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Battery Starting Maintenance Free

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guyjg

Gold Medal Contributor
"Rod et al:

I went to O&#39

"Rod et al:

I went to O'Reily's autoparts and bought a maint. free marine starting battery w/575 CCA @ 32 F. Clerk stated they are made by Deka Battery. I'll see how long this one lasts.

Just my luck; went to start the engine tonight in the driveway and the 3.5 yr. old Sears marine start battery did the clickety-click. I charged it and used a starter charger on it and got one moan from the starter. I had it attached to a maint. trickle charger and checked the water level each month during the winter. Rod, I guess you were right on the 3 yr. battery life."
 
"Guy...

I thought you alway

"Guy...

I thought you always said that only those Walmart batteries were junk.


Both the batts in my boat are Interstate. One is cranking and the other is for electric fishing motor. I've never owned interstates before so we'll see how long these ones last. This will be their 3rd summer. I got about 8 years out of the batt in my old ski boat and that was a $99 Canadian Tire Batt made by Exide Canada. I've also gotten much more than 3.5 years out of Die Hard Batts in my vehicles. Maybe yours was a dud unfortunately. Check the warranty period and take it back to get some pro-rata money off a new one. How do you know when you pick it off the shelf??

Wrench"
 
"Guy;
Seems like I have never

"Guy;
Seems like I have never gotten better than 3 years out of a battery in a marine application.
This will be the 3rd year for mine, so we shall see how it goes.

wrench; don't know how you got 8 years on one. That's kind of a miracle for a boat. Batteries last much longer in vehicles that you are running frequently it seems.

Rod"
 
Guy
In the Golf Carts I sell

Guy
In the Golf Carts I sell and service we use deep cycle Trojan batteries (fitted standard in the states).
Now it is a totaly different operating criteria in a cart to a boat but we get approx 6 to 7 years out of them in the carts as opposed to 4 to 5 out of any other brand.
They are generaly about 15 to 20% dearer than an equivelant but it could be worth a look if they do a marine version.
I might even check them out for myself as my house battery is just about stuffed.

Cheers
Peter C
 
"When I bought the old Sears b

"When I bought the old Sears battery it was at a hardware only store; may have been sitting on the shelf awhile. I called them and the warranty was over. They had two on the shelf. I asked about the dates on them; one was 10/07 the other was 8/06 so I went elswhere. In order to get a "fresh" Sears battery I would have had to drive 30 mi. R/T w/gas at $3.30/gal would have cost me another $8 in my truck.

As for Wal-Mart batteries, they have a great warranty--replace every 6 months. My two sons went thru a total of five of their best batteries in less than two years; each had a dead cell. That's why I don't want one in my boat in the middle of the night.

It's time to start my boat.
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"
 
"Rod..

The 8 years out of t

"Rod..

The 8 years out of that CTC batt was a surprise to me as well. We needed a new one as a last minute thing when we were at a cottage and without being able to do a lot of research, I wound up with that batt. It just went bad last summer, and now I need to buy one for it before I can sell the boat. (my 2001 van already needs a new one, thats a disappointment).

Wrench"
 
"When you put it in perspectiv

"When you put it in perspective though, 3 years or 5 years battery life is no big deal in comparison to all the other associated costs of running a boat.

A battery only costs about 100 bucks, and I can't even fill the tank with gas for that amount of money.

The way I look at it is I would rather not dick around with an iffy batttery out on the water. There is a lot riding on it being able to do its job without hesitation when required. So at the first sign that it is getting tired I change it out immediately.

Just my nickle's worth.
Rod"
 
"I went and bought 2 of the Bl

"I went and bought 2 of the Blue Tops (name escapes me at the moment), 3 years ago, and have had to exchange them every year! Never again, at least the cheeper 3 yr batteries actually LAST 3 years!"
 
"Mike: You are thinking of AGM

"Mike: You are thinking of AGM (absorbed-glass mat) batteries. They are the newest technology in batteries and have been out for a while. They are very popular in big, touring motorcycles like the BMW I ride with the ABS brakes and all the other electronics people put on them. Many of you have probably seen them in auto parts stores for auto applications- they come in bold colors like blue, yellow, and red under the optima brand. I have heard nothing but good things about them. I am curious why your battery only lasted a year- maybe you got a bad one? Or maybe they haven't figured it out for the marine technology side? They are generally considered to be at least a 5 year battery in both auto and motorcycle applications. Sorry your battery did not work out for you."
 
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