Replacing Battery

[zookeeper]

Not sure how old the battery is that came with our 1999 31' Classic but decided to get a new one as we are needing to charge it occasionally and don't want to be stuck somewhere this summer and have to manually raise or lower it.

Don't know to much about them so I was wondering do we need the exact same type in regards to cranking power and amps? Are there minimum requirements to get enough power to raise and lower it?

Kathy

 

[RichR]

The original battery that HiLo put in was an Interstate Deep Cycle, SRM24, Group 24, 550 CCA. A group 24 battery will fit the spot in the box.

You need to get a "true" deep cycle battery, not a marine starting battery or a car battery. They will last longer and are suited for the type of usage of a camper. Our 2310H has two in parallel because we boondock most of the time. The batteries are going on five years and are still going strong.

 

[RichR]

12 Battery FAQ

Deep Cycle Battery FAQ

 

[Luckydog671]

The original battery that HiLo put in was an Interstate Deep Cycle, SRM24, Group 24, 550 CCA. A group 24 battery will fit the spot in the box.

You need to get a "true" deep cycle battery, not a marine starting battery or a car battery. They will last longer and are suited for the type of usage of a camper. Our 2310H has two in parallel because we boondock most of the time. The batteries are going on five years and are still going strong.

Wondering if anyone has used two 6 volt batteries wired in series in their Hi-Lo? I used that configuration in my old Lazy Daze using two Trojan deep cycle batteries and it worked very well.

 

[C317414]

Wondering if anyone has used two 6 volt batteries wired in series in their Hi-Lo? I used that configuration in my old Lazy Daze using two Trojan deep cycle batteries and it worked very well.

I'd love to do this, but my trailer's battery box is not deep enough for the battery height. I've been considering cutting the supports, lowering the box a couple of inches and fabricating new supports.

I had 2 golf cart 6V batteries in my previous RV, as well as my previous boat. In both cases I had enough capacity to go a few a number of days without shore power. I just bought six golf cart batteries for my new boat. The house battery bank will consist of 3 sets of 6V batteries, each one in series and each set connected to each other in parallel.

 

[zookeeper]

Deep Cycle Battery FAQ

Thanks! I went to Interstate's website to get the dimensions of the battery you said was originally in the HiLo. then went to a place to check on the price locally. They were out of that particular one. The others ranged in price from 100-140.

The one that was in it when we bought it is an Everlast and is about an inch longer that the Interstate which is probably one of the reasons we had so much trouble getting it out of the box. That plus our box is a little different than most.

The battery we are considering is an Exide that is I a 27 not a 24 which if I am reading the FAQ correctly refers to the amp hours so that would not make a difference right? It is actually more amp hours. The dimensions are roughly similar and the CCA is actually higher than the Interstate. Best of all it is $69 on sale with a $10 rebate. This battery should work right? Is Exide a decent battery? How long is the battery life generally with a HiLo?

Kathy

 

[JackandJanet]

Kathy, I may be wrong, but I think a group 27 battery is quite a bit bigger than a group 24. I think I considered one for our trailer, but had to abandon that idea because it would not fit.

However, if the 27 will fit in your trailer, it WOULD have more capacity than the 24 which is a good deal. Just make sure it's a deep cycle battery as Rich explained.

As long as the voltage rating of the battery is 12V, any battery will work, regardless of the physical size. As to how long they last, it tends to depend on how deeply you discharge them and how often that happens. Deep cycle batteries are designed to withstand deep discharging better than standard auto batteries or boat batteries, but NO battery really likes to be fully discharged. I have a small Honda generator that I use daily to recharge my batteries when we're dry camping. I try to keep the charge level above 75%.

- Jack

 

[C317414]

The battery we are considering is an Exide that is I a 27 not a 24 which if I am reading the FAQ correctly refers to the amp hours so that would not make a difference right? It is actually more amp hours. The dimensions are roughly similar and the CCA is actually higher than the Interstate. Best of all it is $69 on sale with a $10 rebate. This battery should work right? Is Exide a decent battery? How long is the battery life generally with a HiLo?

Kathy

Batteries are sized by group numbers. The common ones for RVs are 24, 27, and 31. The 24 is the smallest and the 31 is the largest. There are standard dimensions for each group number (BatteryWeb, Inc. - BCI Group Numbers, Dimensional Specifications, Polarity and Terminals). Unfortunately many manufactures deviate a bit from these sizes. Use the standard dimensions as a guide and look up a manufacturer's dimensions to make sure.

In general, a larger deep cycle battery will have more capacity to run your accessories longer. For a given size of battery the capacity will vary depending on the construction of the battery and the manufacturer. What you want to look for is the highest reserve capacity or Amp Hour (AH) rating that you can get for a given price range and group size.

You can also increase capacity by installing multiple batteries. For example, the battery box in my trailer can hold two, group 24 batteries.

 

[hilltool]

I had two group 24s and replaced them with two group 27 s I got from Costco and I read somewhere Interstate makes them for Costco. Anyway it was tighter but they both fit . It does increase my amp hours over the 24s.

Rick