charging a pair of batteries in parallel
I have 2 12 v deep cycle batteries that I want to give a charge occasionally while dry camping with my portable charger. The batteries were installed in separate compartments by dealer. Can I just h...
Forum Discussion
garyemunson wrote:
If you look around, most people get less than 5 years out of 2 12s but most 6 volts last about 7 years. The 6 volts in series don't have the self-discharge situation of 2 12s in parallel. Not a reason to just swap out batteries but when it comes time to replace the 12s, you will get more value out of switching to 6s. The separate compartment situation does make that a challenge, though.
As usual, RV battery discussions always seem to assume the talk is around wet/liquid cell RV batteries.
Dry cell ("AGM") RV batteries can last a long time whether they're 12 volters in parallel or 6 volters in series.
We always use two 12 volt AGM true deep cycle RV batteries in parallel. The last set (Group 29 wheel chair 12V AGM batteries) went 8 years before I replaced them "just in case", even though they were still performing well.
Our current twin AGM batteries never get cleaned or removed and are wired in a balanced manner. I used double inter-cables between the battery lugs to enhance the balancing even further. They're warranted for at least 5 years and I plan on getting many more years than that out of them.
