6 volt vs. 12 volt batteries

SteveAE wrote:

crosscheck wrote:

I am convinced that a good solar and battery system is the key to running all of the electronics as long as you are not extravagant with your electricity.

X2
Steve

X3! I went a little overkill for winter camping with 1180 watts mounted on the roof, but I want to be able to live in better comfort than home while on vacation without a generator running all the time.

I highly recommend LED lights and possibly some other type of heating like a Wave 8 catalytic to the OP BEFORE upgrading the battery bank as it is cheaper and a whole lot lighter to conserve energy in the end.

allcool wrote:

Crazy Cooter wrote:
:S

I chose three 8D 12V's this time around because the size fit better and $ vs. AH was a little cheaper for AGM's.

Nice battery bank..!

If they are the Trojan's, thats almost $2000 for your battery pack. They are 230ah ea... very nice.

Each battery weighs in at 170# and is 20" long by 10" wide... I'd need a crane(and a new back) to change out your batteries...lol

I looked at those 8d 12v agm Trojan batteries couple years ago,very nice. Almost got them.
I went with the DieHard Marine RV AGM Battery Size 31m, 100ah and 75#(identical to Odyssey 2150). Almost 1/2 the cost for 2 of them, 3year total(not prorated) free replacement warranty, and individual weight made my decision.
If money, warranty and weight weren't an issue for me, the more powerful 8D 12v agm Trojans are the upper echelon of 12v agm rv batteries...

jmo

My Deka 8D's are actually listed at 246Ah vs the GC2's 180Ah giving me 30% more capacity for 12% more cost. The fit was just a plus! Around here, Trojan is the preferred poor man's battery in the flooded variety, but the East Penn line is easier and cheaper for me to get in AGM's. Since they are virtually sealed, storage is super easy to get at in the front cabinet where the optional generator would have been installed.

Looking at it over again, I would have just done the led's first negating the need for the third battery. I went from 96Ah with every light on down to 26Ah with way more available light with the led's. I did almost all the lights except for the outside scare lights and the halogen back up lights since the rarely run anyway.