Battery choice?

Morning all,

Curious the battery selection y'all have had luck with for those rigs that tend to sit for a while. This time of year when I'm stocked on feed and the grass is growing I don't drive the truck much.

My problem is that he battery will be dead after the truck sits for two weeks. Until I can finish the suspension and then dive into the electrical I need a solution and was thinking about an Optima yellow top with a battery disconnect switch added.

I've got red tops in the family daily drivers and no complaints. Does anyone have feedback on the yellow tops? Are they worth the investment?

I had that problem with my waverunner. $125 yuasa would go dead when I wasn't using it for a while. I went to home depot and bought a waterproof black and Decker trickle charger for about $25. I would hook it up about once a month and leave it in the waverunner with cord sticking out for easy access. When I bought my square the guy said it had a new battery but had been sitting 8 months. Was able to drive it home because the alternator charges well. I have the charger on it now and plug it in about twice a month for about a day. It keeps it charged since I don't use it as a daily driver. I buy refurbished batteries for $40 When you give him old one and $60 without. I have those in my daily driver and camaro. Never had a problem with them lasting. Imo over $100 for a battery is just too much when a $25 charger will keep it charged while you don't drive it.

I have the Optima red top batteries in both my K20 and my Silverado (and my dad runs one on his K15). My first one lasted 14 years so I stayed with that brand. Plus they are more vibration resistant and spill proof which is a big deal for my rough riding trucks.

Sometimes my K20 will sit for 2 months or more before I drive it. I have a small solar battery charger that sits on the dash to keep the battery topped up.

But if the battery ever does get very low a lot of the older battery chargers will not charge an Optima. It will think the battery is internally shorted and will then shut off making you think your battery is bad. A new style battery charger or one made by Optima itself will charge them up though.

You can buy oreilly brand agm batteries like the optima that get a descent discount if you have a commercial account and used to have a better warranty. I bought a cheap battery maintainer for the vette for the winter. Side note with optima /AGM batteries I have heard that when they are bad/wont take a charge let them set for 24 hours opposite of how you mount it then charge it. Not sure how true this is.

I second the Optima battery. I usually try to spring for the yellow top have had them last forever with zero problems.

No matter how enticing the price may be, stay away from Walmart batteries. Their warranty is pretty hassle free but they don't like sitting. They are a cheap battery and should be regarded as such.

I didnt have any issues running one on a daily driven truck a few years ago but had issues on a car that sits regularly.

optima we have one in the summer car and with Wisconsin being winter for 7 months of the year. the car sits and it fires up every year without a jump. just make sure you disconnect the battery if the truck has a drain somewhere.

I found X2 power from battery plus or optima to be about the same. Had X2 power fail within two years and had Optima fail within two years, but then had two optimas last 6+ years. Advance auto parts I think had the best deal for AGM battery last time I checked.

Don't forget to get a battery desuflator/charger. Not that I used it afterwards, but I brought an 8 year old battery, that wouldn't take a charge from a standard charger, back to life after sitting on one of these for a week. Put your lawnmower battery on it yearly and it will last longer than the typical 2 years.

http://www.batteryminders.com/2012-12-volt-desulfating-battery-charger-worldwide-use

http://www.batteryminders.com/why-batteryminders/

I have a 1050 CA napa legend battery in my square that was previously bought brand new for my burban about oh.... 5 years ago. Still whirls over this tired ol 350 like nobodys bizz. Im very pleased with it, never had a problem. Even in below freezing temps it barely bogs down. I cant input on optima because ive never had one.

thanks for the feedback everyone. I am going to look into AGM batteries and the tenders mentioned. Would I still need a tender if I plan on putting in a disconnect switch?

I can second the low end Walmart batteries only being good if you run them. You’ll still need a battery tender if it’s disconnected, but it won’t loose its charge as quickly as it would connected, especially if you have an analog clock or a digital radio.

Rooster336 said:

thanks for the feedback everyone. I am going to look into AGM batteries and the tenders mentioned. Would I still need a tender if I plan on putting in a disconnect switch?

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You shouldnt but the new batteries at the parts stores are on charge rotations to keep them from going dead on the shelf.. so is it worth the risk of the battery discharging and not taking a charge from sitting for so long?

Costco has been selling batteries for a couple years now. I was told by the manager of the auto tire department that they will take them back no matter what. He said the warranty is four years or 42 months, I can’t remember exactly but “it will be the last battery you’ll ever have to buy for your vehicle.” He said just make sure to bring it in after a few years and they will swap it out for you no questions asked. It’s not a pro rate system or anything like that, they just hand you a new battery and send you on your way. I’ve swapped a few batteries with them already and it really is that simple.

In my experience if you don’t have some sort of a power draw somewhere in your vehicle, most batteries should last a few months. I have also had expensive name brand batteries and that will lose their charge after a few weeks in a vehicle that has some sort of a draw.

Rooster336 said:

thanks for the feedback everyone. I am going to look into AGM batteries and the tenders mentioned. Would I still need a tender if I plan on putting in a disconnect switch?

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If it was me I wouldn't even bother with a disconnect switch. Park it, throw your battery tender on it and forget about it.

Just check for mice from time to time... I store my Silverado for the whole winter and mice made a nice home behind my rear seat.