Any experience with Exide 8D deep cycle batteries?

Hey all,
I am considering new Exide 8D deep cycle batts for my house bank.
They're $249 each, weigh 120 lbs a piece and claim 200 ah's .

Any experience with these batteries would be appreciated!

Thank you,

Taras

What do you have now for engine start and house bank?

Price Trojan , might be far cheaper per KW.

Might consider 6V golf cart batteries...

Exides are fine. If it is easy for you to take it out and install, go for it. Two GC's will gain you only about 10-20 more amp hours and require some new wiring to create a series connection, and perhaps a longer one of your current cables if they are tight to the terminals on an 8D; in most cases GC are easier to manhandle being half the physical size. Good ones such as Trojans, will cost about the same as that Exide for the pair.

skidgear said:

Might consider 6V golf cart batteries...

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But no might in my book...6V Golf for house batts...the only reason in my book to have 8Ds is you need that big of a starting batt for a good sized diesel.

At least for wet lead acid.

Battery Trojan T 125 6V 240 AH 20 Hrs Deep Cycle Each | eBay

I have six of these. Two of them out perform the 8D and are easier to install single handed. This is my choice.

I do prefer golf cart batts BUT remember there are losses from multiple batts, besides more connections to service. .

The case for 2 batts means less lead , so less power in the same space.

Also if one batt dies in a string , it will usually cause the loss of the other batts.

The dead one requires constant charge , which boils out the water in the others, on solar or shore power.

An 8D my be a monster to move , but it does have advantages over golf carts for house or 31s for start service.

Every 6 years by some beer for the dock apes.

Taras said:

Hey all,
I am considering new Exide 8D deep cycle batts for my house bank.
They're $249 each, weigh 120 lbs a piece and claim 200 ah's .

Any experience with these batteries would be appreciated!

Thank you,

Taras

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120 lbs is lite for an 8D. The ones I have pulled were 160 - 170 lbs. That may be why the rating is 200 amp-hrs and not 220 -235 amp-hrs, less lead??

I do appreciate the replies!
What I have now is Rolls... 3 batteries of 4 volts each. They weigh 267 lbs each. They are fantastic batteries and have lasted 14 yrs but just too expensive to replace at $1500.00 per battery ($4500.00).
Any other suggestions other than the Exide batts I am considering would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Taras

Exide batteries, including 8Ds are retailed here by(amongst others) Whitworths, the largest chandlery chain in Australia. I don`t have them, I have Century/Yuasa 8Ds, but I`ve not heard anything negative, and Whitworths are unlikely to continue selling batteries that come back with complaints.

FF said:

Every 6 years by some beer for the dock apes.

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Good advice for young neighbors too. Young kids down the street love working on vehicles and generally hang out in the garage and have a good time. For several years I drop a 30 pack of Bud light off monthly, their beverage of choice.

I haven't lifted a heavy object in years as I've got an unlimited supply of young willing help.

caltexflanc said:

...Two GC's will gain you only about 10-20 more amp hours and require some new wiring to create a series connection, and perhaps a longer one of your current cables if they are tight to the terminals on an 8D; in most cases GC are easier to manhandle being half the physical size. Good ones such as Trojans, will cost about the same as that Exide for the pair.

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Golf Cart 6V batteries are actually 1/3 the size of an 8D battery. I replaced 2 8D batteries with 225 AH rating each for 6 Golf Cart 6V batteries with 220AH per set of 2 6V batteries. I went from a 450AH bank to a 660AH bank within the exact same footprint. That's a 210AH or 46.7% increase in capacity in the same battery boxes.

120lb is kind of lightweight for an 8D battery. Not sure what my Rolls 8Ds weigh but the Fullriver 8D AGMs weigh in at 200lb. I believe that the difference reflects the mass of lead in the battery. More lead is better but also higher cost. Considering what a PIA it is to install 8Ds I would go for heavier, more expensive batteries likely to have longer life and able to handle greater number of discharge cycles. Discharge cycle life is an important consideration in addition to Amphr capacity

8D's love'em, and hate'em. We had to replace 9 8D's and 1 4D @ 256lbs a piece they were no fun to change.

Taras said:

I do appreciate the replies!
What I have now is Rolls... 3 batteries of 4 volts each. They weigh 267 lbs each. They are fantastic batteries and have lasted 14 yrs but just too expensive to replace at $1500.00 per battery ($4500.00).
Any other suggestions other than the Exide batts I am considering would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Taras

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So what are the dimensions, including height, of the available space in the existing box or boxes? Any pics? Budget?

I take it you have these bad boys?

http://rollsbattery.com/public/specsheets/4KS21P.pdf

If so, you obviously have the height available. You are replacing a 1100ah bank. Have you calculated what you need capacity wise?

I just don't get 8ds. For starters, they have the same rating as Group 31s, sometimes less. They don't last any longer than Group 31s and they are a bugger to manhandle around. Why do people replace them, unless it's a fitting issue? It seems to me they are antiquated technology that are superseded by the better, smaller size batteries that last as long and cost less and save you a case of beer each month. Maybe they are engineered to survive the vibration in a truck? I don't get it. I put in 2 Costco 31s (2000 CCA) in the same space as one 8d, saved about $100 and could move them about just fine. Needed two small cables to connect them. They start the 6CTA, which Cummins specs 1800 CCA for, just fine.

Can someone explain to me why 8ds?

just don't get 8ds. For starters, they have the same rating as Group 31s, sometimes less.

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Huh???? What rating are you talking about? An 8D will typically have twice, or more, the Amp hours of a 31 and 50%-100% more cranking amps. You got that result because you put in two batteries. I will wager that those two 31s together cost more than a single 8D of the same make.

I'd take your wager but I have to do all the research! 2 31s fit in an 8d box and cost less than an 8d. You do not get double the power out of an 8d. If you are talking house/deep cycle, golf carts blow away the 8ds.

Xsbank said:

I just don't get 8ds. For starters, they have the same rating as Group 31s, sometimes less.

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Like George said: Huh?

31s usually are around 100 Ah, 8Ds usually around 245 Ah or so. Don't think that's "the same rating."

I'm not defending 8Ds; don't want to lift one anymore. But the "ratings" aren't the same as 3Group 1s.

-Chris

The big question for many of us is WHY an 8D?...my Lehman starts just fine on a good Group 24 even in cold weather (15W40 oil) but I did upsize to some goofy rating that's similar to a group 31. But ONLY a single 31 for starting and it's WAY more than enough and bigger than what American Diesel recommended.

On my old sportfish..I had 8Ds for my Cat 3208s but could have easily downsized to 4Ds or even 2xGroup 27s....

So again my question is...if you don't need 8Ds for your engine start batts,,,then why would you have one on boars as there are better alternatives in terms of size and being able to move them around easily?

psneeld said:

So again my question is...if you don't need 8Ds for your engine start batts,,,then why would you have one on boars as there are better alternatives in terms of size and being able to move them around easily?

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Probably because in many cases, like on GBs, the start batteries are used as house batteries as well. So it's easier to just stick with that than change the stock setup. Especially for people who do not anchor out a lot.

My vessel came with 3 8 Ds, one for each diesel. I may be the only guy on the Forum with an 8 D for a genset. No problem getting them installed, good for ballast and last for a very long time. If for any reason the house bank goes kaput I've got a backup through a \\ switch. Mind you I'm not recommending it but love the redundancy and never worry about a dead starting battery.

Capt.Bill11 said:

... in many cases, like on GBs, the start batteries are used as house batteries as well. So it's easier to just stick with that than change...

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Same on 1980s IG36s,another copied feature(?), plus you need "dual purpose" compromise batteries.
We have what I call a "6D" for the genset, massive starting power for a little 3cyl Onan diesel genset.

caltexflanc said:

I take it you have these bad boys?

http://rollsbattery.com/public/specsheets/4KS21P.pdf

If so, you obviously have the height available. You are replacing a 1100ah bank. Have you calculated what you need capacity wise?

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I've got 12 of these powering my house. Actually, looking more closely, I have the 4KS25Ps which are their larger brother (1300 Ah). I would NOT recommend them in anything other than a commercial boat. They have huge capacity, but the penalty is a VERY long absorption time to get them back to full charge. Mine take between 3-4 hours to get through absorption. So unless you regularly have long runs under power where you can charge them enough to get back to full charge, they will just sulfate and die. I regret buying them myself, especially considering that they were hugely expensive.

sunchaser said:

Mind you I'm not recommending it but love the redundancy and never worry about a dead starting battery.

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No reason not to recommend it. I've lost count of the number of genset to main battery parallel switches I've installed. Makes for built in jumper cables. Get back feature in my opinion.

Let's not totally derail the OPs thread. My guess, pending his floor space dimension, is that the best solution for him will be 6v L16's, since he has plenty of height. Four of those will fit in the space (depending on how they are arranged) of his present batteries and provide around 850ah at 12v, depending on which ones he gets. This is the configuration I used for my inverter bank, quite happily. They are tall and skinny and weigh around 120 lbs. The first set were US Battery HCs which we beat the heck out of, living full time on moorings and the hook. Current set is the largest capacity Trojans, simply because that was what was easily available at a good price locally.

The L-16 are pricier per amp than the std golf carts and with Hydro Caps installed are really tall!

FF said:

The L-16 are pricier per amp than the std golf carts and with Hydro Caps installed are really tall!

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The OPs current batteries are even taller... 50% taller!. The L16 is a great solution, when you have the height, to get max capacity out of your floor space and minimize the wiring and watering. Buy 'em right and the cost per amp hour is just about the same as the equivalent quality GC from the same mfr.