6 volt vs. 12 volt?

[av8arkie]

Can someone tell me, in laymans terms, pros or cons of 6 volt or 12 volt batteries in my 5'er? Thanks! I have 12 volt but have heard alot about 6 volt.

[Mopar1973Man]

It actually breaks down to the amount of amp hours a battery will provide. Most 6 volt batteries provide more Amp hours over a 12V battery... And if you really want to go nuts you could drop down to a 2V battery with huge amounts of Amp hours but the weight might be a problem...

http://www.trojanbattery.com/pdf/productspecsguide.pdf

I'm currently using the 6 Volt series to power my stick house...

[alex00]

From a completely non scientific study, when I had two twelve volts last year I would wake up to my battery indicator on one or two lights. This year, camping the same campground, same weather, same everything with tow six volts, I would wake up to 3 or 4 lights on the battery indicator.

ETA: Both this year and last the temp dropped into the low 40s overnight, and we kept the furnace at 70* all night. The six volts were a huge improvement.

[Boss Wagon]

My Flair motorhome had two six volt house batteries. The first time I camped in it, I went 4 days on them, not knowing I was running on them!

[clutch]

If we were boon docking I would want two six volt batteries. We never stay without power so it is just one 12 volt for us. No sense in buying two when one will do the job for us. Our current trailer had two 12's and is now down to one.

[SmokerBill]

But wouldn't four 12 volt batteries weighing the same as two 6 volt batteries give you the same amp hours? Doesn't it all boil down to how much lead you're carrying?

[Mopar1973Man]

Yeah it basically how much lead your carrying to a point. But the voltage of the battery also is a baseline for how much amps/hours are present. As you'll see in the trojan catalog as you go small voltage battery the amp hour rise.

[Seann45]

Originally Posted by SmokerBill

But wouldn't four 12 volt batteries weighing the same as two 6 volt batteries give you the same amp hours? Doesn't it all boil down to how much lead you're carrying?

The plates in the 6 volt batteries are thicker... they will give you a longer life.. it is not uncommon for flooded 6's to last 12 years... you will replace your 12's two to three times in that period... and yes when I bought my new TT last May I transferred my 6's over and told the dealer to put the new 12 on my old TT

[av8arkie]

Thanks for the info!

[3'senough]

av8arkie. I see a 5th on the signature and you'll want to measure your clearences in your batery compartment before you invest. I put two 6's in my 5'er and with all the metal around and the tight quarters I glued a 1/2 piece of plywood under the top shelf just incase the lower battery go loose to avoid arching down the road. I fit two t-105 size 6's in there but with some adjustments. Strckly an FYI and may not apply in your case. I too vote for the 2x6's if your going to be boondocking. If your doing mostly hookup there's no gain to be had.

[clutch]

New trailer now and we are back to two 12V batteries. When we get home one may find it's way into the boat for the trolling motor.