After winterizing the boat, the marina folks told me I needed new
batteries. They had taken them out as I requested so I could bring
them home for charging over the winter.

These batteries, Best, are date stamped 'C7' which means they were
produced in March of 1997, coincidentally the year the boat was
manufactured.

Question is - Do I need to replace the batteries, which have worked
very well? Any brands better than Best?

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to resolve it."
Rene Descartes

You should be grateful you got seven years' (maybe eight seasons) service out
of your batteries.

It isn't posible to tell whether you batteries are in critical need of
immediate replacement without running a test, but it would be a generally good
idea from a preventive standpoint based simply on their age alone.

Best flooded battery you can buy is probably a Rolls or Surette. (Same battery,
two different brand names). I was recently introduced to Meridian AGM
batteries, and I think they have a number of excellent characteristics as well.

Some will say you should change them every so many years as preventive
maintenance since you don't want a dead battery when you are out on the
water.
Others will say replace when they go bad.
If I have multiple batteries I replace when bad. Very rare that both would
go out at the same time.
Batteries, if cared for properly, will last a long time.
I would wait until spring and see how they work. Go ahead and get them and
keep them charged over the winter. Go from there.

--
Tony
my boats and cars at http://t.thomas.home.mchsi.com
"JohnH" wrote in message
...
After winterizing the boat, the marina folks told me I needed new
batteries. They had taken them out as I requested so I could bring
them home for charging over the winter.

These batteries, Best, are date stamped 'C7' which means they were
produced in March of 1997, coincidentally the year the boat was
manufactured.

Question is - Do I need to replace the batteries, which have worked
very well? Any brands better than Best?

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to
resolve it."
Rene Descartes

On Thu, 09 Dec 2004 00:09:13 GMT, "tony thomas"
wrote:

Some will say you should change them every so many years as preventive
maintenance since you don't want a dead battery when you are out on the
water.
Others will say replace when they go bad.
If I have multiple batteries I replace when bad. Very rare that both would
go out at the same time.
Batteries, if cared for properly, will last a long time.
I would wait until spring and see how they work. Go ahead and get them and
keep them charged over the winter. Go from there.

Sounds like a good idea to me. I sure wouldn't buy batteries now, just
to keep them charged all winter. But I may keep the old batteries on
the charger just to see what happens in the spring.

Thanks.

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to resolve it."
Rene Descartes

On 09 Dec 2004 00:04:45 GMT, (Gould 0738) wrote:

You should be grateful you got seven years' (maybe eight seasons) service out
of your batteries.

It isn't posible to tell whether you batteries are in critical need of
immediate replacement without running a test, but it would be a generally good
idea from a preventive standpoint based simply on their age alone.

Best flooded battery you can buy is probably a Rolls or Surette. (Same battery,
two different brand names). I was recently introduced to Meridian AGM
batteries, and I think they have a number of excellent characteristics as well.

Thanks Chuck. Do you think the Rolls or Surette are longer lasting
than the seven seasons I've gotten from mine?

Another thought is that I may get another bought after a few more
years. No sense in buying twenty-year batteries in that case. Hell,
the new owner of my boat, if and when, may just take it out and
capsize it!

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to resolve it."
Rene Descartes

Can always take em to the nearest schucks and have them load test em.
g
"JohnH" wrote in message
...
After winterizing the boat, the marina folks told me I needed new
batteries. They had taken them out as I requested so I could bring
them home for charging over the winter.

These batteries, Best, are date stamped 'C7' which means they were
produced in March of 1997, coincidentally the year the boat was
manufactured.

Question is - Do I need to replace the batteries, which have worked
very well? Any brands better than Best?

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to
resolve it."
Rene Descartes

On Thu, 09 Dec 2004 00:39:38 GMT, "Gordon" wrote:

Can always take em to the nearest schucks and have them load test em.
g
"JohnH" wrote in message
.. .
After winterizing the boat, the marina folks told me I needed new
batteries. They had taken them out as I requested so I could bring
them home for charging over the winter.

These batteries, Best, are date stamped 'C7' which means they were
produced in March of 1997, coincidentally the year the boat was
manufactured.

Question is - Do I need to replace the batteries, which have worked
very well? Any brands better than Best?

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to
resolve it."
Rene Descartes



Good idea, I'll do it in the spring. Come on spring!

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to resolve it."
Rene Descartes

On Wed, 08 Dec 2004 17:11:09 -0500, JohnH
wrote:

After winterizing the boat, the marina folks told me I needed new
batteries. They had taken them out as I requested so I could bring
them home for charging over the winter.

These batteries, Best, are date stamped 'C7' which means they were
produced in March of 1997, coincidentally the year the boat was
manufactured.

Question is - Do I need to replace the batteries, which have worked
very well? Any brands better than Best?

Ah - the age old question - to replace or not to replace.

Take them to NAPA or an Auto Zone - better yet, a regular general
repair shop and have them tested under load. You don't need to charge
them for this. Any weak batteries or even marginal batteries will
show up quick on the residual/left over charge.

While they are a tad old, there is nothing that says they go bad after
a certain length of time. Time is not a batteries friend, but if they
have been properly maintained and not abused, they test good and you
can keep a healthy charge in them, then there is no reason to replace
them.

Now, having said that, keep in mind that as lead acid batteries get
older, the rate of depletion of zinc and acid increases - in short,
they may be good for another year, but they might not be good the year
after. Or if you have reason to run them down (like a lighting or
long cranking situation), they might not recover.

It's a trade off.

Personally, I replace mine every five years or so even if they test
good and hold a charge - personal preference.

As to manufacturer, I prefer Interstate batteries for the lead acid
batteries.

Later,

Tom

Thanks Chuck. Do you think the Rolls or Surette are longer lasting
than the seven seasons I've gotten from mine?

Hard to say what a specific battery will do, but I believe my Rolls batteries
have ten year warranties, with no prorating for the first seven. Compare that
to a more common batttery warranty of 24-36 months, often pro-rated after 12,
and the manufacturer certainly has a lot of faith in them.

When I was in the auto business, I dabbled in some primitive electric cars. A
local coop would fit electric motors and goo gobs of batteries into Geo Metros,
kit cars, etc- and then I'd help them sell them to the public. The battery the
electric car people always used was a Rolls, and those guys lived, breathed,
and all but worshipped batteries.

Another thought is that I may get another bought after a few more
years. No sense in buying twenty-year batteries in that case. Hell,
the new owner of my boat, if and when, may just take it out and
capsize it!

So don't buy a 20-year battery, but if it were my boat and the garden variety
batteries had reached the ripe old age of seven years, I'd figure they had
earned a dignified retirement and put in something likely to be more reliable
for next season.

Batteries wear out when the lead plates in them wear out or lose a lot
of mass. The fastest way to do this is to have an alternator or some
other charger that over charges them all the time. The perfect
situation is to have a charge that stops when your battery is
completely charged.

Of course nothing is perfect and your alternator can be made to charge
your battery fast which is good for short trips and stopping or a
slower charger for all day cruising. There is even a electical gadget
you can buy to regulate the charge your battery gets.

Next there is getting the right battery for the job. Deep cycle
batteries are for boats that run a lot of electronics when their
engines aren't running. And regular batteries are for high amperage
chores like starting your engine. If you have yacht you want at least
one of each.

If you just need a starting battery don't waste your money on a marine
battery. Most your money is paying for the word marine. Ask for a golf
cart battery, they are nearly as good at much better price.


On Wed, 08 Dec 2004 19:33:04 -0500, JohnH
wrote:

On Thu, 09 Dec 2004 00:09:13 GMT, "tony thomas"
wrote:

Some will say you should change them every so many years as preventive
maintenance since you don't want a dead battery when you are out on the
water.
Others will say replace when they go bad.
If I have multiple batteries I replace when bad. Very rare that both would
go out at the same time.
Batteries, if cared for properly, will last a long time.
I would wait until spring and see how they work. Go ahead and get them and
keep them charged over the winter. Go from there.

Sounds like a good idea to me. I sure wouldn't buy batteries now, just
to keep them charged all winter. But I may keep the old batteries on
the charger just to see what happens in the spring.

Thanks.

John H

On the 'PocoLoco' out of Deale, MD,
on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay!

"Divide each difficulty into as many parts as is feasible and necessary to resolve it."
Rene Descartes