Costco vs Sams Club 6V Golf Cart Batteries

[crcr]

Hi,

I'm about to buy two new 6V golf cart batteries for my TT. I am choosing between the Costco and the Sams Club 6V batteries. Here is all the stats provided for each battery where I live:

Costco: Interstate battery, Item #517990, size GC2, Reserve Capacity, 100RC, $79.99 ea

Sams Club: Emergizer battery, size CG2, 107 RC minutes @ 75 amps, 220AH, $81.83 ea

Dimensions of the batteries is identical, at 7" W x 10 1/4" L x 11" H. I know weight is important, heavier indicating more lead plates, but I had no scale to measure the weight of each. Both have 12 month free replacement. I realize the AH is probably the most important factor here, since price is pretty close to equal, but the Costco battery did not provide that information. Can anyone tell me what the rated AH are for the Costco Interstate battery?

Any other comments about pros and cons of one of these over the other, would be welcome. Thanks in advance for any information!

[Gale_Hawkins]

Battery life is 1% determined by maker and 99% by buyer.

[falconman515]

Ok I'm going in to buy new batteries this week ... anyone have any further information on the two?

I am leaning towards Costco since I like there return policy ... but it seems the Sams batteries are a 220 vs. I think like a 203 or 208amp hours.

anyone figure out which one is the better and longer lasting battery?

[BFL13]

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
.... it is the buyer's responsibility to make sure the original purchase is of adequate capacity.

"

Yes indeed! Eg, this week after dropping the trailer off at the site and getting set up, went home for a few days. If weather fine we could have left the fridge on, with solar looking after the 12v part (there is enough propane)

But the reason we went home is it is raining for a few days so no solar. Decision was, empty the fridge and turn it off, take the food home.

Moral of the story is you have to know your capacity and needs to make those kinds of decisions, and nobody else can do that for you.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Total kWh lifespan transaction rendered divided by the purchase price AND money spent to get them into the rig. Shipping, travel distance is part of the price.

Performance, or statistics do not enter into the equation as it is the buyer's responsibility to make sure the original purchase is of adequate capacity.

Any other method used is "Cooking The Books"

[crcr]

FYI, I just left a Costco and a Sams Club.

Costco's 6V GC battery: $89.99, weighed 62.3# no claim on the ticket as to aH.
Sam's Club 6V GC battery: $84.52, weighed 62.7#, claim of 220 aH

At a different Costco (have 3 Costcos within 4 miles of my home) a week or two ago, the label showed 66.8# I think, and claimed 232 aH, cost was the same, $89.99. I posted a pic of that price label and the batteries on this thread. Since the cost is the same, I am presuming that is the same battery.

I used our digital bathroom scale. I believe it to be pretty accurate, but can't guarantee that. But obviously the comparison of both batteries weighed on the same scale is useful information. So I bought two of the Sams Club batteries -- little bit cheaper, and 4/10 of a pound heavier. Both Costco and Sams Club have 12 mo free replacement.

Your mileage may vary. A penny saved is a penny earned. Do your own due diligence.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

willoughby Did you check with your closest golf course to see where they get theirs? Sometimes golf car repair shops sell genuine Trojans for less. I sure would pay attention to the "Date Code" sticker - and more than a few months old isn't so good. With your experience I sure would like to hear your comments down-the-line about any perceived lifespan differences.

Golf car batteries are SUPPOSED TO offer improvements in longevity and survivability as compared to car jar cyclable batteries. Not amp hour or electrical output performance "improvements".

[Gale_Hawkins]

willoughby wrote:
I haven't had much luck with either the Sam's Club or Costco brand 6 volt batteries. Both have only lasted about 3 years. I use my RV on average about once a month (2-3 day weekend).
My set of Sam's Club just went out after 33 months. I originally had 2-12 volts deep cycle batteries and replaced them with 2-6 volt batteries from Costco after a friend talked me into it (the 12 volts were still going strong). Almost immediately, I wasnt very impressed with the 6 volt conversion because I( really didnt see much of a change in anything.
Now that another set has gone tits up, I will either pay extra for the Trojan T-105's or go back to the 12 volts?
BTW..I have a very good installed battery charger (Progressive 55amp)in my RV.
I found some T-105 for $125.00 and the Costco brand are $90.00 Not much of a difference.

Thanks of a real world example.

Never have found where two 6v is better than two 12v DC batteries of the same quality/rating myth came from.

In our case same battery rack holds the both starting and house batteries so going tall is not a real option plus if we loose the starting battery or one of the house batteries due to a dead short, etc we just move aroung cables and keep traveling.

[RangerEZ]

falconman515 wrote:

RangerEZ wrote:

falconman515 wrote:


Gonna be grabbing that $600 Yamaha Generator at Costco this summer anyway so this is all no big deal.

FYI, that one is discussed here:

RV.NET forums Smart Tools Yamaha powered generator at Costco thread.

Thanks for the link ... I've been watching this one since its a bit newer.

Costco $600 Generator

That looks like a good option. Another is the Champion 2000w inverter that can be had refurb for $400. I have one of these and I love it. They also can be run in parallel, giving you 3000 watts if memory serves. With the savings, should you go this route, you could get the Trojan batteries and a very good charger. I don't want to go too far afield of this thread, but there you go.

It's fun but expensive getting going in this lifestyle. :B Good luck with whatever option you choose.

[willoughby]

I haven't had much luck with either the Sam's Club or Costco brand 6 volt batteries. Both have only lasted about 3 years. I use my RV on average about once a month (2-3 day weekend).

My set of Sam's Club just went out after 33 months. I originally had 2-12 volts deep cycle batteries and replaced them with 2-6 volt batteries from Costco after a friend talked me into it (the 12 volts were still going strong). Almost immediately, I wasnt very impressed with the 6 volt conversion because I really didnt see much of a change in anything.

Now that another set has gone tits up, I will either pay extra for the Trojan T-105's or go back to the 12 volts? More than likely, it will be back to some 12 volt Deep Cycle Marine / RV type batteries as was OEM.

BTW..I have a very good installed battery charger (Progressive 55amp)in my RV and seldom let my batteries discharge too much. During times in between trips, they were always hooked up to a trickle charger or the RV built in charger (that says you can leave it on 24/7 with no worries)and fluids checked regularly.

I found some T-105 for $125.00 and the Costco brand are $90.00 Not much of a difference.

[falconman515]

RangerEZ wrote:

falconman515 wrote:


Gonna be grabbing that $600 Yamaha Generator at Costco this summer anyway so this is all no big deal.

FYI, that one is discussed here:

RV.NET forums Smart Tools Yamaha powered generator at Costco thread.

Thanks for the link ... I've been watching this one since its a bit newer.

Costco $600 Generator

[time2roll]

In hindsight I would try to spend that $600 on solar instead of a generator.
May not work in all situations but IMO preferred in most cases.

[RangerEZ]

falconman515 wrote:


Gonna be grabbing that $600 Yamaha Generator at Costco this summer anyway so this is all no big deal.

FYI, that one is discussed here:

RV.NET forums Smart Tools Yamaha powered generator at Costco thread.

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Lights going out. Freeing. Ain't it grand?

"Honey, I found the flashlight. Hey! What are you doing with that knife in your hand?"

Or...

I had a heart attack puzzling out the best way to recreate

[falconman515]

westend wrote:
Falcon, just get the Costco batteries and call it a day. You are subtracting days from your life from the stress of battery buying. The possible 12 AH difference isn't going to make a squat bit of difference when camping. If you're one of those folks that just has to figure out the best solution, go to the bath scale section of the store and pick up the best bath scale, carry it to the battery section and weigh the different batteries.

Ya I'm thinking to much on this crap.

Coscto batteries it is!

Gonna be grabbing that $600 Yamaha Generator at Costco this summer anyway so this is all no big deal.

Tired of worrying about losing power ... after finding this thing for the price I think I'm gonna bite and be good to go for yeas to come on these Costco batteries.

I'll check back in a few years and let everyone know how they are doing.

Thanks for all the great feedback guys. 🙂

[Gale_Hawkins]

2x on scales.