I wanted 6 6 volt batteries in my new coach and it was supplied with 2 12 volt batteries. The first thing I did was to go buy a good converter ( I like Iotas and Progressive Dynamics) and I threw away the piece of junk converter that was in there. Then, I looked at batteries. I too settled on Johnson controls batteries from Costco at 75$ each. Costco sells a whole lot of batteries and their return policy is great. Then, on to welding up the additional battery boxes and bolting them to the frame rails and making up the battery cables. I use 4/0 welding wire for all my battery wires and connections and use color coded split loom over them for easy identification. White for negative, red for positive, yellow for battery interconnections.
The debate over whether 12 or 6 volt batteries are better is directly related to storage care. Most trailers, MHs, 5ers, are used infrequently and as such the determining factor in battery life, is storage care. Buy a good quality 3 stage converter and your storage care will be very good. Stick with a cheap converter and your battery life will really suffer. Before I realized how important battery care is, I could never get more then 2-3 years out of batteries. Now, with proper care, my batteries are about 5 years old and going strong. In most instances, battery care is the deciding factor in longevity. Typical lead acid wet batteries, no matter their ratings or build quality, suffer from drawing to many amps out of them when under load and then, over charging for long periods of non use. This use is very hard on batteries and they die from misuse. Never draw more then 25% of their capacity, charge with a good multi stage charger to prevent overcharging during storage, and never let them over charge, and/or lose water. Keep connections clean, make all battery connections over sized so no voltage loss occurs during use, and check electrolyte levels frequently. If you are careful and worry about storage charging, your batteries will last much longer in real world use no matter whether they are 6 or 12 volts.
-Paul R. Haller-
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