GC2 battery brands
What brands of GC2 batteries have you had good luck with? How about from Sam's Club? Thanks-- Mick
Forum Discussion
MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
Find an alternative brand to my 23 year old 2 volt cells? Or my 10-year old 31XT Lifeline that last capacity tested in the high eighties percentile?
I run into floods of obstinate "opinions" that argue my maintenance practices for instance holding a Lifeline at 14.4 volts for 8-hours when regaining access after an extended tour of heavy cycling. Then the same people remark they "only got six years service out of their Lifeline. Others wouldn't lower themselves to test a single weak sister cell very occasionally with a hydrometer and yet that is exactly how to double the life of a true premium flooded battery. Then they go on to say there is no difference.
Occasionally on the forum I encounter 12 year Lifeline owners but sadly few actual premium flooded owners who maintain their batteries correctly and flourish in their amazing lifespan.
Camping in a "RV" is typically no where near "life or death" if a battery runs out of charge or gets less than 10 yrs service from heavy abuse.
Most RVs you have a "house" battery for the camping part and then you have the "starting battery in the vehicle or chassis. NEVER use your "starting" battery or your Chassis battery for the camping part and you have some means of starting the vehicle and recharging the "house" battery.. You CAN limp along that way if needed.. Or just break camp for a few hrs to get a replacement battery.
Inconvenient? Sure. But hardly life threatening. Certainly not worth spending $300+ for a battery!
If you are camping and your life doesn't depend on it so much, go with a battery which fits your wallet comfortably. To me, the Sam's GC2s really fit my budget, the first set gave me 9 yrs of service (I could have gotten 10-12 yrs as they did have some useful capacity, but they were using twice as much water and had less capacity and I depend on them to power my home fridge conversion).
It also makes me cringe when folks suggest using Rolls or any high dollar brand name when many folks have KILLED their low cost batteries in one or two yrs..
Do you think a Rolls is going to survive that treatment any better?
I don't think so.
Fail to charge them quickly and properly after being discharged along with checking water level often enough can easily render a Rolls just as dead and just as quick as a $50 no name brand battery. You just simply flush more money down the toilet in the same amount of time.
Now if you were on a boat and totally stranded with no fuel for engine, broken engine and no solar or means to recharge, heck yeah it MIGHT be well worth having a robust battery for at min some communications, lights, GPS..
