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Quick question...Marine or automotive Baterries

CheckmateFever

Well-known member
The battery in my Enchanter took a dump on me over the weekend so i'm gonna grab a new one this week but i wondered, is there any difference between a car battery vs. a marine battery?? I had an Everstart car battery, worked fine for the last few years. I know it's the battery, i had the boat out several times and then all of the sudden i had nothing but a click at the starter and the trim pump would only make a click as well. I just went thru this twice this season with 2 of my old Mopars, batteries just up and died, put new ones in and problem solved. Just wanna know if i should get a marine specific battery or a car battery, my dad works for an auto parts warehouse and i can a get a good car battery real cheap, this is why i ask. Thanks.
 
i buy all my boat batteries at the local auto parts store(marine batteries)....my brother in law works there and gets a great deal!
 
Your choice...

I would go with what has worked for you - car vs. marine, but I personally believe you get what you pay for. Most marine batteries provide better cold cranking amps, deeper cycle (ability to discharge more and then charge back up over the life of the battery cycles) and better performance in a harsh environment (temp swing & vibration). I have had both in boats but I currently have the more expensive Optima battery and have had good experience with it now for 2 seasons. The best boat battery I ever had was a leftover 12v battery from a uninteruptable power system from a computer room renovation at work, it was a gel based battery and I used it for 4 seasons and then sold it with the boat. You can't get out and walk if it goes dead on the water and you sure can't push start your boat!
 
if you are using the battery for starting only...not sitting and discharging it down and having to recharge reguarly, then a good auto battery will be fine, Rob
 
I have a dual battery setup in my car because of my stereo system requires it. I have a red top optima under the hood and a yellow top optima in the cargo (parallelled). My red top is constantly expressing its wear/tear but the deep-cycle yellow top always holds strong and will take the charge like a champ.

I have had the same experience with car batteries in boats. A car battery just doesn't have the endurance to keep up for very long with sitting unused for weeks or months at a time, even on trickle charge. They just don't stay as strong over time like a marine deep-cycle will.

I've had a marine deep-cycle sit for a year at 9 volts charge and then hooked it to a trickle charge for 2 weeks and it held a perfect 12v for another 2 years. I can't think of a single car battery that could perform as well.
 
lets clarify this - if you are refering to automotive - i assume that you mean a cranking battery and by marine you are refering to deep cycle.

so if that is the case for starting duty you need a cranking battery, my preferance is 1000 amp. they start the boats very quickly. you don't have efi, but if you did, you need that many amps as the efi system needs 12 volts to energize.

a marine (deep cycle) is used for what's called the "house" circuits like lights, trolling motors, fridges, etc. devices that need a low slow draw. they do not work well as cranking batteries - it will kill them that much faster.

the other thing you need to realize is that batteries in boats do not last as long as they do in cars, the prime reason is that boats sit often for months at a time without being used - batteries are designed to be used.
 
my understanding was that a marine battery was typically somewhere in the middle of a cranking battery and a deep cycle battery, cause on the boat you need cranking power to start the engine, but also tend to have slow long draws like lights and stuff. I bought a new 27 series marine battery that has plenty of cranking for the outboard but also gives me lotsa hours for the stereo setup. I also keep a spare cranking battery up front just in case since I dont wanna pull start anytime soon.
 
Cool, alot of great info here!! I didn't know there was so much to marine vs. auto batteries. Really all i need is a cranking battery. My boat does not have a stereo system (unfortionatly) and i do absoulutly no night boating so my lights are never on. The only thing that ever gets run is the trim pump, i have to use trim alot cuz it's very shallow where i keep my boat so i have to fully raise and lower the drive every time i head out. The old battery i had was a 650/525 cranking battery, it rolled the engine over pretty good but i will probably go with a few more cranking amps. So since i'm not running a cabin cruiser with a bunch of accessories it sounds like i don't need a deep cycle marine battery and a good automotive cranking battery will work fine. Thanks for all the info!
 
I had a relatively cheap Autometer deep cycle battery from Advance Auto for a good number of years that recently died on me (damn thing left me floating, took over an hour to catch a tow, no one knows what a distress flag is) but it did make it through long periods of non-use. Replaced that with a Duralast starting battery from Auto Zone that cranks over like a champ. Think it is this one. If nothing else you can always get a dual purpose, just a little more money.
 
My .02.... Do not use an automotive type battery unless you cruise on a small lake with little or no waves. Do not use an automotive battery unless your engine starts well and is an I/O. And don't use an automotive battery unless you use your boat regularly.

According to my Interstate battery rep, auto batteries usually do not feature anti-vibration systems. The constant pounding on a car battery will comprimise it.

an Outboard motor has a charging system that isn't as refined as a standard alternator found on an I/O, therefore it's signal is noisier, again comprimising a car battery. and lastly, as we all know, marine engines do, on occasion, start hard or require lots of crank time. A car battery doesn't like long crank times and doesn't like having to recharge as much.

Marine batteries are your best bet, as depending on your choice of manufacturers, they are a nice blend of automotive and deep cycle. But as mentioned, if you like to play your radio, blow up your tubes, and cycle your bilge blower for long times, a deep cycle is your best choice. I'm going to allow my current deep cycle to run its course, then i'm going with an Optima. I had great luck with them in my muscle cars and jeeps.
 
the other thing you need to realize is that batteries in boats do not last as long as they do in cars, the prime reason is that boats sit often for months at a time without being used - batteries are designed to be used.

Furthermore, an equal battery killer is vibration (boats obviously get a lot). Gel batteries and the Optima's tend to withstand the effects of constant vibration a lot better.

With that being said, I was told that the Optimax motors will have electrical sytem issues with anything other than a Mercury 1000MCA starting battery.

This may have been a sales ploy, but I ain't testing what will be covered under warranty on a new motor. The boys at Merc said to run a specific battery and I will.
 
My experience with years and years of 2-stroke outboard batteries: My 'car' batteries lasted more years of use than any 'marine' cranking battery I've owned. Same care and feeding for both kinds.

That being said, batteries that have been out the last few years that are 'marine' rated may be better than the 'marine' batteries from the '80's and '90's. Currently, I have a 'marine' dual mode battery that's the new breed of 1/2 cranking and 1/2 deep cycle. Time will tell how long this one lasts. It was in the boat when I bought it in January, and wasn't very old.

As far at the Optima batteries go, all I've seen for independent tests were done by Consumer Reports magazine, and the Optima batteries did not compare well to the other 'car' batteries they were tested against. So I've stayed away so far.
 
As already mentioned, the marine enviroment is pretty tough on batteries. I've been stranded too many times and now will only use a good 1000 amp marine battery in my boats. Napa sells a real good one made by East Penn for much less it's name branded brother.
 
Furthermore, an equal battery killer is vibration (boats obviously get a lot). Gel batteries and the Optima's tend to withstand the effects of constant vibration a lot better.

With that being said, I was told that the Optimax motors will have electrical sytem issues with anything other than a Mercury 1000MCA starting battery.

This may have been a sales ploy, but I ain't testing what will be covered under warranty on a new motor. The boys at Merc said to run a specific battery and I will.


there was an actual service bulletin on the 1000 mca issue. this was probably in 2003-2004. once that came out, i dumped all the 650's i had, and went strictly with 1000. i never sold the merc batteries - warranty and disposal issues (and i was working for a merc dealer at the time). it applied to both the outboards and i/o's. basically anything with an efi system needs a clean 12 volts or it won't start properly, hence the 1000 amp battery. having said that, we never had issues with starting problems when connected to a lower amp battery.
 
.....
As far at the Optima batteries go, all I've seen for independent tests were done by Consumer Reports magazine, and the Optima batteries did not compare well to the other 'car' batteries they were tested against. So I've stayed away so far.


And that's why i cancelled my subscription to consumer reports. They slammed the 2000 and something VW jetta up and down, yet gave the Ford focus decent ratings (a bunch of years back when the focus first came out). My VW's have been stellar, but the early focus's had numerous recalls, right up to some issue with wheels falling off. They can go get bent naming optima as a bad battery :sick:
 
Opti's need 1000MCA or 750CCA EFI motors only require 630MCA or 490CCA batteries. As far as batteries that's one of those questions that you ask 10 times and recieve 10 diff answers. For the average boater reg car batteries seem to last just about as long as marine batteries, so ir usually comes down to personel pref..
 
I use the Optima yellow top.It's a dual purpose batt. with alot of punch for start up,but yet it's a deep cycle also.
I have a stereo system that draws alot of power and a small charging system on my 125.I can play the stereo for hours and still have plenty of starting power.I'm not gonna say it's the best,but it works for me.Plus no acid leaking.
I also believe that maintaining your batt. is very important.So I keep a batt. tender hooked up when not in use.That way I know I always have a fresh batt.
Heres a link.;)
http://bigtimebattery.com/store/yellowtop.html
 
I have used both and I think they both crap out around the same time. I tend to see a lot of marine batteries on the shelf to long. I have dual batteries 1 marine and one auto.

I think you should buy whatever you get the best deal on because its not going to last anyway. I bought a soild gel and got 2 1/2 seasons. So its not worth the extra money.
 
I have used both and I think they both crap out around the same time. I tend to see a lot of marine batteries on the shelf to long. I have dual batteries 1 marine and one auto.

I think you should buy whatever you get the best deal on because its not going to last anyway. I bought a soild gel and got 2 1/2 seasons. So its not worth the extra money.

The one trick no one has mention is keeping the battery fully charged when not in use. I have a relatively new deep cycle battery in my boat now. I'm a pretty avid user of the bilge blower as I'm often towing small kids in a tube at idle, or hitting allot of no-wake zones. I like to keep fresh air in the bilge during those times. That along with music and blowing tubes up, it takes a toll on any battery. I found this weekend alone, after 4 days of boating, my battery charge was down to about 2/3rds of full. After every trip, I throw the battery tender on until fully charged and then usually leave it on until i use it again. Leaving any battery partially discharged is not helping you get the full use out of it time wise. Combine that with all the vibes (throw a piece of foam or rubber mat under the battery) and you will only see a few years out of it. Otherwise, I've been getting no less than 3-4 years out of mine.
 
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