didn't TD in the 40's use car batteries why not now??

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didn't TD in the 40's use car batteries why not now??

Postby Ron Dickey » Fri Aug 19, 2005 8:28 pm

If you look under the Poll section you will see what betteries do you use.

Older car batteries can be found almost for free you can recondition them buy removing the old acid and getting a battery renewal kit.

In the Poll most so far have said deep cycle.

Other from it lasting longer what else makes it better and if you are low in money why not that old car Battery?? :oops:
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Postby Denny Unfried » Fri Aug 19, 2005 8:48 pm

In the 40's and 50's I never saw a teardrop with it's own power. They all plugged into the car. Also until about 1955 everything was 6 volt and batteries wern't as good a quality as today. When we camped in those days my father had a tear but we usually used a Coleman lantern outside and just a flashlight inside.

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Postby bdosborn » Fri Aug 19, 2005 9:28 pm

Start batteries aren't very good for deep or long discharges. They're designed for a short burst of a lot of current. A deep cycle is designed to supply a little bit of current for a long time. A car battery will work, it just won't have a very long life.
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Postby Ron Dickey » Fri Aug 19, 2005 9:48 pm

I never thought of an auto battery as a starter battery. That's whey when you use something that drinks alot of juice it goes down so fast.

and when it is running low and you leave the lights on you can't start the car.

OK HOW MUCH DOES A DEEP CYCLE SELL FOR??
Not a marine deep cycle starter. (which I assume is the same as a car bat.)

AND HOW BIG IS IT, HOW MUCH DOES IT WEIGHT AND DOES IT COME IN DIFFERENT SIZES??
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Postby Kevin A » Fri Aug 19, 2005 10:03 pm

Ron Dickey wrote:I never thought of an auto battery as a starter battery. That's whey when you use something that drinks alot of juice it goes down so fast.

and when it is running low and you leave the lights on you can't start the car.

OK HOW MUCH DOES A DEEP CYCLE SELL FOR??
Not a marine deep cycle starter. (which I assume is the same as a car bat.)

AND HOW BIG IS IT, HOW MUCH DOES IT WEIGHT AND DOES IT COME IN DIFFERENT SIZES??


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Batteries

Postby PaulC » Sat Aug 20, 2005 3:39 am

Hi Ron, Deep cycle batteries come in sizes ranging from Motorcycle thru car up to truck type. Main concern is how long it will last b4 recharge(depending on what you want to run). I run 1000CCA in both of my 4WD's connected by a electronic battery solenoid type thingy which only lets the 2nd battery go flat. I can get upto 3 days camping b4 I need to recharge. I run a fridge, waterpump,and all my lighting from the second battery. These particular Odyssey batterys are rated for 42AH over 20 hours. The one I am fitting to my TD is rated at 80AH
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Postby Geron » Sat Aug 20, 2005 4:47 am

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Re: didn't TD in the 40's use car batteries why not now??

Postby Joseph » Sat Aug 20, 2005 5:36 am

Hey Ron,
Ron Dickey wrote:Other from it lasting longer what else makes it better and if you are low in money why not that old car Battery??

We tend to run more stuff. Most of the '40s tears had no more than a single galley light. I have that plus two reading lights and a vent fan. Other people run TVs, DVD players, CD players and the like.

If you're just running a galley light, an old car battery - or even running it off the battery in your tow vehicle like the old timers did - may work for you.

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Postby mikeschn » Sat Aug 20, 2005 8:04 pm

If all you are going to run is lights... why not just get one of those led lanterns, pop a couple batteries in it, and volia', light... and LED lasts a long time compared to incandescent bulbs...

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Not to put a damper on your 12 v battery, but there's other ways to skin the cat...

Here's another...

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Postby cracker39 » Fri Aug 26, 2005 6:26 pm

Back in the 70s and 80s, I had both a pickup camper and a Coleman Pop-up, and used my vehicle battery only, but did only weekend camping. I also used my car or truck battery for my fishing trolling motor (a small one). I know that the car battery isn't meant for this type of use, but I never had a problem with drain. My camper lights would be on for the weekend and not drain my battery to the point where It would not start the vehicle. Today, I know about deep cycle batteries, having used several for fishing, and will use one in my trailer. The big ones cost about $70 at WalMart, and the smaller one avout $50. If it will run my big trolling motor for several hours, it would do for lights for a week at least.
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Battery

Postby txturbo » Fri Sep 02, 2005 9:13 pm

The best battery to use would be a Deep Cycle Optima. Its a sealed gel cell battery. No worry about spilling acid. Can be mounted in any position, even upside down.
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Postby cracker39 » Sat Sep 03, 2005 5:50 am

The Optima looks great. Lasts longer, non-spillable, etc. But, did you check the prices? The best prices I found online was around $180. I don't think a battery in my trailer would turn over unless the trailer did. I'll stick with an Excide deep cycle battery from Walmart which should run trailer lights for at least a week, probably longer. That's what I use for my fishing trolling motor and I haven't drained one yet while fishing unless it was old and about shot anyway. I think the price of the big one that I use in my boat is about $70. I think the smaller deep cycle battery (typical auto batter size) is around $50. They could be as much as $10 more than what I said, but no more than that. There are other brands available at auto parts, marine and tractor supply stores. They are typically used for marine and farm applications.

One thing about deep cycle batteries. If you want one to last longer, always fully charge one after using it. If you let one sit around uncharged, it will "go bad" quickly. Here's a good site for deep cycle info on usage and and proper care. http://www.windsun.com/Batteries/Battery_FAQ.htm
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Postby cracker39 » Sat Sep 03, 2005 6:08 am

A P.S. to my last post:

I checked further with the Optima. http://www.1st-optima-batteries.com/ I found at their site that their deep cycle battery is the AGM (Absorbed Glass Mats) type. These are even better than the standard Gel type. They do have a number of advantages over flooded batteries, and are even better than the gel in some ways. they have a very low self-discharge, so will sit unused, holding a charge better than flooded batteries. They should have twice the battery life as well. Optima lists the smaller one at $139, going up to $349 for their biggest, most powerful battery. The small one should work well for TDs. So, I withdraw my objections to paying more...LOL. I'll probably stay with the Excide though. I really don't plan on any long trips and If I do, I'll have an onboard charger in my AC/DC converter.
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Postby toypusher » Sat Sep 03, 2005 9:11 am

Shop around on the Optima batteries. I got my yellow top 51R for about 139.00 at a local battery shop. I has not come even close to running down on me yet. I love it, and because it does not gas-off like wet batteries, I felt safe putting it in the galley area.

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Optima

Postby txturbo » Sat Sep 03, 2005 1:15 pm

I'm sticking with the Optima. I'm an Interstate dealer so I get them for cost. I've tried others for different applications and wasn't very happy with the lifespan. In this case, "You get what you pay for" applies for sure.
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