RE: [A/S] Optima batteries...

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

Hi Jim,
I have a 1998 34' Limited, and switched to two Optima batteries without
doing anything else to the trailer when I bought it is 2000. I am sorry I
don't remember the Model Number of the Optima batteries, but they are the
"Deep Cycle" version that will fit in the battery compartment with room to
spare. They only had "deep cycle" and "crank" batteries in one size at that
time (size 24 I believe). I have a 50 watt solar panel to keep the batteries
charged when the unit is in the storage lot with no power available.
We do a lot of WBCCI caravans, and some have stops with no power for 2 or 3
days at a time. We just did the "South West Adventure" this spring, and had
two stops in a row with no power. The first stop was in Mesa Verde, and the
night temperature was in the low 20's each night. I did not have any other
gas heat, so had to run the furnace at night. I felt we were very
conservative on our power usage otherwise, but the batteries were getting
down to the 11 volt range by the end of that 4 night stop. I did not get the
batteries recharged enough driving the 90 miles to the next stop to be able
to have enough power for that stop. I borrowed a generator from a friend,
and charged the batteries for an afternoon while we were out touring in
order to make it through that 3 day stop.
I don't use stops without power when I am picking my stops. I always use
full service campgrounds, so do not feel I need to be set up for lots of
boondocking type of camping. I have not gone to the "extra batteries"
arrangement usually used by boondockers.
The Univolt in newer trailers is technically acceptable for charging the
Optima batteries, because they do not require a different charger like some
types of batteries. I agree with the other folks that said there are much
better chargers on the market than the Univolt that comes in an Airstream. I
will change mine out for something else when it fails.
I will let you be the judge as to how many, and how deep your battery cycles
will be, between charges. That will determine the need for a better more
responsive charging system. You can be sure of two things with the Optima
batteries. They can be killed by frequent deep discharging / recharging
cycles, but it will take much more of this abuse to kill an AGM technology
battery that any other kind out there today.
I don't own any stock in any battery companies, but I do believe there are
better AGM technology than Optima on the market today. Optima was one of the
first AGM batteries that were available to the general public, but there are
several different name brands out there today. I happen to like a brand
called "Lifeline" that were developed for the military. They are used in the
marine industry a lot. I have two of them in my boat, and will put two in
the Airstream when I feel it is time to replace the two Optimas there now.
They are shaped like a regular battery, and you can fit a larger capacity
one in the battery box of the trailer. They are rugged, and will take lots
of cycles without dying on you. They also recharge easier than most
batteries, because of their lower internal resistance. That is getting off
into the technical side of batteries, and I told myself I would not do that
in this post.
I hope this helps, and is not confusing, in making your choice for
replacement batteries.

Joe Scudder
WBCCI 8624