RE: [A/S] Keeping batteries charged

["Perry Joe Scudder" <perryjoe@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hi Judy,
The best type of batteries to purchase is a good "deep cycle" "AGM"
technology battery. The deep cycle part says the battery is designed to
survive repeated deep discharging / recharging cycles with minimal damage to
the plates in the battery. The AGM technology refers to the way the cells
are designed inside the battery. They are a sandwich of a fiberglass mat
soaked in battery acid sandwiched between layers of sheet lead. This
sandwich is accomplished different ways by different companies, (some make a
long sandwich then roll it up like a jelly roll, while others stack up
square pads of each material) but the outcome is a much better battery than
the old liquid acid and lead plates. AGM batteries are maintenance free, and
can be mounted any place - even upside down if you would like. There has
been several good articles in various RV publications that compare the
various battery types, and the deep cycle AGM batteries always win hands
down over other battery types. The only down side is the cost. You will pay
about $150 for each battery of the size used in most Airstreams, but you
should get 2 to 4 times the life from an AGM battery. I have two 5 year old
ones in my Airstream and two 3 year old ones in my boat, and all 4 are still
going strong. I don't know what the normal life of a wet cell battery is in
an Airstream, but I have always been lucky to get 3 years out of a set of
batteries in the boat. The three year old AGM batteries show no signs of
going bad.
Use up the batteries you have before plunking down the money for any others,
but look hard at the AGM ones before you buy new ones.

Joe Scudder
WBCCI 8624