Request Opinions on Batteries

Granny

One day at a time...
Joined
Jun 12, 2007
Location
Cabarrus County (Rimertown)
I am preparing to buy a battery to put in my new camping trailer. The current drainage will be very minimal as all lighting is LED. In addition, I have a couple small fans that pull 0.18a each, and a small water pump that pulls 2a. The water pump will only run when needed, and will never be in constant use.

I am thinking that a deep-cycle for my purpose would be a waste of money as the battery will never be "deep-cycled" to begin with. I am thinking a plain old car battery may actually be a better choice for my purpose. In addition, since the battery will get charged every time the trailer is hooked to the truck I may not even need a charger in the trailer.

For reference, I also have a 120v generator with 12v charging capabilities.

Opinions please! ...and ThanX in advance!
 
Isn't there a 120v to 12v converter built into the camper?

I found that the 12v connection in the trailer light plug doesn't carry enough current at a high enough voltage to charge the camper batteries, but I have a pair of Trojans in ours. The Jeep was able to charge the car battery I had on our little camping trailer, but I ran a dedicated 12 GA wire direct from the battery to the plug.

With the two Trojans, we only run the generator if we need the microwave or the air conditioner. All the lights in the camper are incandescent or fluorescent. No LEDs.
 
Shawn can you run your gas heat without the generator on? I have been curious about adding a battery to my truck camper it has a plug on the outside for it but it juwt looks like a old 6 prong trailer plug and i didnt come with any type of harness

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Yes. If it's damn cold, it'll run the batteries down, but it takes about three or four nights.

It was pretty cold at the veterans' ride, but we were fine all weekend.

Generally speaking, I prefer the buddy heater to the onboard furnace, though.

If you just have one battery, I'd guess it would be fine for a night or two, but can't really say for sure. Ours had a car battery when we got it, but it was already shot.
 
You'll want a deep cycle battery, it is made to be used over a long period of time and recharged. a car battery is made for high demand for short periods of time and don't react well to being heavily discharged and recharged often.
 
Ya have to agree on not likeing the furnace its on fire or cold never just right lol but my ac is the same way i think there just over sized

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Isn't there a 120v to 12v converter built into the camper?

OK... starting over from the beginning. I bought a NEW 7'x12' cargo trailer which I am converting into a camper. It does not have a power converter as I don't feel a need for one. The 12v devices listed in the original post are all I have. In addition, I have a 2000w Honda to supply 120v when a fixed source is not available. I believe a 1500w heater will warm it in cooler/colder weather. I won't be camping when it's 20 degrees outdoors.

So, to re-post the original question. Do I really need a deep-cycle battery? My understanding is that unless they are regularly run-down and then recharged the lifetime is drastically shortened.

Again, I have a few LED lights, a couple small fans (like computer fans), and a small water pump. That is all the 12v stuff I have to power.
 
Deep cycle is recommended because as stated previously, car batteries are only intended to supply short duration currents and be recharged afterwards. Deep cycle are intended for slow discharge for an extended duration and charged some time after discharge. I believe deep cycle do not like to be recharged quicky either but I may be mistaken on that. Golf cart batteries would work if you find some used.. might be worth checking on a recon or used deep cycle at that. Or if you got a spare car battery, use it and see how it does. May work for your purposes, especially if you have one laying around collecting dust. Heck you could just power off your tow vehicle if your loads are what you say, but I would use a battery alarm if you did that. Then there would be no extra battery to buy.
 
Don, might be easier to look at the "reserve" capacities of any battery you want to consider. Car batteries vary, but generally run 1-2 hours. Do you have a Marine battery in your boat? Borrow that if you do. Haven't looked lately, but don't recall much price difference between a standard 1000 amp, & an marine battery of 800-1000. If you have any battery that you could "borrow" for a trial, start with that.
 
If you don't won't to put a battery in and are going to have a generator running then put a converter in it like in an RV then any time the generator is running the converter will supply all the 12v power you need
 
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