weeeee
New member
AutoAnything routinely has 20% off coupons, that's where I bought mine with free S&H.
Have you had any problems with your 31M battery on stock charging system?
- Thread starter e60ral
- Start date
AutoAnything routinely has 20% off coupons, that's where I bought mine with free S&H.
HerT4R
New member
[MENTION=55815]Okki[/MENTION] memorably had issues with the battery draining down over a couple days, IIRC the issue was the stock alternator not keeping up with his electrical demands, maybe he can more adequately answer that.
Similar to Okki's issues, I have had an optima battery for about 1.5 years and over xmas it started having issues. Took it in to get it tested and two different places informed me there were no issues with the battery (bad cells, etc.) except it seemed that the alternator wasnt able to fully charge it up while running (one place had the alternator fail a voltage check, the other place said it was low but that it wasnt showing a failure). Bought a tender and used it a few times while i saved money to get a HO alternator. Got the HO alternator and got it installed last week and have had no battery issues since. Will make sure to come back and update if i have any issues but i can already tell the difference and singing the praises of the HO alternator.
jrandom
New member
To clarify [MENTION=55815]Okki[/MENTION] 's Diehard 31m case cracked around the terminals, the same as mine, although his was much worse, and gel was pooling on the bottom of his battery cage.
From what I have deduced and tested it has more to do with not driving your truck far/long enough, not so much to do with the alternators output at least Trail editions anyway.
When I have been on road trips I have zero issues maintaining a proper charge, (running a fridge) I only live >5 miles from work, hardly even enough to warm the truck, I avoid driving, that is in no way sufficient to maintain a battery of this size.
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HerT4R
New member
aha! so that was it!
idk YMMV but i was having issues with my alternator keeping up with my demands. Or i have a short somewhere causing a slow drain? who knows? for now the alternator has solved my issues. And the HO alternator will help me keep up with dual batteries which are on my mod to-do list. Thats what i was mostly worried about, since i was having issues keeping one battery charged, it didnt seem like it would be able to keep up with two. Though if my alternator is hiding a larger issue, like a short somewhere, i should probably try to locate it or install a kill switch near the battery so i can halt all current whenever i park it for long periods of time. but i digress... :yield:
Jaydub514
New member
I've been kicking around a few ideas possibly involving the National Luna Portable Power Pack (which I'd couple with a Group 31 AGM) - and I actually found that if you have a local Sams Club near you, they sell a Group 31 AGM (Duracell Platinum) for less than $200. Might be worth checking out, likely the way I am leaning.
https://www.samsclub.com/sams/durac...rv-battery-group-size-31dtmagm/prod3590232.ip
Antman
Elite Member
Costco is Interstate Batteries (Johnson Controls) Been running them in my boat, all replacement batteries, and as my main battery for years and years. Never had an issue. I still have the OEM battery as my backup starting battery too.:bounce:
phillyd2
Senior Member
Costco is Interstate Batteries (Johnson Controls) :evil:
jrandom
New member
Of course as you mention it really depends on what your demands are too. The only serious continuos draw I have is a fridge (and I for obvious reasons only use it on trips). The winch and compressor are completely intermittent (the winch and fridge are the main reason for the battery)
You should grab a clamp meter and see what your truck draws when its off (they are not super accurate but give you a good ballpark figure). I did and sadly I can't remember what the draws was but it was enough to make a dent if I didn't drive for a couple of weeks.
Dark Lord
New member
I would have to disagree with this statement. Power packs clearly do not cost as much as a dual battery system. I bought an Antigravity XP-10 for less than $150. You just have to shop around. Most dual battery kits I've seen cost upwards of $500-1000 without the spare battery.
With that said, I had my heart set on a dual battery system for the sake of redundancy, but have since changed my mind. First of all, I don't have a lot of lights to run. All I need an AGM for is my air compressor, winch, and fridge. I don't think the NEED is really there for two batteries. All those reasons and I don't want to mess with the installation.
Anyway, I haven't invested in a new AGM battery yet for my 5th Gen. My only concern is the fender cracking I've seen some people have issues with. In case you were interested, I found this blog post the other day which was pretty useful for me considering I don't know a lot about batteries and such.
https://five9341.com/2017/01/06/choosing-a-battery-for-your-overland-rig/
e60ral
Banned
we were talking about the national luna power pack, its ~$500 without a battery, which you can buy a dual battery setup for. its really only useful if you don't have room under the hood for a dual battery, which is how they market it. the arkpak is similar but costs a little less, but it seems like there are some quality control issues.
from what i can tell the fender cracking seems to be people using the stock tray, spend $10 on a metal tray and i bet you can avoid the problem.
Dark Lord
New member
Ahhhh..... gotcha. Thank you for clarifying that.
My only hesitation about buying such a big battery is the cracking issue. Have you seen any other 31M battery trays aside from the Pelfreybilt one? I did find this.
https://off-grid-engineering.myshop...tery-trays/products/ml-acr-mount-battery-tray
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e60ral
Banned
i see no reason to spend money on a fancy pelfrybilt or similar battery tray, all you should need is a basic battery tray like:
$10 Steel Battery Tray 13"
(you'll also need to buy longer j-hooks which should be <$5)
i saw some that were even stainless steel and contained j hooks for about $20 on amazon. just make sure the tray is solid metal construction so it doesn't rock on the fender and that it fits the dimensions for whatever battery size you get (group 31 will need a tray about 13"x7")
although if you want that sweet overlanding credibility i guess you definitely need the pelfreybilt one
Irishcav17
New member
Thanks for the article. That was interesting. I purchased an odyssey battery that I haven't installed yet but hoping to soon. I got the steel metal battery tray from Remy which was not expensive at all. I feel like you can never learn enough about batteries.
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e60ral
Banned
I think I'm going to go with the Duracell Ultra 31 and use the cost difference to get a good jump pack. Its made by East Penn (deka) which has plenty of good reviews.
I contacted East Penn about chargers, the NOCO multi-prupose chargers were all too high voltage. this battery has a Charge/Absorption/Equalize of 13.8V-14.6V, the NOCO is 14.8V.
East Penn recommended Clore Automotive chargers, so I contacted them, they don't list the voltage in their manuals. I really liked that the NOCO was waterproof but I'll see what I can find.
EDIT:
The NOCO GenMini1 on-board charger should work
I contacted East Penn about chargers, the NOCO multi-prupose chargers were all too high voltage. this battery has a Charge/Absorption/Equalize of 13.8V-14.6V, the NOCO is 14.8V.
East Penn recommended Clore Automotive chargers, so I contacted them, they don't list the voltage in their manuals. I really liked that the NOCO was waterproof but I'll see what I can find.
EDIT:
The NOCO GenMini1 on-board charger should work
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Do you mind sharing how your solar is mounted and set up?
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Titanpat57
Senior Member
It's in my build thread in my Sig line...tap on hat and it's towards the end.
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