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From: (no name) (no email)
Date: Fri Feb 13 2004 - 16:20:33 EST
I need new house and starting batteries for my cutter. I use the boat in kind
of an odd way that I think shortens the battery life. I generally just
daysail it ( the fridge is hooked through the batteries and runs all the time) and
then it is hooked up to shore power through a TrueCharge 20+. I first had 2
gells, one house, one starting but only got two years out of the house gel. I
replaced the house gel with two golf cart batteries wired to produce 12V. I got
two years out of those too, probably cuz I did not maintain the water.
I went to a local battery store to get a replacement battery for my laptop
and was quering the owner as to what I should replace my boat batteries with. He
went through the expected litenay of two gells at $150.00 each or golf cart
batteries at $53.00 each X 4.
Then things got interesting. the owner took me into his back room and showed
me a half dozen BIG 12 volt AGM batteries with no brand name nor markings. He
said they were "kinda like blems". They had strange posts too, the kind you
can bolt your cables to but the top is cut off through the hole to make it u
shaped. I said , how much? $25.00 each but with no warenty. He did what I think
he called a "load test" where he put a 20 amp load on one and it took 176
minutes to draw it down.
I believe (a guess) that these were probably starting batteries for an
emergency generator at a hospital or fire station or the like that are required to
be replaced at certain calendar intervals.
My question is, is that test he did meaningful? Whats a starter motor draw on
a 30 hp Yanmar.
Assuming the test is meaningful I'm willing to risk the 50 bucks. What do you
all think?
Roger
SV Yonder
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