advise on battery purchase??

[billybaja]

Hi, not sure what I need and neither was the clerk in the store where i normally purchase battery`s actually an automotive store and was hopeing i could get some help, . Anyway i have a 19 baja br with a 140 Johnson both 1984 models have very limitied guages ,tach,fuel,trim,temp. all work .I also have a bow and stern light ,horn ,bilge and two small docking lights on port and starboard side almost like interior overhead lights in an automobile..all in working order I believe my battery is shot it is a marine deep cycle battery don`t have any history on it came with boat guy said it was a year old but do not want any problems does not seem to be takeing a charge or holding a charge .. I might add a radio and a search light or spotlight other than that nothing else that is going to draw crazy volt`s or amps.. I was thinking maybe now is the time to install a dual battery set-up with the "perko switch' or dual battery switch.. I went to the local marine supply but these tech or sales people are not very friendly or helpfull when you tell them you will install it yourself so was hopeing ssomebody could give me advice on battery and if the duall switch is the way to go or a waste of money .. I trailer boat and have almost every automotive tool at my home ,not a pro ,but more of a hobbist and I am pretty sure I could install electrical set-up if I go with the two battery system .. Thanks Bill

 

[ezmobee]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

I'm not seeing a reason for you to go dual. You definitely want a marine starting battery as opposed to a deep cycle. Deep cycles don't like the constant slight discharges/recharges that starting batteries endure.

 

[billybaja]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

Do you mean a marine starting battery or just an automotive type starting battery?? Thanks Bill

 

[ezmobee]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

Well I would think either would work.....but I'm of the type that if there's a marine version of something it has to be better right?

I just found this:

CAR vs. BOAT. One of the most commonly asked questions I receive is, "can I use my car battery in my boat?" Well, this is one of the oldest misconceptions in the boating game and the truth is you can use a car battery for your boating needs, but it certainly won?t last very long!! Probably not even several trips!

The real truth of the matter? There is a big difference in the two with the first, being the location of the lead plates within the batteries. In a marine battery, they have taken the plates that cause electricity and elevated them so as the boat and battery bounce around, they don?t short out. Secondly, they use a special bonding process, so as things bounce and fall around inside the battery, things stay put. If you use a car battery, with the bouncing a boat and battery, take it would soon die out on you and the last thing we want is a call to Sea Tow.

http://www.thefishingline.com/marine.htm

 

[billybaja]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

Ok good that kinda helps and make sense , I am so new to this my kids (30&26 yrs old) got me into the boating scene I think my daughter is really looking for my jet ski lol lol tell you the truth it is tuff on the back..the boat is alot calmer to use and it is fun had one when I was a kid. It was an old 1958 I think 18hp ?johnson sea horse tiller red on the back of a three seat row boat made of wood and mostly caulk..no lights no power strictly pull start and alot of bailing lol the engine was taller than uslol lol but had alot of fun...

 

[lncoop]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

If you're comfortable doing the wiring I'd probably go ahead and add a second battery and switch, especially if you're going to install a stereo. One battery will be enough until that one time when it's not. All it takes is one long day of tunes and good times on the sand bar, the sun has long since set, you look up and everyone's gone in..... You know the rest. That extra hundred bucks would be well spent IMHO. There's a boatload (pun intended) of info in the forum to help you with the install. Good luck!

 

[robert graham]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

Auto-Zone, Marine Starting battery, about $65, Usually get a new one about every 3 years because boat batteries can get abused from charging and then sitting there for several weeks between fishing trips. Off season keep my boat battery in garage and put on a 2 amp charge every so often to keep it up. Good Luck!

 

[ajgraz]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

Main reason you want a marine starting battery is that you want it to have cell caps on it so you can check and replenish water. Car batteries these days do not have that anymore.

Reason you will have to replenish water is that your outboard likely has unregulated charge output, and recharging the battery at elevated voltages will slowly boil off the water.

 

[billybaja]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

ok i saw a marine start battery at autozone it was 475 cca but it was a sealed battery it was made by autocraft?? ran about 65.00 Was thinking about buying it but still thinking bout the dual set-up??.. Thanks Bill

 

[Titanty]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

Check out Exide batteries...

I just bought 3 for my boat from a battery shop and they gave me a $10 rebate paper for each. So I paid out $275 total after taxes and hope to get $30 back in the mail one day.

The batteries I got were (2) 675MCA Deep Cycles and (1) 1000MCA Marine starting. The batteries that I am replacing were Exides dated year 2003...they lasted the previous owner (family member) almost 7 years. I was suprised when I saw the date codes.

 

[lncoop]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

If you have an Academy Sports in your area I'd recommend going there. I've had really good luck with their Stowaway batteries and they're in the $60 range.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

From what I understand there's really only like 2 battery manufacturers. Most are from Johnson Controls. So I don't think brand matters too much.

 

[Titanty]

Re: advise on battery purchase??

Here is an interesting read...looks 5 actual manufactures.
http://www.batteryfaq.org/

BATTERY MANUFACTURERS AND BRAND NAMES LIST
Bill Darden
Last Updated on April 2, 2010


Lead-acid battery manufacturers, distributors, large chain stores or major dealers will often private label their batteries, for example in the United States, EverStart for Wal*Mart, DieHard for Sears and DuraLast for Auto Zone. These stores might have batteries made by several manufacturers depending on the location to reduce shipping costs or to provide different types or sizes of batteries. Below is an alphabetical list of battery manufacturers, joint ventures, distributors, and major dealers with some of their brand names, trademarks, private labels and contact information. The battery manufacturers are in bold type. Ownership, supply contract, branding, and contact information are subject to change. For example:

• <LI type=disc>Johnson Controls acquired the automotive battery portions of Hoppecke, Varta, Bosch, Grupo IMSA, Delphi, and engaged in a joint venture with Shaft to manufacture Li-Ion hybrid batteries.
  
  <LI type=disc>Exide and Leoch have announced a joint venture in China.
  
  <LI type=disc>Yuasa and Japan Storage Battery have merged as GS Yuasa
  
  <LI type=disc>EnerSys purchased Hawker, motive deep cycle battery portions of Fiamm Group, portions of Yuasa, and Leclanche SA.
  
• Douglas Battery is transistioning their automotive battery business into East Penn

To identify the manufacturer, ask the dealer or check the battery's Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS). The manufacturer's code number on the battery will also identify the manufacturer. For differentiating quality, features or warranty periods, battery manufacturers will sometimes have lines within a trademark or brand, for example, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Titanium, Premium, Heavy Duty, Commercial, Standard, Plus, Turbo, Calcium, Classic, Maintenance Free, etc. They will also contract with other manufacturers to build and private label batteries to complete their product lines that are not economically feasible to build themselves. Motorcycle batteries are in the power sports starting and motive, traction, standby, stationary, solar, and AGM and Cell Cell SLA batteries are in the deep cycle battery classifications.
Trademarks, brand names and registrations are owned by their respective companies and are as shown below. Web addresses will often change, so please use an Internet search tool like http://www.google.com, http://www.yahoo.com/, http://www.findownersearch.com/, etc. to locate the most current information. Other good sources of battery manufactures are BaSyTec's Hyperlink list at http://www.basytec.de/ or the membership list of Associations, Business Directories or Hyperlink Lists found in the Battery References Links List and Battery Information Links List at http://www.batteryfaq.org. Answers to Frequently Asked Questions, (FAQs) and additional information on car, motorcycle, truck, marine, and recreational vehicle starting and deep cycle lead-acid batteries can be found at http://www.batteryfaq.org/.