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Post by mwardncsu on Sept 17, 2013 15:43:37 GMT -5
OK, so as mentioned in one of my weekend reports, it looks like one or both of my trolling motor batteries are about toast. They have been on the boat about 3.5 years so I guess its not surprising. These were AC Delco Voyagers, Grp 29's and maintenance free. Can't really complain, but trying to decide what to replace them with. If Captain's Quarters had 2 of them in the store on Saturday or Sunday I'd probably not be making this post - but they only had one and I want to put in a matched set. Several recommendations to go with the WalMart EverStart Maxx marine battery - supposedly the same thing as the AC Delco, but with the Wal-Mart label and a little cheaper - has a 2 year free replacement warranty. www.walmart.com/ip/EverStart-Maxx-Group-Size-29-Marine-Battery/20531539The other ones I've heard very good things about are the Sears Platinum series AGM batteries, but I think they only have a size 31 (not sure if a 31 will fit in a 29 tray or not - or if they are taller - if a 31 is taller it may be a problem for me). However, those things are about 2X what the AC Delco Voyager wet-cells are - not ready to stomach that. What's the thoughts?
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Post by Jason54 on Sept 17, 2013 15:59:28 GMT -5
I work in a school bus garage and we work our batteries hard. The best thing we have found in a brand is Deka. They outlast anything else we have ever used. We use them 3 to a bus and replace them every 4 years. I have taken 4 year old group 31 batteries and used them as trolling motor batteries for 2 more years before they go bad. I use deka batteries in everything I own. I will check and see what I can get deep cycles for and let you know.
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Post by mwardncsu on Sept 17, 2013 16:29:59 GMT -5
Thanks Jason - my cranking battery is a Deka..... they are good.
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Post by CorneliaGale on Sept 17, 2013 18:10:32 GMT -5
Fisher has Deka's and Delco's, got the last ones I bought from them. Seem to be holding up good for me so far. I guess I am going to buy another one now that I have the bait tank on the boat. Will most likely replace the starting motor battery and use that one for the bait tank. Last time I looked Deka had the heavier battery of anyone. You can check on line and see which they have on sale and pick them up on 122 at Moneta. Might want to look at the 31 series, lot more amps in them. May be what I get next time.
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Post by mytoyzfishing on Sept 17, 2013 21:39:27 GMT -5
Almost all batteries from my understanding come from a couple of companies and are just relabeled for a particular store. For instance the walmart everstarts are made by both Delphi and Exide. Ive been running the everstarts in the bass boat for a couple of years now and havent had a problem. One thing I like about the everstarts from walmart is that walmarts are everywhere in case I ever need to exchange one. Which so far I havent had too. But I also trailer my boat to other places other than SML so that might not be a big deal for those that dont trailer. I have a fisher's auto parts brand in the pontoon and have never had a problem out that one either.
As for the size difference, the battery box's I bought said they fit both group 29 or 31's so not really sure what the size difference is. It might be the hight?
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Post by mwardncsu on Sept 17, 2013 22:17:45 GMT -5
Yeah - think its the height - need to see if I can cram a 31 under the console with everything.
As to them all being made by the same one or two folks - think you're right but there are different specs some are made too..... Some are physically heavier, which means larger plates, etc.
Right now I'm leaning to th Walmart's for cost, two year replacement and access but still open to be swayed.
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BentRod
Global Moderator
Posts: 2,252
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Post by BentRod on Sept 18, 2013 5:50:01 GMT -5
The bottom line is almost all of them suck if you fish hard. Get the best price/warranty combination and don't think twice. I can make my batteries last 5yrs+ if I only fish a few hours a month and then I can talk about how wonderful that battery is. But I fish many full days a month with the trolling motor running almost all day. If my batteries wont last through an entire day, they're getting replaced. If I can get 2yrs out of them at that rate, then I'm happy. Walmart will replace anything..it's hard to beat that. SAMs club may be the same way, I'm not sure. I got my last TM set from SAMs bc they had the best price @ $80/batt (Walmart was better ($72/batt) but nobody had what I needed..I've since bought a Walmart Everstart for my bait tank and a cranking batt..I had to replace all four batts within 6mo of each other..lucky me!!).
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Post by Jason54 on Sept 18, 2013 9:10:03 GMT -5
As to them all being made by the same one or two folks - think you're right but there are different specs some are made too..... Some are physically heavier, which means larger plates, etc. Our Deka dealer told me they make batterys for fisher, Napa, and Carquest. But they have smaller plates and in some cases less plates than a true Deka. The factory international batterys that come with our buses are group 31 with 650ca and a Deka has 1160ca for the same size battery. Needless to say the international batteries don't hold up very well.
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Post by striperjohn on Sept 19, 2013 5:47:44 GMT -5
Mward, a while back I'm was in the similar situation as you. Did some research and found this post on another site. I called Deka myself and they confirmed this post was true. I got a coupon on line from a website, waited on NAPA to announce their battery sales, and got a new 1000CCA starting battery (27C) for 65.00, did same and got two 27 class deep cycles for 59.99 each. Hi All,
I just came from my local Sam's Club and noticed that they have changed their battery manufacturer from JCI (Johnson Controls) to Deka / East Penn. I was told this is a new account for East Penn and the Duracell branded East Penn batts may not yet be in all stores. If the batteries still say Energizer on the label they are JCI batteries...
I took some pics at the store and then called Deka / East Penn tech support and spoke with a very nice lady, and very knowledgeable, named Carol G.. She informed me that they DO NOT build the Sam's Club, O'Reilly Auto Parts, NAPA or West Marine batteries any differently and they are all the SAME. They all roll off the same assembly line and get the sticker for the retailer they are going to.
The only thing you want to be certain of is the type. Deka makes dual purpose and deep cycle marine batteries. NAPA & WM sell both the dual purpose and deep cycle versions as does Sam's so be sure to read the labels.
Flooded Deep Cycle Marine Batts:
The batteries Sam's Club is buying are the Deka / East Penn deep cycle marine batteries and the dual purpose/starting versions. This is GOOD!!! What is even better is that these are the EXACT SAME battery that West Marine sells only for LESS THAN HALF THE PRICE!:eek: These batts have a 12 month free replacement warranty, same as West Marine.
As an example the Group 27 Deep Cycle at Sam's Club is $69.87 the SAME EXACT battery at West Marine is $169.99 (2010 catalog price).
There is absolutely NO DIFFERENCE in the WM battery compared to the Sam's Club, NAPA or other resellers battery other than the label/sticker. This info is not from "me" but rather directly from Carol G. at Deka & backed up by folks in her engineering department at Deka/East Penn. Sam's is using the Duracell brand name on these East Penn batts but they are the same high quality battery according to East Penn..
They offer two 6V GC2 batts one with a 215 Ah rating and one with a 230Ah rating and are $78.87 (GC2) and $84.87 (EGC2).
AGM Batteries:
Once again these are the SAME EXACT AGM batteries WM sells and they stock the group 24, 27 & 31 and 6V AGM's.. As an example the group 31 AGM at Sam's Club is $166.32 and at West Marine this SAME BATTERY runs $299.99. The 6V AGM is even more drastic at Sam's it runs $159.73 and at West Marine it costs $389.99!!:eek:
If you're looking at the flooded deep cycle marine batts the group 24, 27 & 31 are the same exact specs as the WM batteries. Sam's, like NAPA, just decided to not include the 20 hour Ah rate on the batteries, but the batteries are rated by East Penn.
12V Flooded Duracell Group 24 Deep Cycle = 75 Ah Duracell Group 27 Deep Cycle = 90 Ah Duracell Group 29/31 Deep Cycle = 105 Ah
6V Flooded Duracell GC2 6V = 215 Ah Duracell EGC2 6V = 230 Ah
This new deal between Sam's Club and East Penn represents a tremendous value for the American boater..
EDIT May 2012:
Just looked up the current WM pricing vs. my local Sam's Club on the group 31 wet cell.. Holy CRAP!:eek:
Remember, these are the SAME EXACT BATTERIES, MADE BY THE SAME MANUFACTURER AND ROLLING OFF THE SAME ASSEMBLY LINE. The ONLY difference is the STICKER...
Sams Club = Group 29/31 (Deka DC31) 105Ah Battery $84.97
West Marine = Group 31 (Deka DC31) 105Ah Battery $247.99
Difference = $165.02 per battery !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The price premium paid to have a West Marine sticker on the battery box vs. Duracell... $165.02. :eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:...... Oh and identical warranty......... :doh:
You can't make this stuff up.. BTW the price on the WM/Sea Volt/Deka DC31 batteries easily exceeds the already offensive pricing of the top quality Trojan SCS-225 by over $50.00 per battery.
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Post by CorneliaGale on Sept 19, 2013 9:51:25 GMT -5
Thanks Striperjohn, good to know, I am going to replace my starting motor soon and use the old one for the bait tank.
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Post by rossnetman on Oct 21, 2013 11:41:13 GMT -5
OK, I have read all about batteries and I didn't see any mention about Optima batteries.....are they worth the extra ?
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Brian
New Member
Posts: 611
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Post by Brian on Oct 25, 2013 14:51:27 GMT -5
All of the buzz I hear about Optima batteries is negative. Is anyone running those WalMart Everstart Maxx batteries talked about above? www.walmart.com/ip/EverStart-Maxx-Group-Size-29-Marine-Battery/20531539I'm going to be in the market for 4 batts soon and I want Sears AGMs, but I don't want to pay for them... Whatever I get, they *must* be "maintenance-free" because they will have to be pulled out from under the console to be serviced, and that's just not going to happen until they die
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Post by mwardncsu on Oct 25, 2013 15:05:18 GMT -5
The Everstart Maxx are what I ended up replacing mine with recently.... I'm like you - wanted the Sears Platinum AGMs but could not stomach the $$$
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