Cloudinspector Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 I'm replacing our battery bank (4x110ah cheapies) and thinking of splashing out on 4x 12v 105ah Trojan ultra deep cycle batteries. They have an impressive 1000 recharge cycles compared to 300 on the cheap ones. Would like some feedback from folks who have used Trojans please. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 (edited) I'm replacing our battery bank (4x110ah cheapies) and thinking of splashing out on 4x 12v 105ah Trojan ultra deep cycle batteries. They have an impressive 1000 recharge cycles compared to 300 on the cheap ones. Would like some feedback from folks who have used Trojans please. I would go for 6 volt batteries instead of 12 volt batteries, other than that Trojans have a good name. Edited October 11, 2013 by Robbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
by'eck Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 I would go for 6 volt batteries instead of 12 volt batteries, other than that Trojans have a good name. Agreed - another recent thread here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cloudinspector Posted October 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 I would go for 6 volt batteries instead of 12 volt batteries, other than that Trojans have a good name. So as someone who doesn't really do electrics, other than basic stuff, how would I replace 4x110 amp 12v batteries with 6v ones and what are the benefits? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
by'eck Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 So as someone who doesn't really do electrics, other than basic stuff, how would I replace 4x110 amp 12v batteries with 6v ones and what are the benefits? I think we crossed posts so read this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 (edited) So as someone who doesn't really do electrics, other than basic stuff, how would I replace 4x110 amp 12v batteries with 6v ones and what are the benefits? Edited October 11, 2013 by Robbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ralphclaydon Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 Hi Can i ask a question? If the original battery bank is 4 x 110 AH Batteries (12 volts) Then the bank total is 440 AH, On the Trojan T-105 it states that the Capacity is 225AH. What then is the size of the battery bank with 4 x T-105? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 (edited) Hi Can i ask a question? If the original battery bank is 4 x 110 AH Batteries (12 volts) Then the bank total is 440 AH, On the Trojan T-105 it states that the Capacity is 225AH. What then is the size of the battery bank with 4 x T-105? 450Ah at 12volt, when connecting batteries in Series it increases the voltage but not the capacity. If you connect batteries in Parallel it increases the capacity but keeps the same voltage, your connecting two 6v batteries in series to make 12 volt but then connecting another two 6v batteries (that are connected in series) in parallel to increase the capacity. This page explains better; http://www.trojanbattery.com/BatteryMaintenance/gettingstarted.html Also has better wire diagram than the one I posted as it's best to take the negative and positive to the loads from the opposite batteries and not the same one. Edited October 11, 2013 by Robbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cloudinspector Posted October 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 If I've understood this correctly 4 x 6v T105 225ah Trojans wired in as above would give me 450ah? And the benefits are their robustness due to thicker plates. As a full time off grid liveaboard I need robust batteries :-)) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proper Job Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 Ocelot's T 105's 4 x 225 Ahr 6v batteries - makes a nice uncomlicated, simple installation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 If I've understood this correctly 4 x 6v T105 225ah Trojans wired in as above would give me 450ah? And the benefits are their robustness due to thicker plates. As a full time off grid liveaboard I need robust batteries :-)) In addition too.. less cells to maintain. easy to wire to balance the batteries than 4 x 12v bats Less wiring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchcrawler Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 I'm replacing our battery bank (4x110ah cheapies) and thinking of splashing out on 4x 12v 105ah Trojan ultra deep cycle batteries. They have an impressive 1000 recharge cycles compared to 300 on the cheap ones. Would like some feedback from folks who have used Trojans please. Check the physical size of them and your battery box, I had to modify mine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proper Job Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 In addition too.. less cells to maintain. easy to wire to balance the batteries than 4 x 12v bats Less wiring. Absolutely agree with this. The 4 105's I now have replaced 4 x 110Ah 12v batteries. The Trojans have virtually the same footprint, similar storage capacity, but the checking/maintenance is very much quicker and the wiring (balanced) went from spagetti to a very simple and clean installation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulG Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 I have no experience of the Trojan battery. However, I'm a bit suspicious of the spec. The main difference between a deep cycle battery and an ordinary car starter battery is the thickness and surface area of the plates. Starter batteries are designed to deliver high currents for relatively short periods of time. The plates therefore have a large surface area, and need to be thin in order to fit in the case. As the plates are thin, they are easily damaged by sulphation, which is made worse by deep discharge. Deep cycle (aka traction) batteries have thicker, more robust plates with a smaller surface area. As the name suggests, they are more tolerant of sulphation and are better for use in electric vehicles, etc.However, they are not capable of delivering high currents due to the smaller surface area of the plates. To me, the CCA (cold cranking amps) rating of these batteries looks suspiciously high to be true Deep Cycle or Traction batteries, and the price looks suspiciously low. All that extra lead costs money! Also "1000 recharge cycles" is meaningless without stating how much of the original performance remains at the end of the 1000 cycles. I'm not necessarily dissing the product as, as I have said, I have no experience of it. It would be interesting to know if anyone has made a successful claim against their "massive 5 year warranty" as other manufacturers offering similar inducements have been reluctant to honour their obligations, to say the least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Schweizer Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 (edited) The quivalent US batteries are even easirer to maintain, all three cells are exposed by removing the lever operated triple plug. Available from Tanya batteries :- http://www.tayna.co.uk/US-125-Deep-Cycle-Monobloc-Battery-P4121.html Edited October 11, 2013 by David Schweizer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
by'eck Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 Absolutely agree with this. The 4 105's I now have replaced 4 x 110Ah 12v batteries. The Trojans have virtually the same footprint, similar storage capacity, but the checking/maintenance is very much quicker and the wiring (balanced) went from spagetti to a very simple and clean installation Sorry agree with your other points but not the similar footprint unless you mean area taken. Typical 110 A/h leisure battery: L 330mm W 172mm H 242mm Trojan T-105: L 264mm W 181mm H 276mm This means in an average battery box designed for several leisure batteries you can't quite squeeze in two T-105's across the width. As they are wider a set of them would take up more length as well. I know I've been there Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ditchcrawler Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 Sorry agree with your other points but not the similar footprint unless you mean area taken. Typical 110 A/h leisure battery: L 330mm W 172mm H 242mm Trojan T-105: L 264mm W 181mm H 276mm This means in an average battery box designed for several leisure batteries you can't quite squeeze in two T-105's across the width. As they are wider a set of them would take up more length as well. I know I've been there Me to Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cloudinspector Posted October 11, 2013 Author Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 Check the physical size of them and your battery box, I had to modify mine Good point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Proper Job Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 Sorry agree with your other points but not the similar footprint unless you mean area taken. Typical 110 A/h leisure battery: L 330mm W 172mm H 242mm Trojan T-105: L 264mm W 181mm H 276mm This means in an average battery box designed for several leisure batteries you can't quite squeeze in two T-105's across the width. As they are wider a set of them would take up more length as well. I know I've been there Fair point - if you're using a bought in battery box I made a new battery box for the 4 as shown in the photo above. The foot print was a couple of inches wider, but 3 - 4 inches shorter. Space wasn't an issue as they sit on the base plate under the engine room floor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smileypete Posted October 11, 2013 Report Share Posted October 11, 2013 Trojan/US Battery are goood but to get the best out of them, especially when hammered daily, may need equalisation charging at higher than normal voltages, some chargers and alt setups may not go high enough. More info on equalisation charging should be found on the respective manufacturer websites. cheers, Pete. ~smpt~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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