The 2 day reserve

mcnutt13579

My thoughts on these issues:

1. Industrial/fork lift batteries last longer because they are made to be heavy.  Batteries are sacrificial, so the thickness of the plates and room for trash at the bottom of the cell determines the life span.  L16 and the like are (relatively) light and made to be moved by hand, and also designed to a price point.  They last 4 years around here usually.

2. End of life failure modes in various batteries are worrisome.  I've been in buildings where we had to bail out due to acid fumes.  Acid can leak.  Hydrogen gas is a normal product.  Not in any place we have anything to do with.

3. Any time I have seen a cell go bad the others weren't far behind.  They all have had the same life experience and presumably made the same.  Sometimes you can just bypass one cell to buy time but when time is up it is up.

But bear this in mind.  People pay us and labor is expensive.  If you can do it yourself the calculations change.  But when they get tired of messing with it, they usually do it "our way".  Or move to where there is grid power.

mountainman

For my minimal use 400 a/h at 12 volts  is all i need for my camper .
I was reading up on l16 s550 rolls 7 year warranty. They claim 12 year life expectancy.
428 a/h .    2 are $600+
I bought 4 us battery gc 208 ah for 416 a/h.  $400+ with 18 month warranty.
Seems 2 of the rolls are cheaper in the long run.
 less cells to check And none in parellel.
 Just slightly higher up front cost.
According to bb a near  normal life with refrigerator 3.3 kwh daily usage a 660 24 volt forklift battery is just the right size. 15 years is a long life for a battery. At my age it would probably out last me.
And would be cheaper than buying 8 l16 and replacing them in 7 years with 8 more. 
Unless rolls do indeed last 12 years.