Batteries

[roadrat57]

I've got two 6 volt Exide Extra 135 batteries that are dated Oct. 2008 as my class A house batteries.
Couple of questions: Are they about out of life and should be replaced?
They are apparently a high quality battery to have lasted this long. Should I stay with this brand or is there a better option?

Thanks

[MEXICOWANDERER]

I will try and amplify one of BFL13'w comments. An extrapolation if I may...

The nearest ATM to where I live is a 320 mile round-trip drive. There simply isn't anything down here. An H-Bomb can detonate in the nearest town and we might see a daytime flash...

So -nothing- I rely on can be expendable. From tires, to battery, to repair parts I cannot afford to gamble. At. All. If I choose wrong I pay dearly.

But some folks live in suburbia where the nearest replacements are perhaps 6 annoying stoplights distant. Shopping? A Saturday project.

For me the choices are set in concrete - None.

But for the suburbanite who plans all year to head to say Yellowstone or Yosemite, then things get a little more delicate. How much is a ruined vacation going to affect the quality of your life? No one else can weigh the pro's and con's for you.

A few years ago I passed through 150-miles of 122F blast furnace and saw zero cars in three hours. A breakdown there could well have cost me my life. The thought did indeed leave an impression. The 122F was in the shade - a broken down car on asphalt would have exceeded 150+F.

As far as my lifestyle is concerned I base everything on - "If it breaks, what's it REALLY going to cost me?" This keeps my decisions sane and based in reality.

When I was working my vacations were precious to me. X-amount of time and even a flat tire was something I did not want to deal with. My bus, Quicksilver has three window type 5,000 BTU air conditioners. Why? The first thought of course was about very limited electrical service. However, the second thought is almost as weighty as the first - If one breaks I have two more. And they can be interchanged.

Batteries decompose in natural fashion in two ways: Electrolytic - where positive plate material is shed during exercising. The second is chemical decomposition. Pure thick lead is very acid resistant but cured plate material isn't. This is why a beautifully floated battery still has a finite lifespan.

The problem is there is no easy way to detect the exact point where a battery goes from "like new" performance onto a decline. The longest lived properly taken care of batteries seem to have the steepest end-of-life declination. From "works good" to "honey where's the flashlight?" in perhaps a week.

The best I have been able to do, is to do a FULL 50% CCA carbon pile load test, followed by a all-cells hydrometer check. I am not merely looking for unequal gravity but looking at the clarity and color of the electrolyte. This is by no means foolproof.

A 90 year old man might be able to walk a mile one day and the next -- well, you know...

I tell myself to "Choose Wisely"

[fitznj]

Assuming they are physically ok, then test them and see if they hold a charge.
Charge them up, measure the voltage, then put a small load on them (12v bulb),
measure the voltage 12 hours later - it should not have lost a lot of voltage.
Now leave it with no load for say 1 week; It should show the approx same voltage.

If it loses voltage (say 0.5V) over the week - then the battery is on its way out.

good batteries should not loose voltage over a 1 week period.

[WNJeffers]

Depends a lot on how you use or abuse them, I suppose. I once had a battery in a pickup truck last 11 years. That was exceptional, I'm sure, but age does not necessarily mean a battery is shot.

Wayne

[2oldman]

Depends on how you use them. If you never dry camp, just about any battery is OK.

[BFL13]

I have a pair of Exide 135s rated at 226AH I got in 2011. They are still going, but starting to fade slightly on capacity. IMO your 2008s will be close to the end of life.

If you are off on a trip where it really matters IMO replace them ahead of time. If you are where the risk of them going out on you ( you are near a battery store) is low, keep nursing them until they just can't do the job anymore, then replace them,

I got a pair of Interstate GC2 XHDs at 232AH in 2011 too. (I use them as a bank of four) I can say they are fairly equal to the Exide 135s after six years. Both are good 6s. It would depend on price. In the States you can get the Interstate 232s at Sam's or Costco depending, for a real bargain price though.

[DrewE]

The only way to know for sure, unless they're obviously not healthy, is to test them. It's probable that they're at least somewhat worn, certainly, but if they have sufficient capacity for your needs and are otherwise working well, then replacement seems to me to be premature. On the other hand, if they aren't holding a charge, then you know that answer already....

Most 6V golf cart batteries are at least decent quality. If your electric power needs are relatively modest, I would probably look for the least expensive 6V batteries I could find locally, which may be at Sam's Club or Costco or some similar store. (There are not too many companies that actually manufacture lead-acid batteries, so many brands differ from each other mainly in the sticker that is attached to the side.)

[time2roll]

Check the water level and keep using them IMO. As long as they are working I would just stay with them. Try unplugging one night and see if they make it through until morning as if power went out. I assume you are mostly plugged in.

[pianotuna]

Do a capacity test.

[1492]

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