Thor said use regular battery that came with coach

[Wiley1]

Originally Posted by BASSMAN

after I installed my 4 gel cell batteries I had to put a cut off switch between the engine battery and the coach batteries, because the engine battery is a lead/acid there is a chance that the alternator will over heat the Gel Cells

After I read your post, I had to research what GEL batteries are all about. The only advantage I could find is that they are better than AGM for deep cycling which would definitely be nice. The list of disadvantages was extensive including cost, size, lack of high current output, not suitable for cold weather, shorter lifetime, higher internal resistance, and slower charging. The biggest disadvantage is the one you've explained. They require a special charger because the charging and float voltages, 14.0 and 13.7, are lower than most all other battery types.

You must have had a good reason for choosing GEL. What was it?

[BASSMAN]

Wiley1, I live in Southern California and do not have the cold problems, I went with the Gel based on the life and performance a friend had with his, he got 10 years out of his and only replaced them because he did not want them failing wile he was using his rig, he lives in Arizona, just like a tire, it may still have tread on it but they have a life span like anything else, the first two Gel Cells I bought were $350.00 each and the second set 2 months later were $250.00 each for the same battery, not sure why the sudden drop in price but it is what it is, I have had them for 3 years now and no complaints, I have seen the AGMs going for over $230.00, I think in a short time you will see the lead/acid batteries banned an California will be the first state to do it, I did unhook the converter in the breaker box and put in 4, 100 watt panels and a 2,000 watt inverter/charger and it has the settings for all the different types of batteries, the inverter/charger, solar controller and my dc to dc charger are equipped with the temp sensors

[Wiley1]

I'm still trying to figure out the differences between a USA GEL and a EURO GEL. I notice that the Euro uses charge voltages that are more in line with a flooded lead-acid battery.

I'm pretty happy with my AGMs for now. They seem to be the best bang for the buck when you consider all the variables.

[Scubawise]

Just visited my service guy..he said agm or gel loses much of its charge in cold. So no go in montana

[EA37TS]

Originally Posted by Scubawise

Just visited my service guy..he said agm or gel loses much of its charge in cold. So no go in montana

Read this


https://www.automoblog.net/2020/11/07/5-best-car-batteries-for-cold-weather-2020/

[Scubawise]

Thanks will check on this..maybe I told him Gel batteries

What Type of Battery is Best for Cold Weather?

An Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) battery is better for cold weather*versus a standard flooded battery (or what we might classify as a “normal” car battery). Although AGM batteries are often more expensive, they produce more starting power on average, higher cold cranking amps, lower discharge rates, and are simply more durable. As a result, AGM batteries tend to make for a good winter battery.

[dkoldman]

Originally Posted by EA37TS

Read this


https://www.automoblog.net/2020/11/0...-weather-2020/

My wife's car does that stop and restart at the stops & red light. Freaks me out every time I drive her car. I remember back in the day; when I got my car to start I would not turn it off (especially while on a date) until I got home

I will now be using the AGM for my Autos and Chassis batteries as well. Thanks for the read.

Originally Posted by Scubawise

Thanks will check on this..maybe I told him Gel batteries

What Type of Battery is Best for Cold Weather?

An Absorbed Glass Mat (AGM) battery is better for cold weather*versus a standard flooded battery (or what we might classify as a “normal” car battery). Although AGM batteries are often more expensive, they produce more starting power on average, higher cold cranking amps, lower discharge rates, and are simply more durable. As a result, AGM batteries tend to make for a good winter battery.

If you shop around you can find AGMs are not that much more expensive. I just received both of my Vmax tanks; and I am so proud of them, I have them in the house & keep wiping them down with a microfiber cloth; not sure when I will put them in


My stock batteries 135ah are still good, but I am tired of the mess it does to my concrete when cleaning; and the corrosion, de-sulfating etc. Both batteries were 13.0+ vdc out of the box. 250ah; so I have very high expectations.

[Pete'sMH]

My wife’s car had the start/stop engine with no way to disable it except for an aftermarket add on device that I never got around to buying. The combination of that feature, turbo lag and a 10 speed transmission that was ALWAYS shifting made for a pretty unpleasant driving experience. Probably could get used to it as a “new normal” except my usual ride is a 17 year old car that’s just silky smooth by comparison. Some things are more important than mpg!

[Wiley1]

Originally Posted by Pete'sMH

My wife’s car had the start/stop engine with no way to disable it except for an aftermarket add on device

What brand of automobile doesn't allow you to disable the stopper/starter thing?

Our Honda dealer advised us to disable that "feature" shortly after we took delivery of our 2019 Pilot. They say it puts too much stress on the battery, not to mention the starter. We haven't shut it off yet, but we have learned how to press more gently on the brake pedal to prevent it from happening.

[Pete'sMH]

Originally Posted by Wiley1

What brand of automobile doesn't allow you to disable the stopper/starter thing?



Our Honda dealer advised us to disable that "feature" shortly after we took delivery of our 2019 Pilot. They say it puts too much stress on the battery, not to mention the starter. We haven't shut it off yet, but we have learned how to press more gently on the brake pedal to prevent it from happening.

2019 GMC Terrain.

[The Gritz Carlton]

2019 XT5 does the same shut off thing but there's no aftermarket bypass. I just pull the shifter down in "M" while sitting at lights and back to "D" when green...or put the A/C on "MAX"..that will bypass it. It's the stupidest thing GM ever did.

[dkoldman]

Originally Posted by The Gritz Carlton

2019 XT5 does the same shut off thing but there's no aftermarket bypass. I just pull the shifter down in "M" while sitting at lights and back to "D" when green...or put the A/C on "MAX"..that will bypass it. It's the stupidest thing GM ever did.

My wife has 2018 XT5 which scares me every time I drive. With that said we never had an issue, but I will try your plans and probably write it down to put in manual so if we ever need we will know how to bypass.

But to GM's credit...

Supposedly if voltage is below a certain level it will not shut down. And here is my favorite. It comes with a VERY NICE AGM BATTERY!!!!! That battery will last longer than we have the car

[lwmcguire]

Interesting, my Fords have the switch on the dash

You simply turn it off when you start it

They also come with AGM stock batteries

[dkoldman]

Originally Posted by lwmcguire

Interesting, my Fords have the switch on the dash

You simply turn it off when you start it

They also come with AGM stock batteries

I tried to get my wife to buy a Ford truck, but she insisted on XT5 Cadillac

The 2020 XT5 have the switch now. But if you read our owner's manual for our model; they have a lot of advanced monitoring from the central computer; so it will not just blindly shut down, the car has to be operating within some predefined thresholds. i.e if your battery cannot hold a charge or voltage is dropping, it will NOT shut down.

It just spooks me to at a light and it just stops but without fail when you give it gas it goes as if it was never off.

I am curious have you ever had to disabled and if so, why?

[BASSMAN]

Badmanrick, not sure of the brand or type of the Battery Isolation Manager, I just bypassed it and its hooked directly to the DC to DC battery charger, the Axis came with flooded lead acid batteries for the engine and the coach so I doubt the Battery Isolation Manager is able to handle the Gel, AGM or Lithium, with out the temp probe you run the risk of overheating your batteries an splitting them open, I am sure you recall when Boeing rolled out their new 787 and they had to ground the entire fleet due to the new lithium batteries overheating and catching fire, I bought a new Ford F-150 and it came with a AGM battery and it has a temp probe attached to the ground cable at the battery post, I have a lot of money invested in the Gel Cells so I am not going to risk overheating them, I do only dry camping and just bought a 78 quart compressor refrigerator/freezer, its runs on 12/24 Volt DC or 120/220 Volt AC, I camp in the Southern California desert and fish the Colorado river, I am out fishing most of the day and when I come in my batteries are fully charged from the solar panels, at night I watch TV with lights on and so forth, TVs have been replaced with 12 volt units, I use a CPAP at night and its hooked to a 12 volt connection, in the morning I use the Inverter for the coffee maker and my batteries are down by about 25%, when I head out to go fishing I turn on both of the over head fans in the vents to help keep the inside of the coach cool, only time I every run the generator is to run the A/C long enough to cool the inside down if it gets too warm, its been a good system for me, I just bought 2 new Dakota lithium batteries for my bass boat, I have a 24 volt trolling motor and have 4 12 volt batterie, two hooked in series for a set of two and they are isolated by a battery switch, I run one set one day and switch over to the other set the next day and use a Honda 1000 watt generator to recharge them at night, those two Dakota Lithium batteries with two 10 amp chargers were $1,700.00, if they perform like they claim I will replace the other set and buy two more, they come with a 11 year warranty