Tips in finding a good leisure battery

[DaviesLeo]

My family and I are planning to have a mini camping trip. But it seems like our motorhome is having some battery problems, so I’m planning to replace the battery with a new one. I found this leisure battery shop online, but I want to get some suggestions about buying before I finalise any purchase. Any tips on how should I proceed? Thanks.

 

[St3v3]

Alpha batteries are good, full members get a discount too

 

[RV2MAX]

first thing how old is the leisure battery , are you sure that its being charged , are you discharging it too low ? its not always the battery if it suddenly gives up !

 

[snapster]

What is wrong with your battery? As above, you should check the charging system is ok before you look at the battery, or is it just that it can’t cope with the power drain and how you use your Motorhome?
If you decide to change the battery, aways go for a well known make from a reputable supplier.
The space you have available will have a big part to play in the size of battery you can fit, also your charger may have settings for different battery types ( AGM, Gel, normal lead/ acid) so that could limit your choice of types. If you’d happy with the size of your present battery and it suits your needs, get another the same size ( ah) and type, but I can recommend Varta batteries. I have two LFD90’s (95ah) that suit me fine. They have a good reputation and are a popular fitment.

 

[in h]

First, find out what is wrong with the old one. If it isn't being charged properly, that will have killed it; fix the problem before replacing it, or the new one will be killed too.
When you do replace, there is one criterion to judge by: weight. The active ingredient, lead, is heavy and expensive. Weighing it will tell you if the maker cheated.
A good 12v lead lead acid battery should weigh more than 250g per amp hour. So a 100Ah battery should weigh 25kg. More is better. My batteries weigh 300g per Ah.
Don't buy ones that only weigh 200g per Ah.
The make/label/badge and how well known the brand is tells you how much they spend on advertising. The weight tells you how much they spend on lead.

 

[Molly 3]

Usually when you suspect your battery is duff it is .

 

[Molly 3]

c mon trev what do you recommend?

 

[in h]

Usually when you suspect your battery is duff it is .

Yes, that's very true. You are unlikely to think you replaced a battery too soon.
On the other hand, if there is a problem that caused the battery to become duff, it's best to fix it before duffing another.

 

[Molly 3]

Varta power, frame are are gaining a very good reputation as are yuasa efb , yuasa L 36 efb 100amp £ 120 less discount Alpha battery's

 

[jagmanx]

if you do change which seems likely
make sure the new one fits in the space allocated and the terminals are correct type and placement
Look up your battery and check it size weight etc.
If you can afford a higher capacity battery then consider it (depends on your usage/solar/ehu use etc etc)
Alpha Batteries can help with all this and get my vote !

 

[trevskoda]

c mon trev what do you recommend?

Varta or bosch silver power frame stat stop auto battery,dont dischage below 30%,most of the so called camping batts are car ones rebadged and high price.

 

[jagmanx]

Don't Skoda or Linux do batteries ?

 

[trevskoda]

Don't Skoda or Linux do batteries ?

guilty as charged

 

[jagmanx]

Battery Charged surely !

 

[in h]

Varta or bosch silver power frame stat stop auto battery,dont dischage below 30%,most of the so called camping batts are car ones rebadged and high price.

When trevskoda says "Varta or Bosch" he forgets to point out that they are the same batteries, made on the same production line. The difference is only the badge and the price.
They're not bad batteries, but they are starter batteries, not deep cycle.

 

[number14]

Varta power, frame are are gaining a very good reputation as are yuasa efb , yuasa L 36 efb 100amp £ 120 less discount Alpha battery's

Halfords leisure batteries are yuasa with a Halfords sticker. Easy to pick one up if you're in a hurry.

 

[in h]

Unfortunately, although Yuasa do make good batteries, they also make cheap, rubbish ones. I'm guessing that Halfords sell the latter at the price of the former.

 

[in h]

If you can afford a higher capacity battery then consider it (depends on your usage/solar/ehu use etc etc)

Definitely get the extra capacity if you can. A bigger battery will be less discharged by the same load, so it will last longer.
Of course, you are constrained by size of the battery box - don't fit them in a cupboard, just held in by a bit of MDF.
And good batteries are heavy: bigger batteries eat into your payload.

 

[Obanboy666]

Which batteries

First, find out what is wrong with the old one. If it isn't being charged properly, that will have killed it; fix the problem before replacing it, or the new one will be killed too.
When you do replace, there is one criterion to judge by: weight. The active ingredient, lead, is heavy and expensive. Weighing it will tell you if the maker cheated.
A good 12v lead lead acid battery should weigh more than 250g per amp hour. So a 100Ah battery should weigh 25kg. More is better. My batteries weigh 300g per Ah.
Don't buy ones that only weigh 200g per Ah.
The make/label/badge and how well known the brand is tells you how much they spend on advertising. The weight tells you how much they spend on lead.

Which batteries do you have @ 300g per amp ? im considering Trojan semi traction batteries and they are around 266g per amp and not cheap versus most other lead acid types.
I have considered Varta / Bosch but they appear to only do 75, 90,180 amp sizes and I don’t fancy buying 2 x 90 amp batteries and losing 30 amps capacity versus what I presently have fitted.

 

[in h]

Mine are Fullriver (and also an unbranded, military spec make). Also look at the better models of Leoch