Trying to figure out 6 volt batteries. Would like to upgrade to 2- 6 volt batteries to get more off Generator TV time at non hook up sites. Having a hard time shopping for them. I understand I'm looking for " golf cart " batteries but any other ways to do research or recommendation on places to purchase. Also any opinions on if this is a good way to go. Right now I have 2-12 volts on a Rockwood 2604ws
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Dan-Retired California Firefighter/EMT
Shawn-Musician/Entrepreneur/Wine Expert
and Zoe the Wonder Dog(R.I.P.)
2016 PrimeTime TracerAIR 255, pushing a 2014 Ford F150 SCREW XTR 4x4 3.5 Ecoboost w/Max Tow Package
4pt Equal-i-zer WDH and 1828lbs of payload capacity
Not really that complicated. A couple of Trojan T0105s or equivalent. Get the biggest 6 volt batteries that will fit where the 12V units are. Connect them in series and you are off. T-105s are the industry standard. If you need help on series connections you can find it anywhere. 2 6 volt units in series will give you more capacity than the 2 -12s that you have.
I had dual 12volts. I have proven the hard way that it's a nice fable to think you will be able to take the bad battery out of the circuit and limp along on the good one.
Real life experience is that when one goes bad, you won't know until the good one has mostly discharged itself into the bad one.
The other issue with dual 12V (which I also found out the hard way) is that if the two batteries have significantly different charge states when you connect them together, the current flow between the two batteries in parallel is enough to melt cables and start electrical fires. I'm very glad the batteries were mounted on the tongue.
I have since switched to dual 6V golf cart batteries in the same box. Gives me more capacity (232 AH) and less worries. I bought mine from Costco (Costco-branded batteries rated highly in Consumer Reports) - $150 for both, including tax.
With our style of camping, loss of battery does not necessarily end the trip. The biggest loss would be the heater. We have flashlights, and fridge does not use 12V. Water would be awkward, but we carried water when we tent camped. But our longest camping trips are only a week now anyway.
Fred W
2014 Rockwood A122 A-frame
2008 Hyundai Entourage minivan
camping Colorado and adjacent states one weekend at a time
Real life experience is that when one goes bad, you won't know until the good one has mostly discharged itself into the bad one.
This is certainly one failure mode that could occur. However, you might still be able to determine which battery failed and attempt a recharge of the good (but discharged) one.
The shorted one will not be allowed to connect to the converter due to internal protections in the converter. The good one should (after a few minutes of rest to recover - equalize - internal charge after being removed from the bad companion battery). The fan ginning up when connected will show a charge being sent to the depleted battery.
Remember that due to the Peukert Effect, high amp demand will crash battery voltage due to the inability of deep cycle batteries to deliver electrons from deep storage fast enough to keep up. Since a shorted battery's voltage is less than 10 volts, you would notice the failure pretty quickly once AC was removed or the amp draw dropped the "good" battery voltage below 10-11 volts.
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Lou & Freya the wonder dog
2008 GMC Sierra 3000HD Allison Duramax
2019 Flagstaff 8529FL
The reason is that if a 6 volt battery should fail due to a cracked plate or other internal problem, your camping trip is over.
With 12 volt deep cycles, a minute with a wrench and you are back in business.
Remember when shopping two 12 volt batteries doubles Amp Hours and two 6 volt batteries doubles voltage (but not amp hours).
IE:
2 - 130 AH 12 Volt Batteries equals 12 volts at 260AH
2 - 232 AH 6 Volt Batteries equals 12 volts at 232 AH
Be sure to follow the correct wiring when connecting battery banks for even charging and discharging. Many manufacturers get it wrong.
Herk, I think that first diagram will result in 24 volts. 'Batteries connected in series', doubles the voltage. Parallel + to +, - to -, doubles the amp hr.
have used 2 six volt batteries for many years,last much longer than 2 twelve volt batteries,have gone to nascar races for 3nights and not even bring generator,using heat and tv,no problems
have used 2 six volt batteries for many years,last much longer than 2 twelve volt batteries,have gone to nascar races for 3nights and not even bring generator,using heat and tv,no problems
Have also been using 6v's for years, with no problems.
No real need to worry about one 6v battery going bad. The chance of one of the 6v batterys going bad are about the same odds as being hit by lightning.
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2007 Surveyor SV230 - 200 Watts Solar/MPPT Controller - 220 AH Battery Bank (Two-GC2) - 600 watt PSW Inverter - (2) 2000 watt Inverter Generators - LED Lighting 2009 F150 - 5.4 Litre with Tow Package
A welding shop can custom fabricate the heavy duty cables that will allow you to get the most out of your batteries. "Standard" battery cables will restrict the amps that can flow.
I did something dumb today, I had pulled my 4 6 volt batteries out of the compartment on my Cedar Creek to check the water. It's just plane dumb to put a battery where you can't check the water. Well I get them back in and hooked up right but no DC current. Looked and looked, DW said I had messed up the camper just when we are getting ready to take a trip. I was looking and I had forgot I had turned off the battery disconnect, turned it back on and everything worked. I felt a little dumb, well more than a little.
This is certainly one failure mode that could occur. However, you might still be able to determine which battery failed and attempt a recharge of the good (but discharged) one.
The shorted one will not be allowed to connect to the converter due to internal protections in the converter. The good one should (after a few minutes of rest to recover - equalize - internal charge after being removed from the bad companion battery). The fan ginning up when connected will show a charge being sent to the depleted battery.
Remember that due to the Peukert Effect, high amp demand will crash battery voltage due to the inability of deep cycle batteries to deliver electrons from deep storage fast enough to keep up. Since a shorted battery's voltage is less than 10 volts, you would notice the failure pretty quickly once AC was removed or the amp draw dropped the "good" battery voltage below 10-11 volts.
Well Spock123, your only mistake was thinking you made a mistake. Actually you just hadn't finished yet..... By vote......how many members have had a 6 volt battery fail while installed in your (5er, hauler, TT, class c or A)? Would the failure rate be different between "new" 6 or 12 volt? Just asking...
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