Battery Replacement Thoughts

[Tony84121]

Looking through previous posts, I didn’t see any good threads discussing battery replacements so thought I might see what TT folks have been doing. With all the newer boats coming with tons of electronics, heavy draw ballast pumps, and multiple amplifier systems, I’m debating replacing my two factory supplied Interstate batteries with a couple Yellow Top Optimas. Yes I’m aware there are Blue Top Optimas, but cars have nearly as much “vibration” when in use and the Yellow Tops have a 3yr warranty compared to the 2yr warranty with a Blue Top.

That said, at roughly $700 for two batteries, “Is the Juice worth the Squeeze?” What are others with newer boats doing when battery replacements are needed?

For reference I have an ‘18 X46 dual screen, premium audio with dual subwoofers.

[chrislandy]

a marine environment is pretty harsh, remember when they are calling it marine, they also mean salty air, seawater splashes etc it's not just for a lake boat with a hoofing stereo. Likely hence the shorter warranty period.

i.e. if you had a problem and they found out it was in a boat, then that's their get out of warranty free card.

There's probably little actual difference between the yellow and blue tops, the blue seem to have an extra post for ancillaries (probably so you can wire the bilge pump and emergency equipment off a different circuit than the battery cut off switch)

deep cycle AGM are great in boats as they are spill proof, allow a greater discharge % before breaking down and are better for vibration and shock applications.

[bturner2]

I think this and the "what's the best oil?" are the most debated topics in the forums. Plenty of "holy war" type posts on this. You'll have the Interstate people that will declare the price for performance of the lead/acid Interstate is unmatched. The Anything but Optima people that will declare that all Optima's are junk and their brand is the best and those that have Optima batteries and love them.

From a Optima owner finishing out 9 seasons on one I'm good with the Blue tops but I bought the Optima charger and take really good care of them. Will you and did the others that hate them? Don't know can only speak for me and my experience. Also my understanding of the Optima models is the same as Chris' above.

[CruisinGA]

Are you experiencing any problems? Anything wrong I’m with your current batts? If not, waste of money.

[ttu]

i have had optima's and didn't think they were worth their hype.

die hard has always been good for me at a fraction of the cost.

[88 PS190]

I personally never replace batteries when they are still working because not only are you spending a chunk of change but you are also throwing away a good bit of life. I've always liked to upgrade to group 49 diesel style batteries if there is room - which usually there is.

[MasterCraft Ranger]

I think this and the "what's the best oil?" are the most debated topics in the forums. Plenty of "holy war" type posts on this. You'll have the Interstate people that will declare the price for performance of the lead/acid Interstate is unmatched. The Anything but Optima people that will declare that all Optima's are junk and their brand is the best and those that have Optima batteries and love them.

From a Optima owner finishing out 9 seasons on one I'm good with the Blue tops but I bought the Optima charger and take really good care of them. Will you and did the others that hate them? Don't know can only speak for me and my experience. Also my understanding of the Optima models is the same as Chris' above.

Well said.


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[btriantos]

Battery Replacement Thoughts

Looking through previous posts, I didn’t see any good threads discussing battery replacements so thought I might see what TT folks have been doing. With all the newer boats coming with tons of electronics, heavy draw ballast pumps, and multiple amplifier systems, I’m debating replacing my two factory supplied Interstate batteries with a couple Yellow Top Optimas. Yes I’m aware there are Blue Top Optimas, but cars have nearly as much “vibration” when in use and the Yellow Tops have a 3yr warranty compared to the 2yr warranty with a Blue Top.

That said, at roughly $700 for two batteries, “Is the Juice worth the Squeeze?” What are others with newer boats doing when battery replacements are needed?

For reference I have an ‘18 X46 dual screen, premium audio with dual subwoofers.

I went with three Stingers. I know they get some bad press but they have been rock solid with the boat and audio gear. Had this custom enclosure built to accommodate



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[clrussell]

Optima batteries are junk anymore. 10 years ago they were damn great.

If you want to spend stupid money on batteries get some odyssey’s.
Otherwise put factory replacements from a good brand and go on with life.

[bturner2]

Well..... I think we've now officially hit all the categories I mentioned in my first post.....

[Tony84121]

While I appreciate the responses thus far of the ten replies, only 2 had newer boats where current draws are similar. My current batteries are already showing their age and struggling to take full charges overnight on a charger which is why I’m looking. Unlike plenty of boaters in general, I don’t mind spending proactive money to ensure we have a full day on the water, not needing a tow back to the dock. It’s the whole “an ounce of prevention thing for me...” or 120lbs of it in this case ��

For BTriantos, I love the idea of adding a third battery and appreciate the pics and commentary, and hadn’t given Stinger a thought until now, so again Thank You!

[waterlogged882]

While I appreciate the responses thus far of the ten replies, only 2 had newer boats where current draws are similar. My current batteries are already showing their age and struggling to take full charges overnight on a charger which is why I’m looking. Unlike plenty of boaters in general, I don’t mind spending proactive money to ensure we have a full day on the water, not needing a tow back to the dock. It’s the whole “an ounce of prevention thing for me...” or 120lbs of it in this case ��

For BTriantos, I love the idea of adding a third battery and appreciate the pics and commentary, and hadn’t given Stinger a thought until now, so again Thank You!

Alternator (output) upgrade?

A third battery gives that much more storage but the banks still need charging.

.

[jpwhit]

It's a little unclear from your original post as to your objectives. There are two characteristics of batteries that are only loosely related to each other. One is the amount of power they can provide instantaneously, and the second is the amount of total energy they can store. First is measured in Cold Cranking Amps (CCA) the seconds is in Amp-Hours (AH).

All boats that have high end stereos and lots of electronics need a fairly high CCA rating.

Starting the boat and driving large wattage stereo amplifiers are the two primary things in a boat that need large amounts of instantaneous power.

Everything else is primarily about energy storage/usage and for most part this only matters much if you sit around using the stereo and other systems on the boat without the engine running. My experience is some people tend to raft up and run the stereo for hours or they don't. If you don't, then the energy storage capacity of your batteries isn't very important. If you do, then it becomes very important. In the end, all the power ends up coming from your alternator. You only need enough storage capacity to fulfill your needs when the engine isn't running.

Generally speaking, the physics of battery constructions tend to create a tradeoff between CCA and AH. For a battery made with lead plates, you need thicker heavier plates to have high CCA. For high AHs, you need lots of thinner plates.

Spiral wound glass mat battery construction is an exception because they can achieve high CCA and AH in a battery. Gates and Optima are two brands of batteries that use this construction method.

Net, if you spend a lot of time sitting with the engine off buy batteries with a high AH rating. Right around 100 AH is good. That's where it may be worth spending the money on Optima. If you don't then any good quality battery with a descent CCA rating will meet your needs.

I like to make battery choices by the numbers. If you don't sit around a lot, then look at CCA. If you do sit around a lot, then look at CCA and AH. If you can't find an AH rating for the battery then it's low. "Reserve Capacity" is a similar measure, but a little more marketing ish.

If you're worried about longevity, then go with name brands and read trustworthy reviews.

[jgraham37128]

Cant wait till we go to lithium.

[btriantos]

While I appreciate the responses thus far of the ten replies, only 2 had newer boats where current draws are similar. My current batteries are already showing their age and struggling to take full charges overnight on a charger which is why I’m looking. Unlike plenty of boaters in general, I don’t mind spending proactive money to ensure we have a full day on the water, not needing a tow back to the dock. It’s the whole “an ounce of prevention thing for me...” or 120lbs of it in this case ��

For BTriantos, I love the idea of adding a third battery and appreciate the pics and commentary, and hadn’t given Stinger a thought until now, so again Thank You!

They are stupid expensive, but I do like the specs and performance so far. My older x30, had two battery set up and my subs would just stop working when voltage got too low.. that was my low voltage indicator at the time. These Stingers pound the subs hard for a long time. I have added two Wetsounds SD2’s to power the sub and tower. No issues with audio at all. Had to upgrade to a 3 batt charger and I plug her in every night


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