Replacement AGM batteries suggestions

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by SuperTrouper

(2) Lifeline 6 Volt in series. My first set lasted me 8 years. I want to go to lithium but the battery cost and upgrade of my solar charger and inverter are still prohibitive. .......

Hi

Inverter: No need to modify unless you want to.

Converter / charger: Yes, you need one for about $180 or so

Solar charger: Yes, you need one for roughly the same price.

Batteries go on sale from time to time. A pair of 100AH Lithium's were right at $1,100 for the pair (delivered) last Christmas.

Total parts come around $1,500 on that basis. It gets you the equivalent of 400AH of AGM's. Based on what some seem to pay for AGM's, The Lithiums would be cheaper ....

Bob

[gator.bigfoot]

Lifelines all the way. https://batteryguys.com/collections/...feline-gpl-27t

You can get 4 batteries plus a trimetric and the extra wiring for $1500.

[Sport 16 STL]

Originally Posted by uncle_bob

Hi

Inverter: No need to modify unless you want to.

Converter / charger: Yes, you need one for about $180 or so

Solar charger: Yes, you need one for roughly the same price.

Batteries go on sale from time to time. A pair of 100AH Lithium's were right at $1,100 for the pair (delivered) last Christmas.

Total parts come around $1,500 on that basis. It gets you the equivalent of 400AH of AGM's. Based on what some seem to pay for AGM's, The Lithiums would be cheaper ....

Bob

Uncle Bob,
What lithium batteries did you buy a pair for $1100? Thanks

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by Sport 16 STL

Uncle Bob,
What lithium batteries did you buy a pair for $1100? Thanks

Hi

As posted in a couple of other threads, Renogy put their 100AH lithium's on sale last Christmas for that price. Others (in very different threads) have reported dealers charging them >$1,200 for a pair of AGM's. (with half the useful capacity)....

Bob

[mtbmitch]

2 Battleborn 100 amp batteries weight 61 pounds and offer160 amps of usable power. Will last at least 3000 cycles. Cost per cycle is less than cheap lead acid batteries. One can always take out the lithium batteries and put them in a new trailer.

[PB_NB]

I was able to get a new client deal with my dealer on a GoPower 250ah Lithium for what would work out to $1,350 US. Our dealer told us that we could get parts near cost for a few months after we bought the trailer so we tried that route and it worked.

Maybe your dealer can offer you a similar deal on the battery(s) of your choice.

[Toasterlife]

We went a different (cheaper) route, we bought marine batteries from Costco - very inexpensive compared to alternatives - great warranty and no matter where you are there will be a Costco fairly near you in a few days time. We have a (useless factory installed) solar panel on the top and a useful solar panel (also from Costco online) with its own inverter on a long high gauge cable that we use to track the sun. Not the most sophisticated or best system, but definitely functional and inexpensive.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by Toasterlife

We went a different (cheaper) route, we bought marine batteries from Costco - very inexpensive compared to alternatives - great warranty and no matter where you are there will be a Costco fairly near you in a few days time. We have a (useless factory installed) solar panel on the top and a useful solar panel (also from Costco online) with its own inverter on a long high gauge cable that we use to track the sun. Not the most sophisticated or best system, but definitely functional and inexpensive.

We had 4 x 6V Deep Cycle Interstates (combined weight of ~260lbs) in our little Camplite with 2 portable panels and it worked great running our inverter and lights for many days. One thing that we did with the Camplite was remove the AC unit and put a skylight in which saved about 90 lbs. on the axle.

With our Airstream, we found that the added weight of the AGM's would push us to our weight limits so we swapped out the single Lead Acid for a single Lithium and gained about 10 lbs. That was more of the deciding factor for us.

[GOUSC]

Originally Posted by ddrg

Specific to that thread, I posted:

Our Lifeline AGM's started going bad in July this year, which came with our 2018 Globetrotter purchased in January 2018. Our dealer and Jackson Center both said that batteries aren't covered by warranty. They also didn't know about any manufacturer warranty.

So I called Lifeline last Monday and discovered that the batteries were actually 34 months old, and that the batteries have a 60 month prorated warranty. The support person honored our January 2018 purchase date - last Wednesday two brand new AGM's arrived for $225. I'm obviously very happy!

Hope this helps someone... Duncan

If you have LifeLine batteries, you might want to check with LifeLine to see what it would cost to replace them.

I just did this last week. Did some diagnostic testing that indicated one battery was weak. Called Lifeline - they confirmed. Bought my Globtrotter 4/25/18 and was delivered a new battery to my door in 2 days for $135. Great customer service!

[PB_NB]

That's great service!

As a side note or thought, why wouldn't Airstream ship the trailers to the dealers with out batteries installed and let the dealers put them in when the trailers are sold?

This would help cut the waste down and improve customer satisfaction while providing better up time when camping.

Getting flat AGM's because they sat for 6 months with some sort of current draw just doesn't make sense when it is so easy to avoid.

[Bill M.]

One reason is that they need a battery in the trailer to tow it. Another reason is that Airstream probably gets a good price on the batteries and puts in better batteries than a dealer would.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by Bill M.

One reason is that they need a battery in the trailer to tow it. Another reason is that Airstream probably gets a good price on the batteries and puts in better batteries than a dealer would.

That all makes sense! perhaps a quick disconnect of the battery once the trailer landed at the dealer would work.

I am sure that the dealer could afford this labor cost. It would save them the warranty and service calls and keep the repeat business occurring.

[GOUSC]

Originally Posted by Bill M.

One reason is that they need a battery in the trailer to tow it. Another reason is that Airstream probably gets a good price on the batteries and puts in better batteries than a dealer would.

As noted earlier, we purchased our GT in 2018. On our final bill of sale, along with installation of the W/D hitch it was noted the dealer installed the battery. Based on this I've always thought this was done at the dealer and this was why some buyer's were having problems with the batteries as the dealers were not keeping them charged before installation or were maybe putting in older batteries.

I could be wrong (and probably am) but I thought I recently read that Airstream changed in the 2020 or 2021 models this practice and was installing the batteries at the factory if you had the solar package option.

In my case, I had to delay picking up our GT for 2-3 weeks in Florida. However, with the factory solar and the Florida sun you have a pretty good chance of the batteries remaining in good condition on a new RV delivered by the factory to the dealership.

For the units with the non-solar package, the batteries would probably die sitting on the lot before sold unless plugged in full time.

I don't know of any reason you would need the coach battery in the RV to tow it. Brakes and exterior driving lights come from the TV (I thought)

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by GOUSC

As noted earlier, we purchased our GT in 2018. On our final bill of sale, along with installation of the W/D hitch it was noted the dealer installed the battery. Based on this I've always thought this was done at the dealer and this was why some buyer's were having problems with the batteries as the dealers were not keeping them charged before installation or were maybe putting in older batteries.

I could be wrong (and probably am) but I thought I recently read that Airstream changed in the 2020 or 2021 models this practice and was installing the batteries at the factory if you had the solar package option.

In my case, I had to delay picking up our GT for 2-3 weeks in Florida. However, with the factory solar and the Florida sun you have a pretty good chance of the batteries remaining in good condition on a new RV delivered by the factory to the dealership.

For the units with the non-solar package, the batteries would probably die sitting on the lot before sold unless plugged in full time.

I don't know of any reason you would need the coach battery in the RV to tow it. Brakes and exterior driving lights come from the TV (I thought)

Only thing I can think of is the break away brake would not fire with out power from the battery but I could be wrong on that.

[rmkrum]

No, you are correct. The emergency breakaway switch needs a battery on the Airstream to provide the power to lock the brakes up during a breakaway situation.

Most (but not all) states do require a functioning breakaway emergency braking system to tow a trailer.

[ddrg]

Originally Posted by GOUSC

I just did this last week. Did some diagnostic testing that indicated one battery was weak. Called Lifeline - they confirmed. Bought my Globtrotter 4/25/18 and was delivered a new battery to my door in 2 days for $135. Great customer service!

Great to hear that it worked out for you.

[uncle_bob]

Originally Posted by PB_NB

Only thing I can think of is the break away brake would not fire with out power from the battery but I could be wrong on that.

Hi

The breakaway setup only works with a battery onboard. The fed's started requiring a system like this back in the 1960's. Without it, a trailer the size of an AS can't be on the road. You also would have a major issue with your insurance if you disabled the system and had a problem.

The same sort of thing applies to the propane detector system. No battery in the trailer and no detector. With no propane on board, maybe not as big an issue.

In both cases, relying on the dealer to hook this and that up probably isn't the greatest idea. If they can't tend a battery properly, there is no reason to believe they are smart enough to attach a wire here or there .....

Bob

[GOUSC]

I don’t disagree with anything anyone has said about shipping TV’s without batteries / etc. However, the July Airstream Magazine, The Rivet, seems to state that for 2021 the batteries will not be included as standard equipment to ensure customers have fresh batteries in the RV unless the solar packages are included with the RV build. Maybe I’m reading this wrong but it implies to me that batteries will not be put in when delivered to the dealer. I’m assuming the dealer will then be adding the batteries at an additional charge, unless you buy and install yourself.

See attached images.

[DCPAS]

Originally Posted by GOUSC

I don’t disagree with anything anyone has said about shipping TV’s without batteries / etc. However, the July Airstream Magazine, The Rivet, seems to state that for 2021 the batteries will not be included as standard equipment to ensure customers have fresh batteries in the RV unless the solar packages are included with the RV build. Maybe I’m reading this wrong but it implies to me that batteries will not be put in when delivered to the dealer. I’m assuming the dealer will then be adding the batteries at an additional charge, unless you buy and install yourself.

See attached images.

When my brother bought another brand, the dealer charged him for a battery. So the lucky 2021+ Airstream buyer now has the privilege of getting a fresher battery by paying extra for it.

[PB_NB]

Originally Posted by DCPAS

When my brother bought another brand, the dealer charged him for a battery. So the lucky 2021+ Airstream buyer now has the privilege of getting a fresher battery by paying extra for it.

I think this will go a long way to managing customer expectations. In my case, I have a GRP 24 battery that will sit on my shelf after 2 and bit months of my use after swapping it out with the lithium. It seems to be a bit of a waste.

If they can move the trailers to the dealers without a battery, that makes sense.

Only drawback is that Airstream wont deduct the cost of the battery form their sell price so the end user will end up paying more by adding a $500 battery to their buying price.