Using a starter battery as 'leisure' power

pappajohn said:
leisure batteries are designed to be cycled (drained to 60% and recharged) many times.....cranking batteries arent.

start your engine and it immediately takes a charge from the alternator so is always fully charged.

use it as a leisure battery and it may be fine, but not for long unless its permenantly on charge.
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Most leisure batteries are just usual lead acid batteries.
 
BedfordMJ said:
Most leisure batteries are just usual lead acid batteries.
Click to expand...

So - when (usual) lead acid batteries are used in a "leisure" role (low, but sustained discharge - which from the figures higher in the thread we can see actually is a greater discharge (in AH) than that experienced during starting) what should be the way to maintain them for longevity and effectiveness?

It's hard to get at this amongst the arguments over what is and isn't a "leisure" battery.

However - one member has reported that continual trickle charge from a solar works well.

Does anybody have anything to support my theoretical suggestion that charging from the alternator when that is also replacing the high current drain (and reforming the plates) of the starter battery might not be ideal?

I'm wondering if perhaps the power to the Zig needs to be switched on 1/2 hour or so after starting, or a current controlling circuit placed in the leisure charging path. Do later Zigs perhaps do this? Might a slightly resistive connection to the leisure battery (through long cabling and lucar connectors) actually be beneficial?
 
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BedfordMJ said:
Most leisure batteries are just usual lead acid batteries.
Click to expand...

agreed, if you pay £40 for one.
£80/£90 and it gets you a proper leisure battery.

traction batteries are about the best.
maybe 300 to 400ah

then golf cart batteries.

then UPS batteries.
 
well...yes but most are gel filled -should b gel filled otherwise just plate/acid batteries ?
 
i have no problems realy with using so called ordinary batteries, years ago when we had the old vw splitty you coudent buy leasure batteries so we made do with starter batts. i think its another oh lets jump on the bandwaggon from companies that want to charge a fortune for things for the leasure industry they know some will pay masivly inflated prices for camping and leasure equipment as some of our other members have said, rebadge a normal battery as a leasure one and we will charge 60%more .you only have to see the price of a set of camping pans for instance 30 40 quid then look at a set of cheapo ones from wilkos less than a tenner and after all they do the same job .
 
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