Batteries

[scsmith42]

Seems like monthly I'm replacing batteries in some piece of equipment here on the farm.  I just did a mental count and came up with 54 batteries that I have in equipment, and 5 minutes later thought of three five more that I had forgotten! 

Years ago a post here on FF invited members to post their individual results with different battery brands.  Based upon that post, I switched over to Duralast Gold Batteries from Autozone (I had a lot less batteries back then).  I had great results from them over the years, but when they changed their warranty (for the worse) and lightened the batteries up, I switched over to Duracell batteries from Batteries Plus.  What's nice is that I buy enough of them to get a discount.

Earlier today I ran across this video about battery restoration myths.  I think that I might try this in the future to see if I can restore some of the batteries that have gone bad but are used in equipment that sits a lot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2XRR9aFWPo&t=1s

The batteries in one of the cranes are Carquest Premium, and recently they are starting to get weak if I don't leave the solar charger hooked up.  They might be a good test to try out on the welder trick.

I've had a resistance type battery tester for decades, but that one from Foxwell BT705 tester on the video may make a good addition as it shows percentages of improvement.

What about y'all?  Any favorite battery brands to share?

[Tom King]

I never think far enough ahead to plan what or where to get one.  It seems like I always just get them when they won't take a charge any more.  A few weeks ago the pair in my truck just wouldn't take a charge in spite of leaving a Noco charger on them for days.  We don't have many choices close by, so I just went to the NAPA store that's a few miles away (only choice without driving a half hour to get to town) and got two to replace the exact same mid of the line Napa batteries that were in there.

The last pair were purchased in 2016.  I just swapped them out in the parking lot.

[barbender]

The Carquest premium batteries I had over the years held up very, very well. Now they've switched over to Diehard, I don't think they are rhe same batteries which is a bummer.

[JD Guy]

I've been another satisfied Autozone battery purchaser. If not mistaken, 3 tractors, two trucks and one auto all have them. I've been told recently that 
Sam's Club has very good pricing on Duracell but do not have any personal experience with that brand of starting battery.

[sawguy21]

Tom, you did very well getting seven years out of those batteries. Both in my Ram diesel gave out just before the cold weather hit, I got lucky as they are not easy to change.

[red]

Home Depot is selling Exide Batteries 

[Larry]

That battery Youtuber talks way faster than I can hear, he is not from Arkansas........ ;D

50 - 60 years ago their were places that sold "rebuilt" batteries.  I asked one how they rebuilt the battery and was told they drain the acid out, than flush the battery with something, and finally put in new acid and charge.  Seems like they came with some kind of short guarantee.  I bought one or two when I didn't have money.  Can't remember any problems.

 

[barbender]

Sawguy, keep a close eye on the connections for the second battery on your Dodge. I had a combination of a weak alternator and a bad connection, and kept boiling the drivers side battery. Apparently, the computer reads the voltage off off the passenger battery, if you have a weak connection so that that battery voltage is low the computer, which regulates the alternator voltage output, will overcharge the drivers side battery. 

[Tom King]

Tom, you did very well getting seven years out of those batteries. Both in my Ram diesel gave out just before the cold weather hit, I got lucky as they are not easy to change.

Yes, I was really surprised when the salesman pointed out their dates to me.  The alternator was new in 2004 260,000 miles ago too, but still charges fine.  

[Tom King]

I'm not singing the praises for Napa parts though.  I'm getting ready to replace their steering box, power steering pump, and brake booster in my truck that are less than three years old with not many miles on them.  I'll be using good parts this time.  Their stuff used to be fairly okay.

[beenthere]

That battery Youtuber talks way faster than I can hear, he is not from Arkansas........ ;D

50 - 60 years ago their were places that sold "rebuilt" batteries.  I asked one how they rebuilt the battery and was told they drain the acid out, than flush the battery with something, and finally put in new acid and charge.  Seems like they came with some kind of short guarantee.  I bought one or two when I didn't have money.  Can't remember any problems.

With YouTube you can go into settings and change the playback speed to render the "fast talker" down to a slower pace. 

[barbender]

I have to click @YellowHammer up to 1.5x on his YouTube videos, then he almost sounds like he might be from Minnesota😂

[Andries]

Crank it to 1.75x and he sounds close to being glaciated, like near Canadian!

[Ed]

IMHO, forget about Car Quest, their batteries have went downhill since Action bought them.
I use only Dekka, USA made, good quality. My average battery life is 6 years.

Ed

[YellowHammer]

I have trouble believing it, but some people say I have a southern drawl. 

[moodnacreek]

The megatron 7 year Interstate batteries they used to sell would last up to 11 years. I got stuck with Auto Zone dura last, a pair in my diesel pick up, only lasted a year. They would keep giving them to you until the warranty was up. Back to interstate but they are nothing like they used to be.

[Stephen1]

I have a sears diehard in my bobcat. It's been in there 8 years now and still cranks even in the winter. 

[scsmith42]

I've been another satisfied Autozone battery purchaser. If not mistaken, 3 tractors, two trucks and one auto all have them. I've been told recently that
Sam's Club has very good pricing on Duracell but do not have any personal experience with that brand of starting battery.

I've been using the Duracell's for around 5 years.  Had one replaced under warranty; other than that no complaints.  I used to average 7 years from the Autozone Duralast Gold's; I'm not sure if the Duracell's will be that good or not.  

[hedgerow]

I have been using batteries from Sam's Club for twenty plus years out here on the farm and have had good luck with them. Last winter the JD 4440 was turning a little slow and I checked and the battery was nine years old. Had the battery out of the Bobcat to get the lift cylinder out this spring and notice it was ten years old so I put a new one in. I did buy a couple batteries from O'Reilly's during COVID one for my wife's Jeep and one for my F-150 pickup as no one else had one in stock. The one in the Jeep was a factory battery that was seven years old and the one in the F-150 was from Sam's and was nine years old.  

[scsmith42]

One thing about cold weather - it will let you know which batteries are marginal.

Since I authored this post last year, I've acquired one of the Foxwell BT705 battery testers that was featured in the video clip.  I haven't tried any of the restoration methods yet, but I have been surprised by the accuracy of the Foxwell tester.

For decades I've used the old style "resistance" tester on my batteries.  The past few years though I've noticed a trend where an older battery (4 - 5  years old) will read in an acceptable range on the resistance tester, but it has a hard time cranking over some of the diesel equipment in the cold.  Replacing the battery with a newer one (or new one) usually resolves the problem, leaving me wondering why my resistance tester says "ok" when obviously the cold cranking amps are below the required amount.

The Foxwell BT705 has surprised the heck out of me.  It provides an accurate measurement of the cold cranking amps (CCA) from my batteries.  I can take a battery that the resistance tester says is ok (but is slow cranking the equipment so I know that it's NOT ok), and test it with the Foxwell and discover that it's only at 40% - 60% or so of targeted CCA.  Buying a new battery, I can see the difference in CCA between off the shelf and freshly charged, and the behavior of my starting motors in the various pieces of equipment tracks along with the Foxwell's readings.

I am somewhat baffled how the Foxwell electronic tester (with small gauge wires) can more accurately measure CCA versus my old standby, but darned if it doesn't!

One other thing that I've started doing is converting most of my equipment over to the SLI31SA model battery.  I'm able to buy these at my local Batteries Plus (Duracell Gold) for around $125, and I usually get 4 - 5 years of service from them.  This is a standard battery size for Semi's, dump trucks and a lot of heavy equipment, and the price reflects the volume that they are made.  They are a 950CCA battery with screw terminals on top.  Adapters are available (I buy the brass ones) from Amazon to convert them to standard round post if needed.

[YellowHammer]

Scott, there you go costing me money again! 

I just ordered one off the Amazon based on your recommendation.  I had a buddy who used to say of some people he really trusted "If the man says that rooster will pull a freight train, then just shut up and hook it up."  So...

I had a great digital load tester I loved, a generation below this one and it eventually died years ago.  I went back to using the resistance load testers, which just are not that good, as you say.  So, the magic Amazon diety will have one here in a few days. 

Ironically, I spent much of the morning getting all my equipment cranked, it's the first day over freezing in a week or so, sometimes down to 4F and I must have bought a bunch of Tesla batteries, because they all said "Nope"until this morning when the weather finally hit about 35F.

[rusticretreater]

Replacing the battery with a newer one (or new one) usually resolves the problem, leaving me wondering why my resistance tester says "ok" when obviously the cold cranking amps are below the required amount.

Electricity is a confusing thing at times.  Your resistance tester simply takes the path of least resistance and gives you a reading.  Reading amperage is another thing entirely.  This is done by electronics and a measurement of electron flow across a metal bridge of known properties.

It is also advisable to invest in a battery charger and condition your battery from time to time.  Disconnect the battery cables, clean the terminals and charge the battery overnight using a low setting of 2amps or so.  While the alternator is designed to recharge the battery, it doesn't fully top it off.  Over time a condition called sulfation builds up in a battery.  Things just get mucky and affect ability to deliver and store power.  By fully charging a battery or slightly overcharging the battery for a short period heats it up a bit and can help break down and reduce sulfation.  Don't take my word for it, read about it online.

[KEC]

My 2 cents on batteries: I've come to have fair confidence in Dekka (sp) batteries. So many brands  on a lot of things used to be good, but then went downhill; hopefully Dekka will maintain quality. Frigid  temps are the acid test of batteries. Find something besides batteries to go cheap on., Buy one with lots of CCA and long life. You sometimes get a poor battery that fails quickly. Like tires, you can get a good one or not so good. Last I knew NAPA batteries were Dekka. Again,go cheap and the first time it goes below zero F, you might have a case of buyers remorse.

[beenthere]

The Foxwell BT705 claims to be a load tester, so likely is what separates it from the resistance tester.

[21incher]

Then on modern vehicles throw in the BMS system that shortens battery life even more.  My Ranger only  charges to about 80% to get better  fuel mileage and you have to be very careful  how you connect a trickle charger so the BMS doesn't get fooled. Also have to reset the BMS management system when replacing the battery.  Crazy what they are doing to meet CAFE standards.