Which brand of battery

[Rick and Mindy]

OK, I've always had good luck with Interstate batteries but just a little over 2 years and my group 27 Interstate has bit the dust. I've suddenly lost my love for that brand. I do not boondock so I have found that 1 battery is fine for me. We are always plugged in to shore power when traveling so I can't see the need for 2 batteries. I thought about going to the AGM type battery but the cost is at least twice the regular deep cycle battery. You do get a 2 yr warranty with the AGM but hence the double price. I've been looking at the group 27 Exide Stowaway or the Group 31 Exide Stowaway. Not sure I can get the 31 in the Redwood box but it looks like it might fit. The batteries seem to have good reviews. Also looked at Deka or Duracell which I believe is a Deka battery, but the reviews were just "OK". Anyone have any experience with the Exide or would you recommend another brand? Need to get this done this weekend

[RV4us2]

I've decided to upgrade to the 4 6V deep cells, but will wait till my Interstate 27's die. The stock battery boxes are horrific to service the batteries, even with turning and remounting them side by side/north-south. So will go with a mod on those too with the new batteries in a year or two.

[piper guy]

Rick - I have 2 group 29 Interstate Marine Deep Cycles that are going on a bit more than 2 years with no issues. Always had good service from that brand, possibly you've just got a not so good one.
The 29 just fits in the box, not sure if the 31 would.

[Pete385]

I have 31's in my stock RW batt boxes. Replaced one less than 1 year old. Given space constraints, would 3 12's parallel be easier than 4 6's series/parallel. Check the reserve numbers. Series increases crank, parallel increases reserve?

[Rick and Mindy]

Originally Posted by piper guy

Rick - I have 2 group 29 Interstate Marine Deep Cycles that are going on a bit more than 2 years with no issues. Always had good service from that brand, possibly you've just got a not so good one.
The 29 just fits in the box, not sure if the 31 would.

Vaughn, hadn't had any issues with my interstate for 2 years, 3 months but now it is dead! Hope yours don't do the same. The thing that I still like about the Interstate is the fact that I can see the water level without removing the battery. I was telling a saleman that at a battery retail store, and he said that with all of his years of dealing with batteries he has found that about the time you need to put water in the battery is when it dies anyway. Come to think of it, in all the years I have owned Interstate I have never added water to them.
Any one else have thoughts on that? The Exide battery is black but $30-$40 less than the Interstate. Same warranty.

[Rick and Mindy]

Originally Posted by Pete385

I have 31's in my stock RW batt boxes. Replaced one less than 1 year old. Given space constraints, would 3 12's parallel be easier than 4 6's series/parallel. Check the reserve numbers. Series increases crank, parallel increases reserve?

What brand do you have? The 31 is a tight fit? Can you maneuver the cables ok inside the box with the 31 battery?

[Pete385]

The original from RW was a 31. The one I put in came from NAPA, I think Deka made

[travelin' texans]

If adding water indicates your battery is going dead mine should've heen dead 3 years ago & every year since, I typically check them twice a year & add water once a year.

[Rick and Mindy]

Originally Posted by travelin' texans

If adding water indicates your battery is going dead mine should've heen dead 3 years ago & every year since, I typically check them twice a year & add water once a year.

What brand and size do you have?

[travelin' texans]

If I remember correctly they are group 27 Interstates.

[Tomkidder]

Mine are group 27 also.

[johnboytoo]

Originally Posted by Rick and Mindy

V......salesman said that with all of his years of dealing with batteries he has found that about the time you need to put water in the battery is when it dies anyway.

I would talk to another battery salesman then
You should check your batteries monthly if they are in regular use...
Any overcharging, overuse, can cause them to need water....

Assuming the chrger was set up correctly at the factory/dealer ---you may need to adjust the charge rate on your charger if batteries are changed so it matches their amp-hr capacity...

many chargers have adjustable settings for this... on our magnum:
8.2 Adjusting the Batt AmpHrs Setting It is important that the METER button’s 05 BM: Setup menu’s Batt Amphrs setting is correct or else the calculations used to determine the 02 BM: SOC display will be inaccurate.

Max Amps – Sets the maximum charge amperage allowed to charge the batteries during the CC/CV charge cycles. The range of settings are provided to limit the charge current to the battery bank, which helps prevent battery overheating caused by charging at too high a charge rate.
Default: 200 ADC
Range: 20 - 990 ADC

[5th_Time]

Had (2) Interstate Group 27 lasted 3+ years & were still going strong, but turned them in when I switched to (2) 6V Trojan T-145s this summer. Good specs...