Battery reviews/recommendations

[Fin27]

I'm looking to replace my two house batteries. They are currently interstate SRM-27, 750 MCA, 160 RC. I'm basically replacing with a similar 27DC battery. Menards and Walmart have similar ones for around $90, FVP brand and Everstart. Should I stick with Interstate which seems to be $40-$50 higher cost or are these good?

I don't have experience buying these types of batteries and really don't know if there are big quality differences that justify the extra cost for a specific brand.

Thanks for you expertise!

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

Question to answer is what you'll be using them for. For someone that travels from trailer park to trailer park rarely using their house battery can get away with a lighter duty battery than someone that goes for an extended time off-grid, or has high current devices like microwave ovens and coffee pots to power.

If you found the existing battery you have sufficient but are just replacing it due to age or damage then getting another one just like it checks the box. If there was a problem powering your stuff in terms of run time then a review of that requirement is in order, then choosing a storage solution that more closely matches what you need.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[Ex-Calif]

I have had good luck with Everstart for all my vehicles for the past 7-10 years. For the RV and my classic MGs I use the marine versions. I lke the handle, the stud attach and they do deep cycle a little better than standard vehicle batteries.

My MGs are seasonal drivers and spend a lot of time on float charge. One MG has an 8 year old Everstart still doing fine. My Jeep used one up in 5 years but that's a daily driver and non-marine version.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The Interstate SRM 27 has no great claim to fame - it's just a flooded cell, marine/RV "hybrid' battery. A little better than a purely autototive type battery but short of any AGM or true deep cycle in terms of expected life. Interstate doesn't make batteries themselves - it's just a distribution and sales "private label" brand, so the Walmart or Menards battery may even come from the same battery maker (who will be one of the USA's Big Four battery manufacturers). That type of battery is a commodity, so you should buy it based on the specs (AH rating & physical size) and price.

If you would like to learn a bit more about RV battery choices without getting overwhelmed with techie stuff, see my article in the site RESOURCES library at RVForum - Choosing a battery

 

[Isaac-1]

I have read online that the Interstate Battery warranty is only good at the selling dealer, not nation wide, which may matter depending on how you travel

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

The Interstate Battery warranty says it is nationwide and honored at "an IB Authorized Warranty Dealer". Since many IB batteries are sold through repair shops and such, I'm not sure that every purchase source is an "Authorized Warranty Dealer". And a franchisee selling batteries as a sideline may not be gung ho about helping out an owner who bought elsewhere, even if technically obligated to do so. Or simply may not have the model battery in stock.

Walmart, on the other hand, will honor their Everstart battery warranty at any Walmart location that sells their batteries.

 

[NSRV]

Interstate batteries are probably the best option. Interstate is a quality battery and they typically last a long time.

With batteries, you get what you pay for. In theory, the more expensive the battery the better it will be and the longer it will last.

 

[Fin27]

Thanks everyone! Especially Gary, as usual you lead me to great info.

 

[Fin27]

Thanks everyone! Especially Gary, as usual you lead me to great info.

 

[Aaron5er]

I bought 2 Interstate batteries, January 2021, in Quartzsite and had both charged and load tested in Bismarck ND at the Interstate All Batteries Center in August.
No questions asked, no charge, no problems at all.
Both tested good.
I just let them run down too low without sufficient charging while mostly dry camping.

 

[NSRV]

Interstate doesn't make batteries themselves - it's just a distribution and sales "private label" brand, so the Walmart or Menards battery may even come from the same battery maker (who will be one of the USA's Big Four battery manufacturers).

You are actually more spot on than you realize. Johnson Controls is the manufacturer who makes Interstate batteries, they also make the Wal-Mart Everstart batteries and some of Auto-Zone's batteries too. (Not sure about Menards) Depending on the state you purchase these batteries they are either manufactured in the USA or in Mexico. (Sadly...)

Even tho its the same manufacturer, Johnson Controls, the Interstate battery is probably not the same as an Everstart as each company who orders batteries from Johnson Controls can require different quality and specs of the battery materials.

P.S. according to the Google Johnson Controls manufactures 65% of all the marine/auto/rv/tractor batteries sold in the USA.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

With batteries, you get what you pay for. In theory, the more expensive the battery the better it will be and the longer it will last.

In my experience, within the same size & type of battery, higher cost usually just gets you a longer warranty on the same battery.

You are actually more spot on than you realize. Johnson Controls is the manufacturer who makes Interstate batteries, they also make the Wal-Mart Everstart batteries and some of Auto-Zone's batteries too. (Not sure about Menards)

The Big Three battery makers in the USA are Johnson Controls, East Penn Mfg, and Exide, and US Battery is 4th though much smaller than the others. All of them make "private label" batteries under contract for brands such as Interstate, Die Hard, Everstart, Duracell, Delco, etc. US Battery is the premier supplier of 6v golf car batteries, regardless of brand, and they make 6v batteries for Interstate too. Johnson Controls won the Walmart supply contract in 2021; it was Exide prior to that.

 

[NSRV]

In my experience, within the same size & type of battery, higher cost usually just gets you a longer warranty on the same battery.

That is also true, as battery manufacturers usually make one line and just put different labels on them. True battery reliability lies in the type of battery it is, as well as maintenance. Flooded cell batteries will last a long time if maintained, but the AGM batteries are better, and starting to be used a lot more in these types of applications.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Right, but AGM is a different type than flooded.

 

[_Rusty_]

I work "part-time" for NAPA, and have their GC2 batteries in my house battery cabinet. Part of my job is dealing with the recycled batteries that come in as trade or warranty. The general consensus with my contacts is the quality of batteries is going downhill, as the manufacturers are "grinding up" the returned battery metals and reusing them - instead of using "virgin" materials. This has lead (no pun intended) to reduced quality of the substrates within the cells. We are seeing more warranty replacements this year compared to two years ago.

 

[X-Roughneck Strike 3]

Hello everybody... In May this year I replaced the pair of Napa house batteries that were OEM in our 2017 Aspect 30J. Very generically branded looking. Winnebago part numbers and a small NAPA label very plain look to them. There was nothing wrong with them except the back one leaked slightly.

Right before I swapped them out with a identical set, I determined that the flimsy top compression bar that keeps the battery pair from shifting in transit was WAY over-tightened on the back bolt from the factory.

That over-tightening pinched down the top thicker hard plastic of the battery enough to put a hairline crack right where that piece seals at the vertical battery side wall.

I know nothing about batteries other than they are heavy and the acid will burn a hole in your clothes pretty much. I also knew the set we had fit the bill for how we camp, so back with an identical set which made for no problems with connectors. My set I am relying on to crank the Gen Set only pretty much.

Only reason I swapped them was I was tired washing off the acid boil over in my catch tray I keep underneath when parked outback, and I was concerned about the effects it would cause the tray if I kept ignoring it. I constantly keep a trickle to them off a 100 watt panel when stored.

So..I called NAPA here in Po-Dunk and he told me over the phone he had a two deep cycle Group 31. I remember as I initially looked at them the guy picked them up off the concrete direct. I don't know if that is wives tale, but just for good luck I never set mine direct on concrete.

So when I asked the guy what was up and why I don't have access to the cells, he assured me they were "Maintenance Free". I said Maint free in Texas?...he then said.. Err, oh if you want to fill them or check the cell just peel off the slick strip label from the MFG that covers the cell tops. They lull you into a sense of complacency for a reason...sell you a new set...

One month almost to the day after I installed them I pulled off that pretty looking strip and to my surprise each cell took 4 oz of Fluid (Per Cell). Now as a consumer I would much rather prefer to have my new Battery filled to the cat eye from the factory with Battery Acid as opposed to me diluting the mix with 4 oz (Per Cell) of Distilled Water 30 days from the date of a new purchase.

A pair of the below cost me $348.05 after all core and handling charges in May 2021 at NAPA.

I am probably going to service my batteries today as the temps are cooling off. Might do it today as the winds are coming with the much cooler weather this week.

 

[John From Detroit]

I do not like Group 31 maintenance free MARINE/deep cycle for they are not DEEP CYCLE.

That said.... I'm not sure re-using old lead is a bad thing.. Not sure it's not. Am sure the general quality of many many things are going down going down going down. Unlike the London Bridge which last I checked was NOT falling down. (it is also no longer in London but now in AZ).

You might consider alternative battery types. LiFePo4 for example is coming down in price.
Battle Born makes batteries specifically for the RV market.
LOTS of capacity. Plus you can use more of it (They hold the voltage till nearly empty unlike lead acid which run down down down LiFePO4 runs run runs runs runs runs down.

Lighter weigh = more MPG (you likely will not notice)
And other advertised advantages.

I now have one such battery (small and a different conpany) I'm "testing" gently.

 

[Mark_K5LXP]

he assured me they were "Maintenance Free".

While not a "standard" term, it implies a plate alloy (antimony/calcium) that uses less water during the course of cycling. It also implies that this is a starting or marine battery, not deep cycle.

to my surprise each cell took 4 oz of Fluid (Per Cell). ... I would much rather prefer to have my new Battery filled to the cat eye from the factory

The filling convention for wet cells is to have the electrolyte below the cell ring.

This is for a deep cycle so some starting and marine batteries may not have the same "head room" but in my travels I've never seen my "maintenance free" batteries filled up to the ring. You'd think that'd be a simple thing to standardize on but for some reason it's not. My experience is that if batteries are filled up to the level of the neck they tend to have more spray/weeping on the tops. Keeping the level just below the neck seems to reduce that. I use Water Miser caps on my flooded batteries and that has virtually eliminated any spray or weeping. The stock caps are OK for stationary use but in a vehicle they don't cut it.

The primary source of lead in lead acid batteries is recycled and has been for decades. Any reduction in "quality" is going to come from shortcuts in process or materials for cost savings, which is a whole 'nother discussion.

An estimated 85 percent of lead in use today goes into batteries, mostly for automobiles. And when the batteries run down, 99 percent of this lead is recycled to make new batteries.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM

 

[NSRV]

Right, but AGM is a different type than flooded.

The only difference between a regular flooded battery and a AGM is first, special vent valving to prevent losing internal acid/water mixture and, second, that the lead plates are lined with fiber glass mats (hence the term AGM Abosrbed Glass Mat). Thin glass fibers soak up all the water and sulfuric acid into thin pillows cushioning the lead plates. Instead of the free-flowing liquid inside of a regular flooded battery, the AGM carries its charge in soaked sponges coating the lead plates. The glass mats’ complete coverage makes it easier to get more power from an AGM battery. Lead plates may also be shaped differently, but essentially it's just a modified flooded battery.

 

[X-Roughneck Strike 3]

One of the major Reasons I went back with OEM Group 31 was how they sat on the tray, Terminal Locations and Posts, plus mine are carried on the outside of the vehicle during transit, so cell maintainence, I got time. I replaced all cabling with the exception of the Hot wire coming to the 12 V system side. There was a Big group of wires all glued and seal coming thru a common opening. Thought there was more chance of messing something up as to making it better. My RV is still looking pretty new

I we are FHU camp site dwellers anyway, mine had a crack in the housing. They still worked great when I got rid of them. I had the acid problem leaking which was in the tray, and I had to act.

JD