quote="allan5oh"]Bob I have pretty unique needs, up here in Winnipeg.

yep, i see your #s on the morning news ?!?!? brrrrrrr

I'm simply looking for the best. If regular batteries last 2 years here, trust me its a miracle. Winter is so hard on batteries.

we deal with some pretty extreme conditions here as well. our last 2 winters have been relatively mild, as well as little snowfall. we did, however, endure about 4 weeks straight where daytime highs never exceeded -20*C.

Now what if those $250 batteries last 10 years?

i changed a set of lead acid batteries recently that were 10 years old, they were the originals installed by navistar. i'm currently doing an in-frame on a '98 star that has the original batteries

Take $80 per "regular" battery, multiply that by 5 and you have $400 to replace every battery every 2 years. If one of those $250 odyssey batteries can last 8-10 years, you're money ahead. Not only that, you have a more reliable truck.

I'll tell you one time it was -52 with the windchill.

windchill is irrelevant when you are a battery... or, an engine

I had run the espar engine heater for 4 hours. I used the volvo engine pre-heat for the full 2 minutes(warm up intake air). I had *just* changed the batteries to 4 975 CCA batteries a couple weeks ago. It definitely turned very slow. Usually down to -30 I tend not to have problems though.

Also, I'm considering running a 12 volt or maybe a 120 volt air conditioner. My dad has the latter, runs off the inverter. He basically has to change his batteries once a year.[/quote]

? ............. and for some, changing batteries anually is normal?

with cost of the air conditioner, inverter, annual batteries, labor to test and replace them, and i'm thinking he doesn't use the a/c in the winter... how does he heat it? anyhow, i'm thinking an apu with heating, cooling, and power capability would have been a very wise decision... plus, you can get a tax break for the apu purchase, i believe

your circumstance is much different than any i've encountered; i don't think i've dealt with that rapid of battery consumption before, unless of course it was related to charging or starting system problems, in that case yes

 

Not just that, but our roads here are terrible. Hwy 75 from Winnipeg to the border is probably the roughest road in Canada. Rough roads = hell on conventional wet batteries.

We had that too, not very fun! I still got 6.8 MPG in January though!

Interesting, what were the model #'s? I'm guessing they were lower CCA units(probably 700-750). That's the problem, we need very high CCA's here, yet those higher CCA batteries don't last as long, due to thinner and more plates.

Actually it can be very relevant when you're trying to heat the engine. Windchill definitely affects how much you are able to warm the engine.



Extreme conditions, yes. When you're deep cycling the battery as much as he does.

Quote:

with cost of the air conditioner, inverter, annual batteries, labor to test and replace them, and i'm thinking he doesn't use the a/c in the winter... how does he heat it? anyhow, i'm thinking an apu with heating, cooling, and power capability would have been a very wise decision... plus, you can get a tax break for the apu purchase, i believe

Air conditioners are cheap, maybe $100. Inverter was installed previously, so the cost is moot. Work is all done by us. Heat is by espar units, for both cab and engine. That brings up another point, high CCA batteries aren't meant to be used with units like the espars.

The tax break for APU's is the same for espars. Too bad the conservatives got rid of it. $350 max back.

Quote:

your circumstance is much different than any i've encountered; i don't think i've dealt with that rapid of battery consumption before, unless of course it was related to charging or starting system problems, in that case yes

Everything else is maintained quite well. I've considered an APU, but my truck is already #1000 over the company limit. Besides, APU's still use about 30% of the fuel the engine uses. I've never encountered a quiet APU either. Another thing, I don't really have anywhere to mount it. Right at the back is where the tanks are. If I mounted it closer to the steer axle(under the doors, behind the fairings) I would be overweight on the steer axle just bobtailing!

I just got a quote from a local Odyssey dealer, $330 per battery. Probably about the same as that other dealer. I have yet to decide. The batteries currently on my truck are not very old, so I'll wear them out first.

 

Another thing, I'm considering doing exactly what my dad does. I have an a/c unit that I used to plug in at the Minneapolis terminal and stay cool all day(even in +90).

 

keep us posted

 

You have two choices.

#1: Keep the high CCA battery bank of 4 for starting only and hook up a true deep cycle bank for running stuff with the engine off - use a continuous duty disconnect relay to hook the banks together after starting.

#2: I have a set of 4 Interstate ECL batteries that are lower CCA (650?) but have excellent deep cycle capability I'm pleased with - but you'd need at least 6 to get the CCA you need plus however many you'd need to insure that they aren't ever run down more than 50%. I'm guessing 8 total would do you - which is the same number as the more complicated dual bank setup.

The Delco MT42 starter that most big diesels use needs 2000 amps to develop full torque. At -30 degrees F you need batteries adding up to 4000 CCA (CCA is rated at 0 degree F) to get your 2000 amps :shock: . That's 6 ECL batteries fully charged so you need a couple extras to be able to use power when shut down.

 

Again, weight is the issue. Since these Odyssey are both starting/deep cycle with high resistance to vibration compared to conventional batteries, also have 1090 CCA's and a higher reserve capacity, I think I'll go with them.

ECL batteries are still conventional, and might last a little longer then starting batteries, bit I don't know if they would cut the mustard as far as starting batteries.

 

Oh, I missed the posting where you said you were already 1000 lbs over :shock: . I was tempted to go with 3 Odysseys myself when I last bought batteries. They are a military grade battery and quite a bit better than the Odysseys. But the four ECLs give me more RC and plenty of CCA for my needs and were under $400 for all. My engine always cranks over fast but I rarely am much below freezing - I am usually parked inside our terminal at night and only rarely overnight and then it's in central PA where it doesn't get that cold. I have an Espar bought slightly used and cheap off eBay but didn't get it installed yet. I have run a 150 watt heater all night with no problems and will be running a fridge all summer (2 amps average ?). We don't run below MD and run days so I can get away with using a computer fan stuck in the vent to keep cool in the summer at night (usually :shock: ).

 

Rev. I thought I saw a recent post that you were not as high on Optima's or was I mistaking? Would you still suggest them?

 

I'm wondering what you decided to do?




How did this turn out?

I am certainly getting tired of my continuing weak battery set up and want to go with a deep cycle system and I can't find out when the firefly Oasis is coming out, so I need some direction.....

 

I'm with a different company now so weight isn't as much an issue. I'm going to eventually go with 4 firefly energy isolated batteries.