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