looking for recommendations on the best wet cell marine starting battery. Have replaced my 1,000 amp battery from NADA twice and they just don’t seem to hold a charge or have good cranking capacity. Ideally, I’d like a top quality wet cell with caps so that I can maintain fluid levels and test the sg periodically.
Best Marine Starting Battery?
- Thread starter abinoone
- Start date
It may not be the batteries.
How long are the batteries lasting? dHow are the batteries being recharged? Is the alternator producing enough energy? How are the house batteries doing? How are the DC circuits set up? And probably many more questions.
Generally for sailboats with small auxiliary engines you don't really want a great starting battery, but rather a deep cycle battery. Starting batteries are designed to give many amps in quick bursts, but their capacity will quickly be degraded when you use them for more extended loads. Small diesel engines are easily started by deep cycle batteries, which can't give the same max amperage but will handle cycling much better.
i've used DEKA AGM as my start battery, 130 aH for 20 years now. made in USA, a great battery. i had lifelines but they were not worth the large money differential. why go with flooded wet cells when AGM is zero maintenance ?
If they are not maintained at a full State of Charge, they die quickly and expensively. If the charging system on the OP's boat is not charing FLA batteries, it won't be charging AGMs properly. I don't think the problem is the battery, I think the problem lies with the charging system.
That's a good bet. This forum seems full of people who misplace blame on the battery.
I agree with @dlochner . (I know, hard to believe, eh? 
)
Here's what I did. Find out what tractor your engine came out of, and find out what that tractor uses for a battery. Chances are it's pretty small, like a Group U1. Get a VRLA ("sealed" lead acid) one, and keep it charged via an echo charger. Connect your alternator to the house. Make sure you have a way to connect either battery, house or engine, to the house or the engine, via the "modern" wiring of the 1/2/BOTH/OFF switch, plus an engine batt disconnector.
That little battery will start a small diesel 100 times!
One mine I have an Interstate Marine Starting Battery, BCI size 24, just because that's what fits in the box.
)Here's what I did. Find out what tractor your engine came out of, and find out what that tractor uses for a battery. Chances are it's pretty small, like a Group U1. Get a VRLA ("sealed" lead acid) one, and keep it charged via an echo charger. Connect your alternator to the house. Make sure you have a way to connect either battery, house or engine, to the house or the engine, via the "modern" wiring of the 1/2/BOTH/OFF switch, plus an engine batt disconnector.
That little battery will start a small diesel 100 times!
One mine I have an Interstate Marine Starting Battery, BCI size 24, just because that's what fits in the box.
What are you using this battery for? Strictly for starting the engine or does it handle other loads (e.g. electronics, fridge, etc) as well? If it's just starting the engine and not holding capacity then I agree with the others that there's something wrong with the charging system. If you're deep cycling this battery (marked as 1000 amps so probably not a deep cycle) with multiple loads then I think it's unlikely anything but the most robust charging system could keep it healthy.
What are you using this battery for? Strictly for starting the engine or does it handle other loads (e.g. electronics, fridge, etc) as well? If it's just starting the engine and not holding capacity then I agree with the others that there's something wrong with the charging system. If you're deep cycling this battery (marked as 1000 amps so probably not a deep cycle) with multiple loads then I think it's unlikely anything but the most robust charging system could keep it healthy.
I believe 1000 CCA (cold cranking amps); and not amp hours. That's what most larger engines or cars in the "north country" would use. Since boats aren't generally started in really cold weather, that's usually not and issue. However, the compression of a diesel engine is a lot more to overcome than a similar gasoline engine, the extra CCA isn't such a bad idea. I'm sure that a smaller start battery would do the job.
My "guess" is that real issue, as others have pointed-out is probably the regulator or the connection to the alternator.
abinoone - What type of alternator and regulator system do you have? Are you using a combiner or any other devices? Do you have a dual battery regulator? Do you put your boat on shorepower and how do you charge the batteries? In the winters in Buffalo, how do you store the battery? Is the engine start battery connected directly to the bilge pump? Etc., Etc.
I believe 1000 CCA (cold cranking amps); and not amp hours. That's what most larger engines or cars in the "north country" would use. Since boats aren't generally started in really cold weather, that's usually not and issue. However, the compression of a diesel engine is a lot more to overcome than a similar gasoline engine, the extra CCA isn't such a bad idea. I'm sure that a smaller start battery would do the job.
My "guess" is that real issue, as others have pointed-out is probably the regulator or the connection to the alternator.
abinoone - What type of alternator and regulator system do you have? Are you using a combiner or any other devices? Do you have a dual battery regulator? Do you put your boat on shorepower and how do you charge the batteries? In the winters in Buffalo, how do you store the battery? Is the engine start battery connected directly to the bilge pump? Etc., Etc.
Hi,
I had the alternator rebuilt with a bigger pulley several years ago and I believe that it’s working well and producing a good charge. I have two batteries - starting and house, and I never have trouble with my house battery, only the starting battery. Like many sailors I don’t often start the engine during the season (I’m at a mooring) but do so periodically just to recharge. Also, I recently installed a 4w solar trickle charger on the starting battery but it doesn’t seem to have helped much (in fact, I’m wondering if it caused a discharge). I’m considering buying a jump starter to have on the boat but would prefer to find out why the starting battery isn’t holding it charge. Thanks everyone!
I had the alternator rebuilt with a bigger pulley several years ago and I believe that it’s working well and producing a good charge. I have two batteries - starting and house, and I never have trouble with my house battery, only the starting battery. Like many sailors I don’t often start the engine during the season (I’m at a mooring) but do so periodically just to recharge. Also, I recently installed a 4w solar trickle charger on the starting battery but it doesn’t seem to have helped much (in fact, I’m wondering if it caused a discharge). I’m considering buying a jump starter to have on the boat but would prefer to find out why the starting battery isn’t holding it charge. Thanks everyone!
As you can probably tell from my posts I’m not very knowledgeable about batteries or charging systems. So, everyone, please reply as if you’re writing to a small child with a learning disability and maybe I’ll catch on.
Several of you have suggested that I’d be better off with a deep cycle instead of a starting battery. My engine is a Westerbeke (Buhk) DV20 - a 40 year old, two cylinder diesel. I have a compression lever that I pull out when starting the engine. Once started, the engine runs perfectly. Getting it started is my challenge. Yesterday I jumped it, then sailed for 3 hours with the engine running. Today I tried it again and it started without a jump, so I have some hope.
Several of you have suggested that I’d be better off with a deep cycle instead of a starting battery. My engine is a Westerbeke (Buhk) DV20 - a 40 year old, two cylinder diesel. I have a compression lever that I pull out when starting the engine. Once started, the engine runs perfectly. Getting it started is my challenge. Yesterday I jumped it, then sailed for 3 hours with the engine running. Today I tried it again and it started without a jump, so I have some hope.
A 4 watt trickle charger is not doing anything. It is putting out at best .3 amp per hour for maybe 3 or 4 hours a day. That's about 1 amp hour per day. If the trickle charger doesn't have blocking diodes, on cloudy days and during the night it is discharging your battery.
I think a bigger pulley will reduce the output of your alternator as it will turn slower. Automotive type alternators are standard on most marine engines, here's a good place to start reading about them: https://marinehowto.com/automotive-alternators-vs-deep-cycle-batteries/ There are other articles on MarineHowTo site also worth reading.
Adding an Automatic Charging Relay will also help. https://www.bluesea.com/products/category/35/Automatic_Charging_Relays
In the end, the answer to your problem is going to lie in the charging system. My $80 Group 24 battery continues to work well into its 5th year. Keeping it fully charged is key. I don't think that is happening on your boat.
Unless you have an electric fuel pump, once a diesel is started it doesn't require any electricity to run. The 3 hour run probably did not fully charge the battery, but it was charged enough to restart the next day.
I'd suggest that you first try this and report back: Get a voltage meter and measure the start battery before you start the engine. Then start the engine. Put the transmission in neutral and rev the engine to 1800 rpm. You should then measure te voltage at the start battery. You probably should see 14 volts +/- volts or whatever being outputted to the battery from the alternator.
It possible you are overcharging, but the you'd see some sign of boiling off water from the conventional lead acid battery.
It possible you are overcharging, but the you'd see some sign of boiling off water from the conventional lead acid battery.
Perhaps NADA was a typo & you intended to say NAPA? If this is the case, then perhaps you are using car batteries??? Boat batteries differ from car batteries in the way that they are constructed internally. Most car batteries only have the plates mechanically connected at the top. They just hang free from there. Marine batteries usually have the plates connected on 3 sides for support, so that wave action doesn't break the plates off of their mounts & cause them to touch together inside the case.
Your problem is probably not the cranking amp rating. I start V-8 engines with a common group 24 battery all the time.
If you want the best battery get the one with the best warranty. Regular wet cell batteries are manufactured now as they were 100 years ago. The manufacturing process has not been improved to a point where a good standard of quality has been achieved. The manufacturers don't know and cannot predict how long a battery will last and how it will perform. Some cannot be killed and yet others will fail within days of purchase, some will come to full charge while others will have a limited capacity. The response of the battery industry has been to develop the warranty programs which insure the buyer a certain amount of battery service for the agreed upon price. Yes there are batteries of different sizes and different characteristics so one can choose the better suited for the intended use but as far as life and performance among their group it is pot luck with the only certainty being the one their warranty affords. Besides the batteries themselves then you have to deal with the boat systems and maintenance. I like the cheaper batteries found at Walmart because they are usually fresher on the shelf and if one fails I can usually get off the boat and find a convenient store and a quick replacement. They have a no-hassle replacement warranty. If I were sailing offshore to distant lands I might consider the higher end products but for piddling around Florida and the Bahamas the cheap ones backed by a generator have performed well.