Forum Discussion

cpski2b's avatar
cpski2b
Explorer
Feb 11, 2015

House Battery

My trailer's house battery has bit the dust and I have two 3 month old 65 series batteries 700cca (not deep cycle) batteries I would like to put in it's place.

Is there any drawbacks to using traditional batteries in a 5er? We never camp without 120v and it's hooked to a battery tender when in storage.

Craig
  • The main difference between deep cycle and a regular car battery is the batteries ability to recover from a draw down of juice. If you do not need to draw off of the battery except to raise and or lower the landing gear and move the slide they will last a very long time. It does help to keep hooked up to truck or land power while using slide and landing gear to save even a little draw down on the battery.
  • RoyB's avatar
    RoyB
    Explorer II
    It will perform just like a car battery. I am sure you have noticed over the years that the first time you accidentally run down your automotive start battery and re-charge it back up it is never the same after that. Most of the time you have to replace it. How long does your lawn mower battery last. Might as well kiss it off the first time it comes up dead...

    Just about every season I seem to replace at least one battery in my car, truck, or lawn mower in the spring...

    My original four GP24 Interstate Batteries Trailer was installed in 2008 and i had a failure right away on one battery due to the way my Trailer single mode converter/charger was over charging the battery only producing 13.6VDC output. It boiled out its fluids and came up with a shorted cell just after a few months of use. The remaining three GP24 Interstate batteries have been in service ever since then and still working. They are just now starting to fall off on performance after 7 years of many 50% to 90% re-charge states using smart mode charging methods.

    Deep CYCLE batteries give you a fighting chance for a few more years of use with minimal maintenance compared to automotive start batteries.

    A deep cycle hybrid green top Interstate SRM-24 GP24 85AH 12VDC battery that usually comes with the trailers work rather well with minimum maintenance and really don't cost all that much...

    You should be ok in the short term just understand what the pitfalls might be...

    Also be reminded that DOT requires a working 12VDC Battery on your trailer when you are on PUBLIC roadways providing Electric BRAKE operations in the event the trailer becomes disconnected from your truck. Failure to have a working 12VDC Battery when this happens could go against you insurance wise if known.

    Just my thoughts here...
    Roy Ken
  • Thanks for the replies. I will install them and continue to monitor their condition. If I can get a year or two of use from them I will be happy.
  • I agree with above posters. If you don't dry camp no sense paying for amp hours you will never use. Good luck.