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Old 02-19-2021, 10:11 AM   #1
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Attention golfers and golf course employees!

On another thread (probably on dozens of threads) there is discussion of pros and cons of AGM vs FLA batteries. I've already read all that and understand it My question is very specific to golf carts in use on golf courses I'll say it again, because people love to cite their personal experiences that have nothing to do with gold courses . Certainly, golf carts flying around on golf courses are subject to much more vibration than in/on an RV being towed on mostly paved surfaces. And certainly, these golf courses with their fleets of golf carts are very much interested in the longest lasting and best bang for the buck for these heavily used batteries nearly in constant use. Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM?



This is the only reply I am looking for: Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM?



Oh, one more time because I know people LOVE talking about their own batteries: Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM? Thank you for your time.
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Old 02-19-2021, 10:39 AM   #2
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Use fla 6 volt Duracell on my golf cart.beat the hell out of it 3 or 4 rounds week + running around rv resort.last about 3 years. Got from Sam's club 89.00 each.
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Old 02-19-2021, 10:40 AM   #3
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Most golf courses use WET CELLS since there is virtually NO cycle life difference between the batteries that are well maintained AND they are half the price. One can make the case that NOT paying personnel to water batteries can pay for AGM's etc. but most go with wet.



Of course SOME batteries ARE better than others and THAT has nothing to do with type (excluding lithium of course). You can buy deep cycle Lead acid with 300 cycles life or with 1000 cycles life in your choice of AGM or Wet.
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Old 02-19-2021, 10:54 AM   #4
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camaraderie, thank you for your answer. One question, do you know this from working golf course, or what? I could not find ANYTHING online in my shallow research attempt as to what golf courses are using.
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Old 02-19-2021, 11:04 AM   #5
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When I was still working I played a ton of golf. One of the job perks and suppliers picked up the tab. Almost every course I played on from Municipal Courses to the President's Reserve at The Hermitage in Nashville (Andrew Jackson's Estate) had signs similar to this:


,
If no sign the "90 Degree rule" was usually enforced meaning you could only drive to your ball by leaving the cart path "at 90 degrees, drive to your ball, then return at the same angle to the path".

Golf Courses aren't the same off-road experience that some might think and the "ride" in a golf cart isn't all that bad with the flotation tires and fairly smooth cart paths. They also only go so fast, not like a Jeep or off road 4X4. Any rough ride would bring all kinds of complaints from golfers on how their drinks got spilled.

Something else, more and more golf courses are leasing their golf carts. Leases are a direct expense deduction on taxes. Purchases require depreciation. Leased carts are exchanged regularly by the leasing company, depending on the lease terms. I see the golf cart trailer "exchanging" carts about once a year at the course adjoining the development I live in. Lease companies tend to go the cheapest route to keep profit high. Private owners may go with AGM's but given the cost difference????????

Last, not all golf carts are electric. If allowed the advantage to a gas powered cart is rapid turn-around between rounds. Just add gas and back out it goes. The electric cart needs HOURS to recharge.
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Old 02-19-2021, 11:11 AM   #6
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As a kid I use to work a bit as a course and was responsible for plugging in...but that was before AGMS! I am not a "golfer" but I generally play 1x a year with friends and DO notice these things! Others from different areas of the country may have different experiences today.


I'd be interested in hearing from people who play all over the country as I do think there's a case to be made for the commercial cost of maintenance in salary and distilled water and I wonder if that is persuasive at some clubs and in higher minimum wage states. I don't think that you will find ANY difference in performance life due to vibration, bumps etc. as ALL of these batteries have been designed for the conditions they will experience for 50+ YEARS and I think the open road is much more challenging in terms of shocks to the battery box.
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Old 02-19-2021, 11:21 AM   #7
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Quote:
Golf Courses aren't the same off-road experience that some might think and the "ride" in a golf cart isn't all that bad with the flotation tires and fairly smooth cart paths. They also only go so fast, not like a Jeep or off road 4X4. Any rough ride would bring all kinds of complaints from golfers on how their drinks got spilled.
You have yet to play with me! I look at is as a duty to try to eject my passenger! Something about bumpity bumping down path (our courses around here the paths are not so smooth, especially squeeezing around other carts on the path)makes me happy. The 90 degree rule varies with how wet the course is. And this is why I prefer beer cans to open cups, less spill waste!
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Old 02-19-2021, 11:24 AM   #8
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This may be an exaggeration. But still cracks me up.
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Old 02-19-2021, 11:33 AM   #9
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Originally Posted by camaraderie View Post
As a kid I use to work a bit as a course and was responsible for plugging in...but that was before AGMS! I am not a "golfer" but I generally play 1x a year with friends and DO notice these things! Others from different areas of the country may have different experiences today.


I'd be interested in hearing from people who play all over the country as I do think there's a case to be made for the commercial cost of maintenance in salary and distilled water and I wonder if that is persuasive at some clubs and in higher minimum wage states. I don't think that you will find ANY difference in performance life due to vibration, bumps etc. as ALL of these batteries have been designed for the conditions they will experience for 50+ YEARS and I think the open road is much more challenging in terms of shocks to the battery box.
These costs are kind of baked in regardless or whether the course owns the cart or leases them. SOMEONE has to pay for the labor and water.

Consider this as well. Does the person maintaining the carts ONLY maintain them? Or does that person also perform other essential maintenance duties that keep the course from looking like a pasture with 18 flags spread out and stuck in holes
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Old 02-19-2021, 11:33 AM   #10
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I do not work at/have never worked at a golf course. but i deal directly with batteries on a daily basis. it is simply a cost analysis. AGM is fairly expensive and stupidly heavy compared to FLA batteries. there is next to no advantage for a course to run AGM over FLA except for the maintenance aspect, which is minimal. they already have the infrastructure in place for watering batteries. if you read literature from Club Car or any other manufacturer, they are simply going from FLA to Lithium. if you are having trouble finding information from golf courses, call a battery supplier. thats where i got my cart batteries and they were a gold mine of information!
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Old 02-19-2021, 01:39 PM   #11
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FLA

In answer to the simple question you asked:
In my own golf cart I have FLA
At the club where I play, their leased carts have FLA
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Old 02-19-2021, 01:46 PM   #12
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At the Costco where I bought my Interstate FLA GC-2s, the service manager said he sells over 1,000 Interstate GC-2 batteries a year, to golf courses #1, to golf cart owners #2, and to RV owners #3. In April/May he struggles to get enough delivered to meet the demand. I was trying to decide between deep cycle Group 24s and GC-2s when he told me that. Given the benefits of GC-2s over Group 24, AND the lower price, I chose GC-2s. The GC-2s were dated less than a month old, and the Group 24s were over 6 months old. Having had 2 sets of the GC-2s in 7 years (1st set went with the 1st A-frame when I sold it), I'm very happy with the choice.

Another piece of evidence was the video comparison of FLA, AGM, and LiFePo batteries conducted at Battleborn for RV use that was posted here a few months ago. The AGM looked horrible in the comparisons, and the cheapest FLA did the best of the non-LiFePo batteries.

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Old 02-19-2021, 03:14 PM   #13
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I have retired from 40 years of service sn now work part time for a major golf company I help run the cart operation. They have used AGM batteries or gas carts as they are the cheapest to maintain and dependable that said our new fleet was decided to be lithium’s. They were several thousand more per cart but they guarantee that the batteries would last 5 years . So with that in mind they decided that each golf course they were sent to had to cut payroll by 7000.00 per year in the cart operation to help off set the cost. I really did not agree with that decision but since I not in control not much I could do . That said the only difference I could see would be lithium may outlast AGM. I don’t know that because in the ten years I worked here they have only used AGM . We have almost always replace batteries every 2 to 2 1:2 years because they wear out so fast at public course. The fleets normally have 40 to 41 thousand amp hours in the 5 years range of use. With COVID the usage has increased since almost all other activities have been cancelled golf is the one business that has gone up dramatically due to COVID. They last set of battles in our current fleet were Trojans they are suppose to 3 to 5 years depending on use they are falling at 2 years due to COVID the usage is that much high per year. Hope that answer your question
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Old 02-19-2021, 03:52 PM   #14
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Interesting. So not all courses are leasing their fleet, if they are looking for batts with 5 year or better longevity. I imagine the charging infrastructure had to be upgraded also for the lithiums as well.
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Old 02-19-2021, 04:55 PM   #15
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They use the cheapest battery they can find. Never AGM. Newest carts are Lithium iron phosphate.
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Old 02-19-2021, 04:57 PM   #16
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Most courses lease the carts, never buy. They swap them before batteries die. Golf course is not a good indicator.

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Old 02-19-2021, 05:18 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NJKris View Post
On another thread (probably on dozens of threads) there is discussion of pros and cons of AGM vs FLA batteries. I've already read all that and understand it My question is very specific to golf carts in use ON GOLF COURSES. I'LL SAY IT AGAIN, BECAUSE PEOPLE LOVE TO CITE THEIR PERSONAL EXPERIENCES THAT HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH GOLF COURSES. Certainly, golf carts flying around on golf courses are subject to much more vibration than in/on an RV being towed on mostly paved surfaces. And certainly, these golf courses with their fleets of golf carts are very much interested in the longest lasting and best bang for the buck for these heavily used batteries nearly in constant use. Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM?



This is the only reply I am looking for: Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM?



Oh, one more time because I know people LOVE talking about their own batteries: Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM? Thank you for your time.
I worked at one and they where all flooded batteries
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Old 02-19-2021, 06:38 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by NJKris View Post
On another thread (probably on dozens of threads) there is discussion of pros and cons of AGM vs FLA batteries. I've already read all that and understand it My question is very specific to golf carts in use on golf courses I'll say it again, because people love to cite their personal experiences that have nothing to do with gold courses . Certainly, golf carts flying around on golf courses are subject to much more vibration than in/on an RV being towed on mostly paved surfaces. And certainly, these golf courses with their fleets of golf carts are very much interested in the longest lasting and best bang for the buck for these heavily used batteries nearly in constant use. Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM?



This is the only reply I am looking for: Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM?



Oh, one more time because I know people LOVE talking about their own batteries: Does anyone who golfs or has worked at a golf course know what they use, FLA or AGM? Thank you for your time.
??????????????????
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Old 02-19-2021, 06:43 PM   #19
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"several thousand more per cart" seems you would have been better
($$) off just replacing the original batteries more often.
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Old 02-19-2021, 07:57 PM   #20
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Interesting. So not all courses are leasing their fleet, if they are looking for batts with 5 year or better longevity. I imagine the charging infrastructure had to be upgraded also for the lithiums as well.
Some courses are privately owned and operated (Country Clubs, etc).

Some are owned by Municipalities and various Parks Departments.

There are many golf courses that are owned by various private and public entities that choose to lease them to "Golf Companies" who operate them for the owners. Those companies will often choose to lease rather than have a ton of assets on their books that are often viewed by analysts (and shareholders as (non/under-performing assets) and of course the tax advantages.
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