Which Brand AGM?

[wistful vista]

I am in the process of planning my mobile retirement home; I understand the arguments for FLA's and I haven't ruled them out yet.  But, if I decide to go the AGM route, which brand/model of AGM golf cart batteries do you recommend and why? Thanks.

 

[John61CT]

No need to restrict to GC form factor as long as you stick to known good manufacturers whose labels and specs can be trusted. 12V is fine, 2,4,6V all good if you want a bigger bank than G31 can provide without breaking your back.

The big three in the NA market are Lifeline, Odyssey and Northstar.

A couple others are less mainstream and pricier.

Properly cared for, these should last nearly as long as good FLA, but are much pricier.

 

[Weight]

Every one recommends the ones we can't afford today. Deka, East Penn Manufacturing, makes and labels Duracell. They are a quality manufacturer and I can't imagine their AGM's are not as good as any.

 

[John61CT]

Deka's AGMs are not great at all, certainly nothing close to as good as their FLA.

But likely better than Wally's or the UBs.

 

[wistful vista]

12V is fine,  2,4,6V all good if you want a bigger bank than G31 can provide without breaking your back.

The big three in the NA market are Lifeline,  Odyssey and Northstar.

Thanks for the recommendations;  the Main reason I'm thinking of GC batteries is the "breaking my back" factor. 
I'm not as young as I used to be, and I won't be getting any younger after I retire

IIR, Bob went with Full River batteries recently.  Would they be in the same category as the three brands you recommended?

 

[John61CT]

Quite possibly. Not enough long term feedback for longevity yet, but the fact that Rolls chose them as their OEM says a lot.

I would say go for it, if the final delivered price is at least 30% lower.

That is, if you've really decided FLA is out.

 

[Jackpine]

I don't know much about batteries yet. Rock Auto recently announced that they are now selling ACDelco, Deka, Exide and Motorcraft AGM batteries. Their prices are usually the best you'll find on most auto parts. I don't have enough knowledge to know if what they are offering is what people need for their solar.

 

[BigT]

I run a Northstar AGM under the hood of my van in place of the stock starter battery. It pulls double-duty as both my starter and house battery. Works great!

 

[John61CT]

ACDelco, Deka, Exide and Motorcraft AGM batteries.

Out of those I would only consider Deka (East Penn mfg, same as Duracell)

But at big box or an auto place best you can get is likely to be "dual use" type not true deep cycling, basically a slightly more robust cranking batt like those red tops.

And even Deka's best quality AGM are a poor choice for that usage, nowhere near as good as any of their FLA lines.

Again, the four vendors mentioned above are it for the NA market. Plus Firefly Oasis but they're $500+ per 100AH