. But he doesn't babysit them like I do, so he'd be more likely to murder them. This way he can use the coffee maker, microwave and tv and much as he desires as long as it's not cloudy for several days in a row and that he's not driving to charge them. If they get below 12.2-12.3volts in the morning, he goes for a leisurely drive in the AM to give them a nice power breakfast.
Ted

 

[Weight]

That is the trick for all batteries. Keep them charged to manufacturer specifications. It is just easier with GC2 batteries.