Battery Question

What's the best battery out there? I have a little skidloader, ASV RC30, to be precise, and putting a battery in it is a real battle. It takes a group 75, I have had an optima red top in it, and its so tight to install, that I have to cut the bottom corners off of it, plus remove a fusebox panel, to install the battery. Just this morning, I removed a piece of metal, from the frame, about 3/4" X 4", just to make charging and jumpstarting easier. ( I couldn't get a standard battery charger clamp to clear the frame, near the top post.) I figure that if I have go through this much trouble to put a battery in it, I might put one in there, that'll last a few years.

Hi Dave... Well You are gonna get a bunch of "Different" opinions on here but, heres mine.. personally Delco, and Interstate Batteries are my preference, and not necessarily in that order,Both (i think) are made by Johnson Controls, the Interstate is nearing 10 Yrs Old and still doin' its Job..have had that batt. in a vehicle and a tractor, so thats My $worth, hope that helps. Larry KF4LKU

Hi Dave... Well You are gonna get a bunch of "Different" opinions on here but, heres mine.. personally Delco, and Interstate Batteries are my preference, and not necessarily in that order,Both (i think) are made by Johnson Controls, the Interstate is nearing 10 Yrs Old and still doin' its Job..have had that batt. in a vehicle and a tractor, so thats My $worth, hope that helps. Larry KF4LKU

For a tough one like that, you might want to consider installing a Battery Tender. Will sure make a battery last longer, at least in my experience it has helped.
Battery Tender

I really think that how long a battery lasts depends much on how its used. My wife drives a 91 Mercury Topaz,which we bought new, now 20 years old, and is still on its 2nd battery. That car spends every night in the garage (not heated) but gets its block heater plugged in if it going to be colder than -20C. The battery has never been rundown trying to start a very cold engine. I make sure the electrical system is working well and keeps the battery charged. I also have an 05 Chevy Ventura, now 6 years old which gets treated the same way, its on its factory battery.

The Optima is probably the most forgiving battery available. Other than damage from high vibration, any battery should last several years. If you have frequent battery failures, the most probable cause is insufficient recharging caused by either a defective charging system or the way you use it. The battery needs to be fully recharged when you park your skid loader in the shed. If you run it for short periods, then you are taking more out of the battery to start it than you recharge back into it.
If you have short run times, your best option would be to install an on-board battery maintainer to ensure you keep the battery fully charged.

Forgot to mention.
You also need to check to see if you have a problem with something draining your battery while sitting in the shed.
Either way, the brand of battery is not the problem.

Chronic over charging, chronic undercharging, deep cycling, running flat and temps above 78F all shorten battery life.

I agree with the bottom post about battery tenders. Wallyworld sells one for about $20 and mine came with an extra adaptor. There's a plug in the middle of the wire so you can easily change adaptors. My cycle battery is a tight fit similar to yours and the extra adaptor was perfect for it. The adaptor has loop ends made to stay on the battery and enough of a pig tail to make it easy to hook up without moving the battery to get to the terminals.

Bingo.

Good advice.

Dean

Actually, the life of a "storage" battery depends a great deal upon how it is used, or, more accurately, how it is not used.

Regular and consistent use as is the case with your Topaz is ideal usage for a cranking battery.

Allowing a battery to remain unused and uncharged for extended periods, especially if done repetitively will shorten its life significantly. Repetitively deep cycling of a cranking battery will do so as well as will repetitive deep cycling.

Routine (every 30 days or so) charging of any "storage" battery during periods of non use is necessary to achieve maximum life.

Dean

Optima is an AGM battery and AGMs are not the most "forgiving." They are easily ruined in poor charge conditions or when the "equalizer" mode is used on some high-end chargers.

AGMs have specific advantages and the extra price is only worth it if you NEED those advantages. Vibration resistance, small self-discharge, and being spill-proof.

I've been using BCI #75s for years in several of my diesel trucks (a pair in each truck). I've got a pair of Deka 75s that are 8 years old and a pair of Johnson Controls 75s that are 7 years old.

Three are only around three companies making all the starting batteries in the USA. Johnson Controls, Exide, and Deka.

Caterpillar and NAPA (in the northeast) sell Deka. Interstate, Walmart, Subaru,Case-IH, and Autozone sell Johnson Controls.

If you have short battery life, find out why. If it's excess vibration, use an AGM or a standard commerical battery. If you have long-term storage dead battery problems, get a $20 battery maintainer and/or get a battery with lead-calcium inside of it. Lead-calcium is used in AGMs and standard commercial-type batteries. It allows slower self-discharge when a battery sits for long periods of time without being charged.

By the way, my father-in-law just replaced his original 10 year old, conventional lead-acid battery in his diesel Japanese-Ford tractor. 10 years in a diesel tractor is pretty amazing.

I agree.

Non use of modern equipment, nearly all of which have significant parasitic loads, will quickly discharge the battery.

My "recharge every 30 days during periods of non use" rule is not adequate with modern equipment due to such parasitic loads.

If one does not leave a proper battery maintainer connected during such periods, one should probably recharge every two weeks or so.

Dean

If getting to it to charge or jump-start is a problem, why not just get another cable and hook it to the hot post. Zip-tie it to a hose or something that it won't short against. Or get a remote jump-starting stud. Can you get to the starter post? Hook your booster cable there.

Skidloader is used every couple days, to feed cows, takes about a half hour (running time). I just checked tonight, the fanbelt is glazed, and just a tad loose, gonna try a new belt, and tighten alternator. Also gonna put a longer hot cable on it, maybe a longer ground, too, because of the PITA that this battery is. If the optima red top don't charge up in a week, I will replace it with the same. If I leave it set for a week, the battery won't start it, even in warm weather. If I have the charger/starter hooked to it right(connections tight) I can start it without a preheater, so I know the starter is OK. Gonna put a new freeze plug heater in, as soon as I get it. Thanks to all for all the suggestions.

You forgot Douglas and Interstate...

That's because neither one of them actually make batteries. Interstate has all its batteries made by Johnson Controls. Douglas doesn't make anything anymore since the company no longer exists, they sold out to another company in Pennslyania.