On Board Battery Charger.

[Tuscany]

Totally agree Matt.

Forgive me for accuracy, but deep cell battery plates hold their charge in the profile roughness of the plates. Each time a battery loses charge, part of the plate dissolves and settles to the bottom of the battery, leaving the next charge with less plate profile to produce chemical charge. Keeping a consistent charge preserves the profile, and allows health and max potential to remain intact.

When purchasing, think of it this way...
Batteries are like coffee. Good coffee isn’t cheap, and cheap coffee isn’t good. Buy a quality brand with a better core, and don’t cheap out on junk batteries like the chains sell.
Interstate, AC Delco etc. not Walmart, Autozone, Advance.

[AsLan7]

I own A bunch of battery tenders. Best 20 bucks a person can spend. The charger option on my boat is always plugged in 24x7x365.
Google how a battery works. A battery that stays fully charged for its entire life remains much healthier and lasts longer.

Thank you T .

Yes ..a discharged battery becomes vulnerable to freezing as the balance of chemicals and water deplete. It freezes like a pale of water. A battery that’s been cycled a couple of years is even weaker in its ability to maintain the chemical balance in cold temperatures. ( not just freezing)

Hasn’t anybody ever added electrolyte and water mix ? Maybe not as new batteries are sealed and we think there magic. Lol

A maintainer or tender does NOT charge endlessly. It keeps the battery peaked once a stable charge is reached,but not heated and exhuming gasses.

Plug it in.. walk away.. And inspect periodically there are no signs of corrosion forming at the seams or posts.

Geeze im old

.
Well said Matt & Tuscany.

Don’t forget Trojan Batteries. They and US Battery are almost the gold standard for Deep Cycle batteries. Quality products there. Just put our Napa Dual Purpose & Trojan Deep Cycle on the tender yesterday for winter. ...

.

[Bfun220]

When purchasing, think of it this way...
Batteries are like coffee. Good coffee isn’t cheap, and cheap coffee isn’t good. Buy a quality brand with a better core, and don’t cheap out on junk batteries like the chains sell.
Interstate, AC Delco etc. not Walmart, Autozone, Advance.

You do realize there are only like 4 battery manufacturers. Some of those higher end cheap batteries are probably just as good.

[Big Block Power]

Johnson Control does Make the Walmart battery and I think intestate plus more. I dont know who mashes the AC Delco battery. But I saw how they made them and since then I've been hooked.

[Tuscany]

There may be just a few companies building batteries, Deka is a major builder in the east, but I assure you that the blueprint quality of their cheap batteries and their premium batteries are not the same. They are simply building batteries according to their wholesale customers price point and design. So in the end, you usually get exactly what you pay for.

The same Good Year tire model purchased from Walmart is not the same build as the same model tire purchased from a quality tire retailer. My neighbor who is a tire retailer is in competition with Walmart, and the differences between a Walmart tire they sell, and what he sells are evident by feel. Belting thickness transition from the base entering the sidewall is where they usually cheapen out to save.
Walmart, and other mass market price retailer are constantly pushing the envelope to offer products cheaper, and they are not doing it by cutting their profit.

We go through phones at the store like watermelon seeds. Eat them up and spit them out. I remember buying the exact same corded phone from Best Buy, and seeing the same phone cheaper at Walmart. The difference is that the cord was not detachable from Walmart. Just a few cents here and there in design, but the same label.

[Big Block Power]

I won't argue that point. It's like tires that come on your vehicle when new are built to the manufacture spec. The replacement tire is a totally diff tire even though it has the same name and model on it.

[Tuscany]

We bought our son a new 2010 Jeep Liberty when he graduated high school. The tires were Goodyear Wrangler something-or-other. They were almost GONE at 16k to where I was uncomfortable keeping them any longer. I know how he drives, which may be a little fast cornering as a kid, but definitely not aggressive at all...they were so bad, you could see the contact patch portion of the tire was rounding out from a lack of belting quality. Just complete junk..
We tossed them out for a set of Goodrich TA-KOs which seem to last forever. Looked almost new at 30K when he traded it.

[cmattj]

I won't argue that point. It's like tires that come on your vehicle when new are built to the manufacture spec. The replacement tire is a totally diff tire even though it has the same name and model on it.

So true.

All Automakers have an established TPC rating( Tire performance code).

When Ford got in tire recall issues back in the day by using correct size but improper load and sidewall construction tires it was a new standard.

Your new vehicle factory equipped tires , will be the proper sidewall build, and load rating for cars and trucks. They usually outlast a lower TPC rating tire which some tire sellers do not have to comply with.

Going with a higher wear rating ( harder) and the proper TPC rating is the ticket for longer life. But grip is also important and auto makers spend big money designing tires with the tire manufacturers.

So in short I recommend calling your Dealer for the proper sizing and TPC before you go shopping.

Weeeew I feel better. Oh battery talk??

[Tuscany]

I won't argue that point. It's like tires that come on your vehicle when new are built to the manufacture spec. The replacement tire is a totally diff tire even though it has the same name and model on it.

So true.

All Automakers have an established TPC rating( Tire performance code).

When Ford got in tire recall issues back in the day by using correct size but improper load and sidewall construction tires it was a new standard.

Your new vehicle factory equipped tires , will be the proper sidewall build, and load rating for cars and trucks. They usually outlast a lower TPC rating tire which some tire sellers do not have to comply with.

Going with a higher wear rating ( harder) and the proper TPC rating is the ticket for longer life. But grip is also important and auto makers spend big money designing tires with the tire manufacturers.

So in short I recommend calling your Dealer for the proper sizing and TPC before you go shopping.

Weeeew I feel better. Oh battery talk??

Maybe BB can pipe in. Going back to my sons Liberty, I’ve never seen a set of tires wear like that, and we’re talking a heavy vehicle with the old style v-6 which had almost no power to wear tires. Haha, maybe he was a lot harder on them than what I thought.
Now, I just replaced a set of Michelin tires on my truck at 36K. They still had another 10k or so tread, but we’re getting a little too smooth for plowing snow. Very good tire. My sons Jeep Wrangler and wife’s Denali both have Bridgestone tires. Again, very good tires.
Then, there was my last Superduty that ate Good Year tires at a 20k clip, but it was pushing a lot of torque and a lot of towing.

[akorcovelos]

Like I said, very good friend runs a 2 state battery business, and buys wholesale from the few manufacturers that make for all marketed brands. Yes, their are different tiers of quality/service life, but they are labeled to reflect that. I buy the mid-grade deep cycles from him, and as long as you check the water every 50 or so hours and keep them topped off with distilled water and charged they hold up fine unhooked in freezing temps.

They don't heat the trucks shipping pallets of them around the country, and routinely get below freezing. This topic can be depated forever, bottom line is do what works for you.

I've got a 6 battery tending station on my work bench, but other than a couple spares I keep for backup, the only one I pull for winterizing is the one from my travel trailer, and that's just because it only gets used 2-3 times a year.

[Big Block Power]

I'm sure glad we are done talking about batteries. Lol
T the Michelin Ltx A/T2
Is a horrible LT truck tire. Wears terrible. On your Ford as well as your duramax they are very heavy on the front end and kill tires. Ram with the Cummings and Firestone tires are the same way 20k and done.
Yes those Bridgestone HT tires go 80k no problem. They are ok. I used to be a Die hard Michelin man with the Ltx MS
But I put a set of Pirelli Scorpion Verde plus on my Escalade and I was sold. The best tire I've ever had on a suv. I am putting another set on my Suburban tomorrow.

[Ytmsn]

You guys are funny. I wonder what oil is the best?

[Big Block Power]

You guys are funny. I wonder what oil is the best?

Baby oil

[cmattj]

You guys are funny. I wonder what oil is the best?

Baby oil

What brand??

[Tuscany]

Oil. Its all the same..really.
J&J seems to sell well.