Testing 6V Deep Cycle Batteries
I had my 6V batteries load tested at an auto parts store and they failed. They were tested while connected in series and so were tested as a 12V system. I took them back to Costco and they were replac...
Forum Discussion
wa8yxm wrote:
Another thing:
WOuld you buy a 12 volt battery if half the battery was say 2 years old and the other half brand new?
NO and neither should you.
WHen you replace 1/2 of your 12 volt battery (one six volt) replace the other (It's mated partner) as well.
Hmmm .... I'll have to think about that for a minute: In what way could a bad 6 volt battery in series with a good 6 volt battery in any electrical way, shape, or form damage the good battery?
This seems like a different situation altogether from one bad cell in a 12 volt battery causing the whole battery to not supply enough voltage to be of any further use - such that you have no choice but to replace all of the cells ("the whole battery") at the same time.
If I had two 6 volt batteries in series in my RV and when, after charging both together, the voltage then was lower than full charge voltage, or the current delivery then remained lower than what it used to be when they were new - before paying for two new batteries I'd want to know if only one of the two batteries was bad.
The above would especially be what I would do in a situation of "early failure" in which one of the two 6 volt batteries went bad sooner than it should have such that I now had an unsuable 12 volt battery bank in the RV. IAW, why replace both 6 volt batteries in a series string when only one may need replacing?
A slight problem might be where to go to get a 6 volt battery tested? Some/most auto parts stores may not be able to do it. Probably outfits like Batteries Plus can check individual 6 volt batteries, however.
