2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission Swapping batteries to extend life...

[rotohead]

Anybody do this as regular maint procedure every yr or two as a way of extending battery life? It's my belief that the batteries don't get charged and drained equally thru their life and that swapping the drivers side with the pass side every year might help. I'm gonna do it anyway when I change my oil this month but wanted to see if anyone else agrees with me.
Chuck

 

[Gary - K7GLD]

Anybody do this as regular maint procedure every yr or two as a way of extending battery life? It's my belief that the batteries don't get charged and drained equally thru their life and that swapping the drivers side with the pass side every year might help. I'm gonna do it anyway when I change my oil this month but wanted to see if anyone else agrees with me.

Chuck

Personally, I sorta doubt there's any advantage to swapping batteries - on our trucks, they are very much hooked up in parallel, with cables large enough that the load would seem pretty well equalized in even the heaviest current draw situations.



That said, removal of batteries to clean them and the battery trays is a GOOD maintenance practice, and can head off acid erosion down under and in spots not easily seen and inspected.

 

[rotohead]

Personally, I sorta doubt there's any advantage to swapping batteries - on our trucks, they are very much hooked up in parallel, with cables large enough that the load would seem pretty well equalized in even the heaviest current draw situations.

That said, removal of batteries to clean them and the battery trays is a GOOD maintenance practice, and can head off acid erosion down under and in spots not easily seen and inspected.

Clearly cleaning up the battery tray area would be of benefit in the long run. Maybe not required every yr... more like every battery replacement for the normal owner (every 3 to5 yrs avg at a min) but starting with two equal batteries (in theory anyway) once a year may be overkill if they were both getting charged and drawn down at the same level.
My only 'indicator' that this might be a issue is this... as my batteries get old I've put a charger on them when the truck sits for long periods and the charger initially shows more load on the meter from the right side than the left. I have no way of accurately assessing load but the charger is working harder to charge one battery than the other. Gotta mean something.
Even with the heavy duty wire and parallel wiring arrangement (and I'm a 'electronic dunce') I have to think that one battery is better situated in the system the the other.
I guess the only way to really answer the question for me is to do it starting now and then to continue into my next set of batteries.
I thought if someone out there has done this on a regular schedule for a few years I could feel better about additional maint procedure.
Thanks for any replies.

 

[GAmes]

Apparantly you only have one charger. While one is beng charged the other is also, which would account for the lower load on the second one. Plus, all batteries are not created equal, so even two new ones side by side will draw different amps to get charged. Since I have three toys that have duel batteries, RV, Boat and pick-up, I don't think your theory holds any water.



Hey, just looked at your profile. I'm a retired helicopter pilot too. Army, AH-64 MTFE

 

[rotohead]

Apparantly you only have one charger. While one is beng charged the other is also, which would account for the lower load on the second one. Plus, all batteries are not created equal, so even two new ones side by side will draw different amps to get charged. Since I have three toys that have duel batteries, RV, Boat and pick-up, I don't think your theory holds any water.

Hey, just looked at your profile. I'm a retired helicopter pilot too. Army, AH-64 MTFE

Yeah, I was just throwing it out there to see if I got 2 pages of 'everybody does that' or 'quit thinking so much' but I've never been able to understand electrics at any level to feel knowledgeable.
Yes I admit, I flew the unflyable for twenty seven years before one gave out on me and ended that love affair permenantly. I'd never trade anything for those three years of military and twenty-four of civilian flying mostly in the Rocky's and AK. That also started my love affair with the smell of diesel. Gas smells like sour milk to me now.
Chuck

 

[joet]

I swap the batt every six months. I bought the truck in 01 and 60k miles and the batts are still good. A friend had a 97 and the left batt died and the right was still good. He changed both.

 

[MKopf]

I know when my truck had trouble starting the batt's were 6 y/o and when we checked them only 1 was bad the other load tested fine changed both and dad kept the one for a spare around the garage

 

[rotohead]

Apparantly you only have one charger. While one is beng charged the other is also, which would account for the lower load on the second one.

Reading the thread again I realized I did not clarify this issue.
When I charge batteries I always disconnect them. One battery always showed more demand, initially, to recharge. Nothing scientific, controlled, just my opinion. In aviation, helicopters in AK, there were set ups that had a battery installed in the baggage compartment, which was usually many feet from the main bus. It helped in getting turbines started in very cold wx but you had to swap them around with the main battery if you wanted the best out of them long term.
If I go back to Optima next purchase I'm gonna do it every six months. Last set of Optima's I got over six years. The latest 'standard batteries' won't last four.

 

[Loren]

Reading the thread again I realized I did not clarify this issue.

When I charge batteries I always disconnect them. One battery always showed more demand, initially, to recharge. Nothing scientific, controlled, just my opinion. In aviation, helicopters in AK, there were set ups that had a battery installed in the baggage compartment, which was usually many feet from the main bus. It helped in getting turbines started in very cold wx but you had to swap them around with the main battery if you wanted the best out of them long term.

If I go back to Optima next purchase I'm gonna do it every six months. Last set of Optima's I got over six years. The latest 'standard batteries' won't last four.

Chuck,



I would recommend that you do not disconnect the batteries from each other while charging. If you do that, your batteries will probably charge to slightly different voltages. Then when you hook them together again, they will try to equalize with each other, with the higher voltage battery charging the lower voltage battery.



I have always considered the two batteries in my truck to be one big battery. They are wired in parallel. If you treat them like one big battery, you will charge them together. I have two trucks and one RV that each take a pair of batteries. Whenever the RV batteries are out of the RV (such as over the winter) I keep them attached to each other. I want them to remain a pair until one goes bad. Then I will separate them and keep the good one for another vehicle, or the pressure washer, or the sawmill, or whatever.



I've never swapped batteries and consider it a waste of time except for cleaning the contacts as you mentioned. If the contacts are good, the two batteries should perform as one.



For what it's worth, my oldest deep-cycle Optimas were bought new in January 1999, and they are both still good. I have used the above procedures with them.



Good luck,

Loren