Marine Batteries

[Peter3607]

Looking to replace 5 marine batteries in my ‘89 Carver 3606 Aft Cabin. Any suggestions for good and reliable replacements that are sold in Canada?
I currently have Interstate 24M-XHD 800CCA 1000MCA

[bud37]

You really should establish what you will use for start and what you will use for house.......those batteries you have are marine start batteries, really just designed for engine start, not being drawn down by lights and fridges/pumps etc.

The interstates are good though, costco has good batteries as well that will replace those, but if you plan to be out on the hook for any length of time, then you should have a dedicated house bank of the appropriate battery type.

Take some time to see how your boat is wired first before you make a decision what to do...you should draw out what batteries are on #1 and which are on #2 on your switch........that is my advice anyway.

[Viper]

Ya I second Bud's thoughts. Unless something was changed, you likely have two separate banks. One should be to start the engines and the other should be for house loads. One bank should be start batteries and the other should be deep cycle batteries. I don't use anything less than 800CCA/1000MCA for start batteries. The deep cycle battery sizes and capacities will depend on your boating style. If you spend a lot of time on the hook, you will need to depend on your house bank deep cycles to power up the necessities for the duration. The bigger the bank, the less time you'll need to run the generator to charge them.

If you're considering getting 5 good quality batteries, they will not be cheap so you want them to last. To help extend their longevity, if you still have the original battery charger, consider replacing it with a new smart one. There are many benefits to to doing that including a safety one.