Type of Battery

Sailgunner · Feb 28, 2015

The 6 volts are easier to handle on an individual basis and put together can provide a lot of amp hours needed for a house bank. For a starter battery stick with the 12V.

Maine Sail · Feb 28, 2015

smoothsailing said:
Reading the forums on batterys, some use 12 volt and some use 6 volt (golf cart) battery banks.

I have never read any pro's and con's for their choices.

Will anyone please let me know the reason one chooses one over the other.

TIA

Bill

This may help:

What Is A Deep Cycle Battery? (LINK)

.

Benny17441 · Feb 28, 2015

It is a compromise. Some of the factors are size, weight, cost, capacity, availability, maintenance, and recharging. The needs and preferences of individual sailors vary widely and the combination of batteries that they choose reflects what they consider to work best for them. What I mean to say is that there are many different reasons for the choices of either.

Keith in Punta Gorda · Mar 4, 2015

Always try to avoid parallel batteries. For a starter a single 12v is ok. For house batteries at 12 v always try to build a bank that is series. Eg if you need higher amp hours than a single 12 v can provide use two 6 v in series. Parallel batteries will always have one battery which will have s lower performance than the other and will slowly drain the other. In catastrophic situations it can cause the weaker battery to overheat and fail violently.
IMHO

Stu Jackson · Mar 4, 2015

Keith in Punta Gorda said:
Always try to avoid parallel batteries. For a starter a single 12v is ok. For house batteries at 12 v always try to build a bank that is series. Eg if you need higher amp hours than a single 12 v can provide use two 6 v in series. Parallel batteries will always have one battery which will have s lower performance than the other and will slowly drain the other. In catastrophic situations it can cause the weaker battery to overheat and fail violently.
IMHO

WADR, this is absolutely wrong.

rlamb · Mar 7, 2015

One answer ... Lifeline AGM. As many as you need or want.

Stu Jackson · Mar 7, 2015

rlamb said:
One answer ... Lifeline AGM. As many as you need or want.

Not really.

Like almost everything in life, and the fact that boats are compromises, there are advantages and disadvantages of AGMs.

AGM Battery Issues (from Maine Sail)
http://forums.sbo.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=124973

AGM Battery Issues and the Blue Seas Dual Circuit Switch (from Maine Sail) "DARN AGM Batteries"
http://forums.catalina.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?p=848465&highlight=darn agm

You have to do your homework and decide what's right for you.

"Your boat, your choice."

Good luck.

Don Lucas · Mar 7, 2015

smoothsailing said:
Reading the forums on batterys, some use 12 volt and some use 6 volt (golf cart) battery banks.

I have never read any pro's and con's for their choices.

Will anyone please let me know the reason one chooses one over the other.

TIA

Bill

The only con to the 6V golf cart type batteries is that you spend less money on them and they last longer. Therefore you contribute less to the economy.

woodster · Mar 7, 2015

best bang for the buck and you get a fairly large amp hour capacity out of a set along with the cost being reasonable

GorillaToast · Mar 7, 2015

Don Lucas said:
The only con to the 6V golf cart type batteries is that you spend less money on them and they last longer. Therefore you contribute less to the economy.

+1 on what Don said. The only con I've found is that people continue to call them "golf CART" batteries.

Those of us working in the golf industry refer to them as "golf CARS". Not upset tho, since 99% of folks say CART.

Golf cars are what you drive around on, carts are what you pull behind you.

Now you know, so there's no excuse going forward...