Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
 
Old 11-27-2003, 01:47 PM   #1
Bus Crazy
 
Steve's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Central Iowa
Posts: 1,839
Send a message via AIM to Steve
12V DEEP CYCLE DYNASTY BATTERY - QTY: 400 on eBay

My friend Adam send me this link and said he was going to go pick up a few for his bus tomorrow.



http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...ory=50552&rd=1



http://www.dcbattery.com/dynasty.html



Apparently they are the 100lb models.




__________________
View my 1972 Ward: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
View my 1986 Blue Bird: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
View my 1960 GMC: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
Steve is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-27-2003, 02:05 PM   #2
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Olympic Penninsula, Washington
Posts: 19
Send a message via MSN to Rainforest
Greetings,



Deep cycle is great if you are using a dedicated 12 volt system, but if you plan to use inverters stay with standard batteries. Inverters shut off when voltage drops to 10 1/2 V and deep cycle will take longer to recharge.
__________________
Dave (Rainforest)

Olympic Penninsula

1975 IHC/Carpenter
Rainforest is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-27-2003, 02:13 PM   #3
Bus Crazy
 
Steve's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Central Iowa
Posts: 1,839
Send a message via AIM to Steve
These batteries where used in a large UPS system. Which is basically an inverter hooked up to several batteries. Why would these batteries be worse for use on an inverter?
__________________
View my 1972 Ward: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
View my 1986 Blue Bird: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
View my 1960 GMC: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
Steve is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-27-2003, 02:28 PM   #4
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Olympic Penninsula, Washington
Posts: 19
Send a message via MSN to Rainforest
I didn't say worse, but generally more expensive. The downside with using inverters is they kick off at 10.5 volts. UPS used them in trucks that were running; being continuously recharged. For a system where one might be camping in a boondocking situation, the recharge time is greater than with a standard battery. So if one has to use a generator, bus alternator or solar; fast recharge would be a plus.



One other item, and very important. When dealing with Ebay, always make sure of shipping/handling charges beforehand. I've seen items where the charges for this was outrageous. Since this auction lists no preset charges; I would be wary of it. Second; $50 bucks for a deep cycle sounds good, but the batteries may have been in service for up to 2 years? Downside being deep cycle batteries have a limited life of recharge/discharge cycles.



A case of buyer beware possibly? Personally, I'll buy mine from a dealer with a warranty.
__________________
Dave (Rainforest)

Olympic Penninsula

1975 IHC/Carpenter
Rainforest is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-27-2003, 06:31 PM   #5
Skoolie
 
Vern1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Pettytown, Texas, US of A
Posts: 115
Year: 1976
Coachwork: Wayne
Chassis: International
Engine: 345 IH gas
Rated Cap: 66 passenger
Greetings,

I think you have the info backwards.

Deep cycle batteries are made to be cycled.

Cycling a regular battery down to 10.6 volts will kill it in a short time.

Some of the best batteries for a conversion are golf cart batteries although you need two to make 12 volts as they are generally 6 volts each.



Sam's has golf cart batteries for about 55.00 each, so 110.00 for a 12 volt source, but they provide lots of amps.

I have a rack built for 4 of them in my conversion and although I have a 2K/4K surge inverter, I also have a 4K quiet pack genset installed when I need lots of power.

I also have a 40 amp PD charger with Charge Wizard already installed for taking care of the batteries.



I would be wary of buying something that heavy from E-bay as shipping would be pretty expensive.



Go here and read the Poop Sheets by Phred for some of the best "been there, done that" RVing info available:

http://www.phrannie.org/phredex.html



Hope this helps!
__________________
Cheers,
Vern1
1976 International Wayne - ON THE ROAD!!
https://www.pettypb.com/bus
Vern1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-27-2003, 06:35 PM   #6
Bus Crazy
 
Steve's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Central Iowa
Posts: 1,839
Send a message via AIM to Steve
Quote:
Originally Posted by Vern1
Go here and read the Poop Sheets by Phred for some of the best "been there, done that" RVing info available:

http://www.phrannie.org/phredex.html


Theres a lot of good information there, thanks for the link!
__________________
View my 1972 Ward: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
View my 1986 Blue Bird: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
View my 1960 GMC: Topic from the Build : The Picture Gallery
Steve is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-27-2003, 07:27 PM   #7
Mini-Skoolie
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Olympic Penninsula, Washington
Posts: 19
Send a message via MSN to Rainforest
All lead acid batteries are meant to be cycled. The best way to kill a battery is to keep a constant charge on it. When kept on a constant charge such as a trickle charger, the plates will sulphate and soon become unusable.



My original post stated that the choice of battery is dependent upon your usage; that a deep cycle would be better for a dedicated 12 volt system as they will draw longer before discharging to a point of inoperation. They will also take longer to recharge. If you are boondocking; remote camping, this would mean running the bus engine or generator longer; waiting longer for solar panels to recharge.



Deep cycle is great for a dedicated 12 volt system. However for using inverters standard, High amp load batteries will recharge faster. I allow the big battery in the bus discharge over a two week period then recharge when I fire her up. The battery is four years old.



All in all, it becomes a personal choice.
__________________
Dave (Rainforest)

Olympic Penninsula

1975 IHC/Carpenter
Rainforest is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-28-2003, 07:18 AM   #8
Skoolie
 
Vern1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Pettytown, Texas, US of A
Posts: 115
Year: 1976
Coachwork: Wayne
Chassis: International
Engine: 345 IH gas
Rated Cap: 66 passenger
Greetings,

Yes, I agree that batteries are a personal choice. I can also see the benefit of using one or the other for a different use cycle.

I also agree a standard charger or trickle charge over time will hurt any lead acid battery.

I made my choices based on much reading and searching.



Ain't that internet thang a kick in the pants?



For chargers, there are multiple choices also.

I chose a Progressive Dynamics with a Charge Wizard (http://www.progressivedyn.com).

It has multi modes including a cycle to de-sulfation mode every 21 hours to stir the acid. Time will tell how well it works.
__________________
Cheers,
Vern1
1976 International Wayne - ON THE ROAD!!
https://www.pettypb.com/bus
Vern1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-28-2003, 06:08 PM   #9
Bus Nut
 
Les Lampman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Whidbey Island, Washington (USA)
Posts: 465
I just spent about 45 minutes typing a reply and the doggone forum machine ate it...I am not a happy camper!



The bottom line, since I'm not willing to retype everything I wrote is that a 'starting' or 'cranking' battery is the worst thing you can put in a system that's designed to take a long-term load. They have many thin, fragile plates designed to increase the surface area for optimum production of "immediate need" power (like for a starter) and they're meant to be charged right away and quickly. A deep cycle battery has fewer but much thicker plates to handle the chemical process over a long period of time as it works towards the center of the plates. That's also why a deep cycle battery needs a long slow charge; so that the chemical conversion can work in reverse back to the center of the plates.



Every battery sheds plate material during the conversion process from sponge lead and lead dioxide to lead sulphate and back again; deep cycle batteries with their thicker plates are designed to withstand this for many hundreds or thousands of cycles. A thin plate starting battery is often a goner after leaving the car lights on a few times; the plates are literally broken.



Sulphation is what happens to a discharged battery. Lead sulphate forms in the plates during discharge; if the battery isn't charged right away while the lead sulphate is still soft it will harden and it will be difficult or impossible to recharge the battery...it's then sulphated.



When a wet cell battery is overcharged it gasses; eventually this will lead to drying out the plates and failure. Overcharging also sets up a galvanic reaction in the postive plate grids and will literally destroy them. If you're going to leave your batteries on a charger it should be a good one!



You should have as much battery power as you can logically handle (think about your charging capabilites too) for inverter use. It all comes down to percentages; the higher percentage of the battery the load is, the faster (in an accelerating manner) the battery goes dead. Amp-hours are generally rated for a continuous 20-hour load; a 100 amp-hour battery can handle a 5-amp load for 20 hours. If you increase that to 10-amps you'll only get 84 amp-hours out of the battery, or 8.4 hours of use (not the 10 you might have anticipated). A good rule-of-thumb for inverters is you want 20% as many amp-hours than the inverter has watts; i.e.- a 1000 watt inverter should have at least a 200 amp-hour bank to work from.



For longest battery life you don't want to go below 50% charge on your batteries; when you do you start to damage the plates beyond just normal ageing. A battery is 50% discharged at 12.2 volts (and fully charged at 12.6); that's a far cry above the 10.5 volts where a battery is considered "dead'. Constantly taking a battery below 12.2 volts will *significantly* shorten it's life (that's money!).



I think I got most of what I was trying to say in here; it can be a complex subject but one most of us are really interested in. Offshore sailboats have dealt with these issues forever; info on them is easier to come by than bus stuff! One of the best books out there is Nigel Calder's "Boat Owner's Mechanical and Electrical Manual". There's also a lot of info on the web; particularly on solar power and alternative energy sites.



Hope this helps...
__________________
Les Lampman
1982 Thomas Saf-T-Liner Pusher "Illusion"

Skoolie.net Gallery
Illusion's SmugMug site
Les Lampman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-28-2003, 06:15 PM   #10
Bus Nut
 
Les Lampman's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Whidbey Island, Washington (USA)
Posts: 465
The things I did miss were...



Battery choice isn't a personal thing at all; there's too much hard data, science and application information out there to leave it to chance. It takes a little research but the choices come pretty quickly once the data is looked at.



Also, the whole electrical thing is a 'balanced' system; it hard to have an Olympic sized swimming pool installed in the back yard and then fill it with a garden hose! The alternator (chagring system), batteries and loads all have to make up the 'system' and each part should work in harmony with the others. It's a lot like putting a nice stereo system together.
__________________
Les Lampman
1982 Thomas Saf-T-Liner Pusher "Illusion"

Skoolie.net Gallery
Illusion's SmugMug site
Les Lampman is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-29-2003, 07:16 AM   #11
Skoolie
 
Vern1's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Pettytown, Texas, US of A
Posts: 115
Year: 1976
Coachwork: Wayne
Chassis: International
Engine: 345 IH gas
Rated Cap: 66 passenger
Greetings,

Hey Les, glad to see ya over here!

How's the conversion coming?

I find this type of forum much more user friendly than the Yahoo groups and will come here more often as I don't have to put up with the adds and other junk.



First, when I said personal choice depending on cycle useage, I _MENT_ starting or storage, but didn't get the point across.

I provided a link to the Poop Sheets to clear up the confusion.

Thanks for taking the time to explain.



Happy bussin'
__________________
Cheers,
Vern1
1976 International Wayne - ON THE ROAD!!
https://www.pettypb.com/bus
Vern1 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 11-30-2003, 07:10 PM   #12
Bus Geek
 
lapeer20m's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: near flint michigan
Posts: 2,657
starting batteries are meant to do just that.....start. They are not meant to have a load drawn from them for a long period of time, but are meant to give lots of amps for a short period of time. STARTING BATTERIES ARE THE WRONG TYPE OF BATTERIES TO RUN AN INVERTER.

Deep cycle batteries however ARE designed to have a load drawn for long periods. Most are rated for a certian number of amps over 8 hours. There is a limited number of times any battery can be cycled (discharged/recharged). Golf Cart batteries (or even better, Fork lift batteries) can be cycled many more times than a regualr starting battery and are some of the best batteries to use as "house" batteries to run the inverter or 12v loads in your rv or bus. golf cart batteries are far superior to most other deep cycle / rv batteries. Ideally for longevity you should never use more than half of the usefull energy stored in your batteries. Someoen listed earlier the "poop sheets by phred" that's an excellent source of information on this and many other RV topics.

Spend the money on new batteries. It would be most frustrating to have the nice shiney inverter that won't work because you wanted to save a few bucks and buy used batteries.
__________________
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes (who will watch the watchmen?)
lapeer20m is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Using the alternator to charge deep cell battery bikeforthelight Electrical, Charging and Solar 17 08-06-2019 11:51 AM
12V Deep Cycle Batteries Docsgsxr Electrical, Charging and Solar 5 03-05-2014 02:57 PM
REDSNECK DYNASTY Six Four Skoolie Conversion Projects 60 07-22-2013 09:56 PM
Bus Air Conditioning Refrigeration Cycle roach711 Short-Bus Conversion Projects 0 10-03-2012 09:23 AM
Charging deep cycle batteries JonCBrand Conversion General Discussions 13 01-27-2007 01:21 PM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by

Powered by vBadvanced CMPS v3.2.3

All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:49 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 4
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.