Battery Size???

[WaterJosh]

Heya all,
I am brand new the forum as well as being new to TT's in general. My new bride and I bought a 1987 Aljo 19' about a month ago and are planning the first trip for Halloween weekend. I am sure I will have lots of questions appear in time, but for now my only question is this:
When buying a deep cycle battery for the trailer how do you know what size to buy? I can't see us going more than a couple nights at a time at this point and while I don't have a generator I can always hook back up to the truck and charge it that way. Thanks in advance

[WaterJosh]

This would definitely be a Boondocking weekend, just kinda want to get out and use it at least once before full on winter hits. I am certain we will be using the furnace as my wife is always cold. I appreciate everyone's input, and I will charge with jumper cables instead of just the plug good to know that

[tenbear]

If you have the space, 2 golf cart batteries is the way to go. They are 6 volt so they are wired in series. They will probably last you 2 nights if you conserve power, no furnace, LED lights, navy showers. That way you can recharge at home.

[majorgator]

Rolling Condo wrote:
Most who camp without power use a pair of 6V golf cart batteries in series. Also upgrading to LED lights. If you need to recharge using your vehicle, use heavy duty jumper cables and not use the umbillacal cord. The wiring is too small to recharge the battery efficiently.

I wouldn't say "most" use a pair of 6V batteries, but it is certainly a good option. We use 2 each GRP 24 Deep Cycle 12V batteries. I personally believe that the dual purpose batteries are OK too for most applications, but they're usually the same price as the deep cycles, so there's no real reason to use them. However, I have seen dual purpose and deep cycle batteries side-by-side on the shelf, and the dual purpose had way more amp hours than the deep cycle.

We use Wal-Mart brand batteries in our TT and our boat. They hold up just fine for several years if you maintain them properly and protect them from the elements. I keep the battery receipts with the batteries, because you can always find a wal-mart in the event the battery fails prematurely. But to each his own...I've seen Wal-Mart batteries fail quickly, and I've seen them last longer than the fancy Optimas. I've seen Interstate batteries fail in a month or 2, and know of some NAPA batteries that melted under the hood of a truck.

[Rolling_Condo]

Most who camp without power use a pair of 6V golf cart batteries in series. Also upgrading to LED lights. If you need to recharge using your vehicle, use heavy duty jumper cables and not use the umbillacal cord. The wiring is too small to recharge the battery efficiently.

[donn0128]

Hooking up and trying to charge from your tow vehicle is a horrible way to charge the battery. It is really expensive and slow.
Will you have hookups or is this a boon docking (no hookups) weekend?
Most people opt for a GP27 deep cycle battery for the higher available amps.
Pick a true deep cycle with the most amps you can find/afford. Do not pick one of the dual start/charge batteries as they simply are not good enough.

[Dakota98]

The "group size" is up to you, depending upon the area for mounting it.
I assume you only want one battery, so a single 12 volt will suit your purpose. I would recommend getting one with the highest amp hours as possible. Also, being new, it is very important to know this information >>>>

http://www.marxrv.com/12volt/12volt.htm