6v or 12v house batteries?

[Sbrownstein]

Originally Posted by StevL

I actually took some time to look...Steve

That is kinda "apples to oranges" You have to always try to use batteries of the same weight. Weight is storage capacity.

A 95 pound Trojan 6 volt has a 25 amp capacity of 670. A 96 pound Lifeline 12 V has a 25 amp capacity of 315.

All AGM, same lead, same acid, same fiberglass matt. Comparison is:

4 Trojans = 1340 and weigh in at 380 pounds, 4 Lifelines = 1260 and weigh in at 384 pounds. Sure there might be some manufacturing differences between the lines, but Trojan ain't some fly by night outfit either.

Bottom line is that the 6 volts give you about 6% more capacity (measured using the 25 amp discharge data.)

Now these are all big freakin batteries...total volume for 4 each is 2.5 cuft for the LifeLines, 2.639 for the Trojans.

[757driver]

Originally Posted by StevL

This is correct if using 105 minutes of capacity at in 12v (which he states over and over).... what happens if you use two 12v with 230 or 315 minutes at 25amp (Lifeline batteries)? Now the 12v will give 460 or 630 minutes vs. his number of 225 (not sure where he got the 225, the 25 minute rating as used in my 12v example for a T105 is 447 minutes per Trojan). Lifeline wins by 13 or 183 minutes.

Now say you have four batteries like I do: Trojans=894 minutes Lifeline=920 or 1,260 (if you can put the little larger Lifeline in which I could, you now have over 6 hours of additional use at 25amp). And, without the maintenance!


Steve

Steve,

The video linked (and most other posts) have been discussing AH capacity at the 20 hour rate. You are talking about reserve capacity, two different measurements. When it comes to discussing deep cycle batteries AH capacity is the standard.

[MotorPro]

Basically there is no performance difference between 2 12 volt deep cycle or 2 6 volt deep cycle batteries of the same size. The big difference is in the price. Because 6 volt deep cycles are used in golf carts and made in large quantities they are a fraction of the price of 12 volt deep cycle.

[ArgoPilot]

I guess as the poor kid here, I spent less than $10k on my motorhome, so price IS a consideration. The 4 12v batteries in my house system have been going well for over a year, and I make sure they stay at least 70-90% charged. If I started boondocking a bunch, the lifecycle might become an issue, but for now we're mostly either plugged in at a site, or I'm doing 'maintenance time' on the genset every week and topping off the batts.

No issues or failures to report...YET...