Scotty I need more power!
After a recent extended trip without hookups, and a lot of research, I decided I need more battery capacity! But I have no room for another battery. About two years ago I bought two Battle Born 100 ...
Forum Discussion
wa8yxm wrote:
Somoething to think about when comparing batteries
Lead acid come in flavors some of them even using 20% of the rated capacity is not recommended (GC batteries are DEEP CYCLE meaning 50% is the recommended minimum SOC.. MARINE/deep cycle around 75-80% minimum SOC (meaning a 100 AH battery you can only use 20-25 AH) Starting 80 or more (Do not use more than 20%)
LiFePO4...You can use like 99% of the capacity. and over 90 before you notice voltage drop.
Marine and many 12V batteries, yes, don't want to discharge them much.
However, trojan GC2's show >500 cycle life at 75% DOD. And I've run 3 sets now to between 250 and 400 cycles down to 75% DOD (25%SOC) along with many cycles to 50% or less DOD. By 10-12 years of use, I replace them. 50% DOD gives closer to 750 cycles IIRC. Nice for Golf carts, Few RV's would see that number of cycles unless lots of dry camping.
By comparison trojan 12V true deep discharge show about 1/2 the cycle life of the GC2. Stuffing 12V into a battery the same size as a GC2 = thin plates and life sacrifices in the design.
