moff34
code.org
- Joined
- Dec 20, 2015
- Posts
- 295
I have been on a battery purchasing spree in the past four months.
While my trailer is in storage I keep my two batteries (and my propane tanks) at home. I put the batteries on the charger every other month just to keep them topped off. In August we left for an extended trip and I immediately noticed one of the batteries had died. It was seven years old so I figured it was due.
When I got to the campground and parked next to my Mom's trailer she said that she was having battery issues. I checked and sure enough her sole battery was dead. Hers was an Optima battery that my Dad had put in the rig. Since my Dad passed away 15 years ago, I figured we got our money's worth on that one also. I did a quick price check on a replacement Optima and it was over $600. My Mom wasn't too happy about that so I came up with a quick plan. I put my good battery, only two years old, in her trailer and went and got two new batteries for myself. This was a win-win as she did not have to purchase a new battery and I got a matching pair of the same age which I know is important.
About two weeks into the trip and I notice that my truck was having a bit of a struggle starting due to, seemingly, a weak battery. I found an Interstate store not too far away and took the truck there to get the batteries checked out. One of them had failed but the other tested good. Since they were both eight years old I went ahead and replaced them both, swallowing hard at how much they had gone up in price since the last time I had replaced them.
All good, great trip, sixty-five days in length, but then I get home and connect my car's battery, which I always disconnect when we go on our long trips, and it is having problems starting. So off to the auto store, check the battery and it's failing, so I end up buying my fifth battery of the year. The car's battery was ten years old, so again, I'm thinking I got my money's worth.
Then my neighbor comes home from an extended trip to Europe and comes over to tell me that the battery in his Prius was dead even though it was only two years old. He had failed to disconnect it and in the time he was gone it drained to zero and would no longer hold a charge. So I give him a lift to the auto store for a new battery and was shocked to hear that the tiny little Prius battery was more money than my big truck battery. Big ouch for him.
It's been quite the season for spending money on batteries, but nice to have new ones.
While my trailer is in storage I keep my two batteries (and my propane tanks) at home. I put the batteries on the charger every other month just to keep them topped off. In August we left for an extended trip and I immediately noticed one of the batteries had died. It was seven years old so I figured it was due.
When I got to the campground and parked next to my Mom's trailer she said that she was having battery issues. I checked and sure enough her sole battery was dead. Hers was an Optima battery that my Dad had put in the rig. Since my Dad passed away 15 years ago, I figured we got our money's worth on that one also. I did a quick price check on a replacement Optima and it was over $600. My Mom wasn't too happy about that so I came up with a quick plan. I put my good battery, only two years old, in her trailer and went and got two new batteries for myself. This was a win-win as she did not have to purchase a new battery and I got a matching pair of the same age which I know is important.
About two weeks into the trip and I notice that my truck was having a bit of a struggle starting due to, seemingly, a weak battery. I found an Interstate store not too far away and took the truck there to get the batteries checked out. One of them had failed but the other tested good. Since they were both eight years old I went ahead and replaced them both, swallowing hard at how much they had gone up in price since the last time I had replaced them.
All good, great trip, sixty-five days in length, but then I get home and connect my car's battery, which I always disconnect when we go on our long trips, and it is having problems starting. So off to the auto store, check the battery and it's failing, so I end up buying my fifth battery of the year. The car's battery was ten years old, so again, I'm thinking I got my money's worth.
Then my neighbor comes home from an extended trip to Europe and comes over to tell me that the battery in his Prius was dead even though it was only two years old. He had failed to disconnect it and in the time he was gone it drained to zero and would no longer hold a charge. So I give him a lift to the auto store for a new battery and was shocked to hear that the tiny little Prius battery was more money than my big truck battery. Big ouch for him.
It's been quite the season for spending money on batteries, but nice to have new ones.
