A Simple Battery Question

SolarJohn
SolarJohn Solar Expert Posts: 202 ✭✭
in Advanced Solar Electric Technical Forum #1
Here are my options:

4 - Group 27 Marine Deep Cycle batteries at $60.00 each.

2 - 8C12 Floor Machine battery at $220.00 each.

For my PV system, why would one option be better than the other? Both options seem to give me about 400ah. The floor machine battery option costs nearly twice as much, although the life expectancy may be twice as long I suppose. It seems that both options are about equal. Both can be bought locally, avoiding shipping charges.

I tend to believe that the floor machine batteries would be my best choice, but I don't have the data to back that up. Can someone explain, without adding AGM's or Gel's into the discussion? Thanks!

John
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Comments

  • niel
    niel Solar Expert Posts: 10,300 ✭✭✭✭
    #2
    Re: A Simple Battery Question

    personnally, i don't know if one is better than the other and this may vary based on life expectancy, manufacturer, warranty, etc. and is an individual decision to be weighed and made.
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  • Windsun
    Windsun Solar Expert Posts: 1,164 ✭✭
    #3
    Re: A Simple Battery Question

    Marine deep cycle is an oxymoron.

    And there is no way a group 27 battery can give more than around 85 amp-hours.
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  • rrbv
    rrbv Registered Users Posts: 16 ✭✭
    #4
    Re: A Simple Battery Question

    You probably have an Interstate Battery wholesale distributor around close
    Look up an appropriate deep cycle battery here:

    http://www.interstatebatteries.com/www_2001/content/products/product_6volt.asp?js=1&mscssid=422H06SSX2R28M3V77HSUMKD1FBTA0K2
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  • crewzer
    crewzer Registered Users, Solar Expert Posts: 1,832 ✭✭✭✭
    #5
    Re: A Simple Battery Question

    Wal-Mart Group 27 deep-cycle (trolling motor) batteries (model 27DC6; rated at 115 Ah) might be a cost effective solution. I doubt they’re really 115 Ah, but the price is right. Mine survived about three years of abuse (RV, home, freezing, hot, charge controller experiments, etc.) before I ditched ‘em in favor of A*M batteries. They seemed to go through a lot of water, and I think these batteries are better suited for occasional use rather than daily cycling.

    Don’t know about 8C12’s. T-105’s, or their generic GC-2 equivalent, (6 V X ~225 Ah) might be a better choice. Scrubber and golf-cart batteries seem to be well suited for rugged applications and daily cycling.

    Another cost-effective option might be a pair of Interstate SRM-4D marine/RV batteries. They're rated at 12 V x 38 hours x 5 A each, and the suggested price range looks to be between $170 and $185.

    See: http://www.interstatebatteries.com/estore/default.asp

    HTH
    Jim / crewzer
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