Group 24 Flooded to Group 31 AGM

[ApexAZ]

Hi all,

We are going to sign for our new toy hauler tomorrow and I inquired about upgrading the batteries that come with it from the group 24 flooded to group 31 AGM and as part of their quote, they said there is labor needed to rewire them.

They said part of the $250 labor is to upgrade the wiring to a heavier gauge wire to support the bigger batteries. What I'm a bit unclear on is whether this is just the wires needed to connect them in series, or will the wires that lead to the panel also need to be upgraded?

I know these batteries have higher amp hour ratings, but at the end of the day, they are still just 12v batteries, so I would think it would just require heavier gauge wire for connecting them in series, but that's it?

Can anyone confirm that's all that would be needed and that the rest of the electrical does not need to be modified to make this change? If so, it seems like something I could easily do myself I would think?

Thanks,

Brian

[ApexAZ]

PerryB67 wrote:
Don't BattlerBorns fit in a Group 24 box?

Enjoy,

Perry

They might, but those are lithium only, yes? I didn't see any AGM types on their site.

I am unsure if I want to spend that much $, but maybe in the future.

[PerryB67]

Don't BattlerBorns fit in a Group 24 box?

Enjoy,

Perry

[Ron3rd]

ApexAZ wrote:
Well, we went to sign.

Of course they tried to sell us GAP and extended warranties, which we declined. They honored their agreed upon pricing and we will receive it on Tuesday.
T
I'll just upgrade the batteries myself at some point, but for now we'll try to make the 2 24's work.

Thanks all for the help!

Two 24s will be fine for now. When you get your bigger batteries you'll need bigger battery boxes if they are in boxes. Then simply note how the old batteries are connected and connect the new ones the same way. Only reason you would have to change the way the batteries are connected is if you go with two 6 volt batteries.

That will be $250 please. Cash accepted 🙂

[Boon_Docker]

Have fun and enjoy your new RV. 🙂

[ApexAZ]

Well, we went to sign.

Of course they tried to sell us GAP and extended warranties, which we declined. They honored their agreed upon pricing and we will receive it on Tuesday.

I'll just upgrade the batteries myself at some point, but for now we'll try to make the 2 24's work.

Thanks all for the help!

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Scam proofing

Demand a detailed list of exactly what their work will cover. Just writing "larger wire" is a scam. "Install 12 feet of 2 gauge wire from charger to batteries" is considered in detail.
A service writer can complete a detailed pro forma invoice in 5 minutes.

If they decline to do a pro forma invoice, then you have gold-plated proof you are being scammed. They can use hundreds of reasons for denial. Every last one of them is 100% B.S.

I must have completed 400 pro forma invoices in my 40 years of work. I had numbered special invoices titled PRO FORMA INVOICE

Keep in mind, the addition of a large DC to AC power inverter will demand huge cabling. But this is an add-on.

If you plan to keep your rig for at least 6 years, it may justify purchasing the sole deep cycle AGM brand on the market CONCORDE LIFELINE. You would be paying for a vastly increased number of battery cycles.

But it comes at a cost: You have to follow Concorde's maintenance instructions.

Myself, if I were in your shoes and decided to use expensive AGM batteries I would have just two chargers aboard. A Power Max 100-amp model, voltage hard set at 14.4

And a two or three amp temperature compensated battery maintenance charger.

Unless a battery is sitting at 110F permitting 14.4 volt charging for as long as five days 24 hours a day will not hurt a good quality AGM battery. So maintenance is not complicated like the recipe for baking a cake.

Charging correctly is simple. Let 14.4 volts rip until charging amperage drops to almost 0. In the case of a 100 amp hour AGM, the number is 1/2 ampere. Then switch to the maintenance charger.

Reminds me to go charge my Lifeline that has not seen a charger in almost 2 years.

[2112]

I misinterpreted your original post. I thought the whole upgrade was $250.

All said it was close to $800 total and that was just for regular flooded, not even AGM.

That's crazy

[ApexAZ]

2112 wrote:
I believe swapping 2 cheap group 24 FLAs for 2 group 31 AGMs and making them fit would be worth $250 to me. Their explanation for the additional charge seems fishy though.

That's $250 just in labor. All said it was close to $800 total and that was just for regular flooded, not even AGM. They said to do AGM it would have been even more.

But mostly I was just curious about the labor fees. Seemed high.

[ApexAZ]

KD4UPL wrote:
By the way. You don't wire the batteries in series. If you do that you will burn out everything 12v in the RV because you will be supplying it with 24v. If the "dealer" is going to wire them in series for $250 run fast and find a new dealer.

Ah I'm sorry, you're right. I mean parallel.

[2112]

I believe swapping 2 cheap group 24 FLAs for 2 group 31 AGMs and making them fit would be worth $250 to me. Their explanation for the additional charge seems fishy though.

[deltabravo]

One thing worth noting though is that all the towable RVs I've seen, the battery rack up front is made to fit a pair of group 24 battery boxes. Bigger battery boxes rarely fit unless the rack gets re-built

[deltabravo]

ApexAZ wrote:
Can anyone recommend a good AGM battery, or are they all similar?

DEKA!

I put DEKA 31s in my truck camper

[deltabravo]

ApexAZ wrote:
They said part of the $250 labor is to upgrade the wiring to a heavier gauge wire to support the bigger batteries. What I'm a bit unclear on is whether this is just the wires needed to connect them in series, or will the wires that lead to the panel also need to be upgraded?

They are trying to make more money off you.

NOTHING ON THE WIRING NEEDS UPGRADED when increasing the size of the batteries.

[KD4UPL]

By the way. You don't wire the batteries in series. If you do that you will burn out everything 12v in the RV because you will be supplying it with 24v. If the "dealer" is going to wire them in series for $250 run fast and find a new dealer.