Need a New battery ,got more for less at Wallyworld....I think

[jimmbo]

For automotive I run AGM batteries. Ran Red Tops for years because of their 3 year, non depreciating warranty.
Having said that, not a single battery ever made it out of warranty but was replaced for free. Two (6 years) for the price of one.

I have had 2 Optima Red Tops, both failed, went back to wet cells. The Optima brand is marketed/distributed by Interstate, at least in Canada

 

[JimS123]

I have had 2 Optima Red Tops, both failed, went back to wet cells. The Optima brand is marketed/distributed by Interstate, at least in Canada

I bought an AGM and was so impressed I bought another one for another vehicle. And then a couple more.

Then, ALL of them failed within a short time, so I went back to AutoZone wet cells.

The only AGM I have now is on a jetski, for obvious reasons - don't want wet cells jossling around.

 

[roscoe]

Huge potato storage facility near me.
So I just go get a sack full when I want to go fishing.
Poke the wires into the spuds and crank the motor over.
I take another sack for the troller and electronics.

 

[jimmbo]

And which metals are you using for Electrodes on the Spuds?

 

[poconojoe]

Huge potato storage facility near me.
So I just go get a sack full when I want to go fishing.
Poke the wires into the spuds and crank the motor over.
I take another sack for the troller and electronics.

Ha! That reminds me of a science project I did way back in elementary school!
I think lemons or oranges might work better though!

 

[dingbat]

I have had 2 Optima Red Tops, both failed, went back to wet cells. The Optima brand is marketed/distributed by Interstate, at least in Canada

There was a running joke with my battery supplier when I returned a Red Top under warranty......"put it right over there with the rest of them".

 

[poconojoe]

I've had very good luck with Napa batteries in several applications.

I bought my boat used in 2013. It came with two batteries and one of them is still in there and working fine. It's a genuine Mercury Marine starting battery. I don't know who makes these batteries for Mercury, but I've been using it now for 9 seasons. I think that's pretty good.

I just replaced the second (no name) battery this season. I'm impressed how long that one lasted.

I don't know if I contributed to the lengthy life of these batteries. I always remove them from the boat and have them on NOCO maintainers n my basement during the off seasons. The same for all my lawn equipment.

 

[dingbat]

I always remove them from the boat and have them on NOCO maintainers n my basement during the off seasons.

I take it you like the smell of hydrogen sulfide in the morning...lol?

 

[poconojoe]

I take it you like the smell of hydrogen sulfide in the morning...lol?

Ha!
No smell. No explosions! No I'll effects that I know of
And I have 5 batteries on maintainers. They are NOCO .75 amp maintainers, so they only put out 3/4 of an amp. They are basically high tech smart trickle chargers.

 

[roscoe]

Ha! That reminds me of a science project I did way back in elementary school!
I think lemons or oranges might work better though!

Sure, lemons would be better, but no lemon warehouse to steal them from around here.

I tried copper and zinc, but required a boat load (literally) of potatoes to get enough power to crank the engine.

So I switched to Unobtainium ( from **censored **) and Vibranium from Wakanda. With these, 1 medium potato for the electronics, last 7 hours.
And 1 large potato will provide 4 cold engine starts for the 115 Merc.
I always carry 2 extra potatoes, well, just in case I get hungry.

 

[poconojoe]

Sure, lemons would be better, but no lemon warehouse to steal them from around here.

I tried copper and zinc, but required a boat load (literally) of potatoes to get enough power to crank the engine.

So I switched to Unobtainium ( from **censored **) and Vibranium from Wakanda. With these, 1 medium potato for the electronics, last 7 hours.
And 1 large potato will provide 4 cold engine starts for the 115 Merc.
I always carry 2 extra potatoes, well, just in case I get hungry.

Too funny!

 

[poconojoe]

Sure, lemons would be better, but no lemon warehouse to steal them from around here.

I tried copper and zinc, but required a boat load (literally) of potatoes to get enough power to crank the engine.

So I switched to Unobtainium ( from **censored **) and Vibranium from Wakanda. With these, 1 medium potato for the electronics, last 7 hours.
And 1 large potato will provide 4 cold engine starts for the 115 Merc.
I always carry 2 extra potatoes, well, just in case I get hungry.

Better than those new fangled solar panels!
At least you can eat them if need be. I wouldn't want to eat a solar panel!

 

[Grub54891]

And which metals are you using for Electrodes on the Spuds?

Copper and zinc.

 

[poconojoe]

And I remember experimenting in school with electroplating too.

I guess we were lucky back in grade school having great science classes and various shop classes. Auto mechanics, auto body, wood shop, metal shop, etc. And that was regular public schools, not even a trade school. Fun times.

 

[SavinRaven]

As I suspected by my earlier comments….not anymore.
Johnson Controls was sold to Brookfield Business Partners in 2018

Johnson Controls announces deal to sell automotive battery business for $13.2 billion

The sale comes two years after the merger of Johnson Controls and Tyco International.

www.jsonline.com

Yes I worked here at the power plant in Florence ky when they sold... they produced 90 some % of all batteries for private label... basically everything was the same....

 

[SavinRaven]

More interestingly about Johnson controls prior to them selling they ran a monopoly on the battery market. Or close to it. so much so that we only had 20% "virgin" material being used. All the plastic and metals were all reused from the battery trade ins. They'd give you 5$ for your battery and turn it right back around after grinding and smelting everything back down and sell you a new one for 100 bucks.... I had an engineer tell me at one point they could make a battery last forever but then we'd all be out of a job....

 

[SavinRaven]

Newly acquired company had to pay back that loan quick. So my thought is they needed to sell more batteries in order to pay off the company... would be my assumption after selling all of us management were given packages to leave. I liked working there but the CEO of JCI was a liar he told us at the end of 2017 that they weren't selling the power division. Lied right to our faces in multiple conference calls the acquisition had been going on for 3+ years. It was nuts.

 

[airshot]

And I remember experimenting in school with electroplating too.

I guess we were lucky back in grade school having great science classes and various shop classes. Auto mechanics, auto body, wood shop, metal shop, etc. And that was regular public schools, not even a trade school. Fun times.

That was when people were actually learning something usefull, we didnt " need" a college education because we actually learned things in school !!

 

[JimS123]

That was when people were actually learning something usefull, we didnt " need" a college education because we actually learned things in school !!

College really doesn't "teach" you anything. It simply gives you exposure to a variety of people and things that just don't happen in a neighborhood school. The curriculum are basically useless to some degree, and many of the professors don't know how to teach.

If there is a "need" for college, it is only to show a prospective employer that you have the tenacity to survive thru all the BS.

Having said that, I realize that "all" and "none" don't apply. I'm sure that somewhere there is a college that does a fine job teaching medieval British poetry.

 

[airshot]

I spent 25 years teaching at local community college, as a toolmaker by trade, taught nachine shop, metalurgy, shop math etc. Biggest problem was many could not do basic math, read, or spell, after there so called graduation from high school. I spent over half my time teaching the basics they should have learned in school. As the years went on the students knew less and less each year, talk about dumbing down society !!