How long do your/have your lead acid batteries lasted.

12v is only ever a nominal reading and as with all lead acid cells each cell is rated at 2.2v therefor you are near to your 13.5.
I've dealt with traction batteries all my working life and this is common place to have the odd battery or 2 read a little more than expected. Your readings wouldn't give me any course for concern.

When batteries charge they are usually high shortly after a charge cycle has been completed, and the batteries are at, or just after, what is known as their 'gasing stage'.

Hope the comments help ease your mind?

Have you checked the specific gravity in each battery cell? this is more important, and also are you getting a much lower voltage reading across others in the same charging circuit?

Reason being that one weak or inefficient cell or battery will leach off the good ones, and over period of time deteriorate the whole system.
 
> ................ I've used the Delphi lead/calcium sealed batteries and found they have certain drawbacks. The first is they need a longer charge period than comparable flooded batteries and second, they're extremely reluctant to give up their amps. The last one I had did 7 years, before I changed it.
............<

Hi Charles,

I guess you could be right about this, though when I originally changed to Delco/Delphi, I made no changes to the charging regime nor, to my faint surprise, noticed any difference in the recharge rate/time.

The Adverc literally belts the amps in when we're using the engine to recharge and, whilst I was very nervous about this in the early days (regularly checking the battery temperature etc) they never got even remotely warm.

As you probably know, the Adverc can be quite brutal if you're motoring for long periods and I've seen 14.5v going into the batteries for up to half an hour (though normally the 'rest' phase ticks over at around 13.2 - 13.5v) and the batteries have suffered no damage whatsoever - certainly their life doesn't appear to have been reduced as you will have noted!

I think the answer is, as someone mentioned, how your charging regime is carried out. We run a 'fridge full time as well as all the other electrical stuff a cruising boat 'needs', and have just got into the habit of ensuring that our batteries are treated with 'kid gloves'. We don't feel we're doing anything special at all.

Ok, I know it sounds nerdy, but we have never been let down by our 'system' and have saved very substantial amounts of money as a result. For example, the last time we over-wintered in the Med., a couple of boats with us needed to replace (2 or 3 year old) batteries and decided they would go for the AC Delco's the same as ours 'because they had lasted so long'! The price at the time, in Spain, was circa £200.00 each, so a huge dent in their cruising budgets!!

Luckily a very kind fellow cruiser with a car brought six Delco's back from the UK for them at a much lesser price!

Another post has suggested that the Delphi (ex-Delco) batteries are now made by someone else - does anyone know if that's the case and, if so, who the new manufacturer is? When mine need replacing I shall definitely be buying the same. No connection etc, but they are superb batteries. /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Regards

Jerry
 
[ QUOTE ]
Another post has suggested that the Delphi (ex-Delco) batteries are now made by someone else - does anyone know if that's the case and, if so, who the new manufacturer is? When mine need replacing I shall definitely be buying the same. No connection etc, but they are superb batteries.

[/ QUOTE ]Merlin Power-Store are selling their own-branded Powerpack batteries which they say are built to similar standards as the Delco Freedom/Voyager ranges. I bought 6 of these recently to replace old Delco 2000 batteries, and they appear to be much the same.

I wouldn't be too concerned about manufacturers - as far as I'm aware, there are only about 3 battery manufacturers in the UK, who produce batteries for all the well-known brand names.
 
The story about who makes the batteries is a little obscure but, as you know, GM put AC division into Chapter11. One of the companies spun off are the makers of the batteries. The whole range has been re-jigged and they're not known under their old names, hence my description of the "lead-calcium sealed batteries".
If you ask fro those you'll get the late Delphi. The reason I have one now is that I was offered a 105ah of the discontinued line, in Malta, at a very reasonable price.

I don't bother with an independent cranking battery, with only a 2.5kw starter virtually any battery will do the job. The Fiamm (killed by being left discharged due to a misunderstanding by Manoel Island) was replaced with a local Corsican battery in Ajaccio in May, 110 ah for €105, crude but rugged and has done well so far.

I have one of the earliest Advercs (I take it back to Trevor every so often and get the firmware upgraded) with an oversize 110amp Magnetti Marelli alternator. Designed for low-revving Fiat cast-iron lumps it has a lovely steep output curve. The splitting diode keeps system volts down to about 14.4, which suits the Delphi well.

I do top my batteries up bi-weekly, during the season scarcely ever in marinas so the wind generator (I did have 85 watts of solar until some kind Maltese took it off the boat) and motor do all the charging. Last season I used about 3l of distilled water on 300+ amp-hours. (2 batteries).
 
> Merlin Power-Store are selling their own-branded Powerpack batteries which they say are built to similar standards as the Delco Freedom/Voyager ranges. I bought 6 of these recently to replace old Delco 2000 batteries, and they appear to be much the same...... <

Hi pvb,

Thanks for that info. It's a real pain that the Delco/Delphi brand isn't about anymore. The Merlin Store ones look different, but I suppose if they're made to the same spec. they should perform as efficiently and as long.

Hope so, as my knowledge of battry makes is very little because I've bought so few.

Cheers

Jerry
 
Last deep cycle 80aH lasted 11 seasons. Last starter 70aH lasted 10 seasons. Both replaced last year. I do look after them, use starter only for engine and deep cycle whenever engine is off (except to charge when necessary) Latter is trickle-charged constantly by a Forgen.
 
Nice thread !

Just to put my tuppence worth – recently had to buy new batteries and culmination of guru info produced the following :-

Gel:
Not suited to conventional charging but hold charge well. They require specialist, controlled charging to prevent overheating since the gel is a poor conductor of heat. Cycle life 400 to 800

AGM:
'Absorbed Glass Mat' – Next generation of battery. Very tolerant of deep cycling , very versatile. Cost ?
Cycle life 800 to 1000.

Traction:
i.e. Golf carts, milk floats etc. Lousy for starting , can be drained to about 10%. Ideal domestic supply. Often sold as 2v units. Cycle life 1000 upwards.

Sealed- Low Maint :
Good for jet ski's etc that bounce about but are not good when taken down to less than about 40% charge. If charged too vigorously, won't recombine and pressure will build and electrolyte will be lost. Cycle life 200-300

Starting Battery:
Large number of thin plates to give a big kick. Poor when deep cycled but unlikely if used as a starter.

Dual Purpose:
Compromise between starting and leisure batteries. Fairly long life but probably good for single battery system. Cycle life 200.

Leisure Battery:
Thicker and fewer plates than a normal battery with a greater tolerance of deep cycling.
Cycle life 200-300.

I decided that I would continue with fairly cheapo 'Leisure' for house and visited tyre dealer for starter battery. Despite my abuse of batteries this setup has served me well for many years with excellent value for money.
 
Its a subject that has stimulated many of us, we all probably spend a good deal of time with our batteries. Thanks for all the replies.
 
What I like is the spread of types, charging regimes etc. - but all seem to end up getting similar life.
Regimes ranging from mine with no upgraded alternator, no boosters etc. to the boosted high power alternators.
 
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