Optima Battery

[conman27]

I have an 07 210, and am looking to replace my battery for an optima battery. I will be doing two with a dual battery switch. What optima battery would you suggest? My audio is a Wet sounds 3-some, JL 12W7, and interior speakers. Thanks, Connor

[83ski2001]

i have a optima blue top. its a marine deep cycle plus a starting battery. i have one on my 83 2001 and have 2 amps hooked to it and it does great. i was going to put an extra but i dont think i need it.

[wake_fun]

Blue Top

[conman27]

Do you know what model of the bluetop I should get or any suggestions? Thanks, Connor

[natedog]

many of the guys i talked to said the optimas were not very good especially for the price, i found 2 brand new interstates on craigslist for 60 bucks each, look for there unless you like optimas. i will ask my sound guys what specifically they don't like but it had something to do with being deep cycle.

[RideButter]

Optima batteries are fairly expensive, but have a 3 year free replacement warranty and outperform standard lead acid batteries by far. I'm surprised to hear that car audio guys have an issue with deep cycles. If you want to listen to your stereo with your engine off, I thought deep cycle was the best way to go.

[SuperSquirt]

I talked to one of the Optima company guys asking what was the difference between the yellow and blue tops (since they look identical on the stat sheet). He said they are almost identical and are built on the same assembly line. I recently upgraded to two new blue tops D34Ms for the deep cycle factor. You'll shorten the life of a standard battery by constantly draining it and recharging it due to stereo consumption. Unless you are using a desulfator on your battery every day.

[wake_fun]

Notice post #8 that I wrote..................notice the date written.

http://www.planetnautique.com/vb3/sh...ghlight=optima

The same blue tops are still in my boat today!

I use a Minn Kota onboard charger that I leave plugged in year round in my shop. I mounted it on the floor next to the drivers seat. When I put my boat away, I grab the cord out of the boat and plug it into the wall

http://store.minnkotamotors.com/prod...D_%282_bank%29

[Super_sport]

Optima or Energizer? or Other...

OK, So Optima is the battery of choice by many of you.. but I am just curious if that is because of the name and popularity over the stats. Looking at the stats on the blue top deep cycle, it does have more crank amps than other marine deep cycle bats, but when it comes to second battery situation for accessories (not starting power)... isnt the highest RC reserve capacity preferred? Optima D27M 1000 CA/140 RC... Energizer Deep Cycle Marine 29HM 875 CA/205 RC! oh, did I mention $155 vs $79? both have 1 year Replacement and 3 year pro-rated warranty... I did not see 3 yr replacement. That's a $79 difference for a higher RC and same warranty.. both deep cycle marine... (again, when talking Accessories, not Cranking)... even if one goes bad, thats 2 Batteries for the price of one. I need some more convincing to step up to $155 I guess. anyone want to chime in on this? Thanks! (and most batteries are going to last if maintained properly).

[Chexi]

There are people who prefer AGM or even golfcart 6v batteries wired in series to the Optimas for accessory use. The Optimas are nice however, because they are gel batteries and are relatively smaller than their lead-acid counterparts. You can lay a gel battery on its side (or basically mount any way you want), which gives you greater flexibility in placement. I also think that gel batteries are less susceptible to going bad from all the bouncing in the chop. I have had to replace the lead acid battery in my Tige every year. I have not yet had to replace my Optimas.

[SuperSquirt]

Chexi summed it up pretty good.

Super_sport, why didn't you buy two Moomba boats for the price of buying one Nautique Super Sport? Heck, you could leave one in the garage and one in the back yard!

[Super_sport]

Chexi summed it up pretty good.

Super_sport, why didn't you buy two Moomba boats for the price of buying one Nautique Super Sport? Heck, you could leave one in the garage and one in the back yard!

Haha, I see your point, but seeing that I DID get my Nautique for the price of a Moomba, I am that much more ahead! Also, there are many people who have had good results with other than Optima batteries and my question was really to see if it was more about the "marketing hype" of the optimas versus others or if there is really a significant difference in the quality for the price. I didnt get such an awesome deal on my SS without a lot of research. It was the best value/price option, I was not buying it because everyone said so. I would have easily bought another brand, if it made sense. But I do like the brand more than the others, just like I drive BMW over Volkswagen, but I would own either brand without regret. Granted Optimas have great qualities, I was just checking for valid reasons to spend twice as much. Name alone was not one of them. Appreciate all the feedback from everyone though. Battery life is a lot about how you maintain it or abuse it. Mounting position is not enough because I have never seen a battery mounted sideways or upsidedown. Bouncing and vibration might be important, if you mount it in the bow. Chop is greatly reduced if mounted in the rear locker I would think. Granted the spiral Gel design is preferred over thicker plates for its purpose. Budget is a limiting factor as well. Just some thoughts. Thanks!

[h2oski]

I have an 07 210, and am looking to replace my battery for an optima battery. I will be doing two with a dual battery switch. What optima battery would you suggest? My audio is a Wet sounds 3-some, JL 12W7, and interior speakers. Thanks, Connor

I am close to completing the same type of battery/switch conversion on my 1999 Air. I went with the yellow top D34/78. The specs compare to the Blue top D34M if I'm not mistaken. I went with the yellow top because of the "GM" side posts the blue tops don't offer. I like the side posts because I think they offer less strain on the cable lugs (crimped) vs the top mounting points where the cables sort "hang" off the battery. I could have supported them somehow, but I didn't have many options where I put the batteries. Granted, you can lay the Optima's on their side and achieve the same result, but I mounted the battery holders to the deck with standoffs.

If you haven't selected a dual battery switch yet, the Blueseas Add-a-battery with Automatic Charging Relay (ACR) is a good choice IMO.

I also added a ProMariner Sport 20 battery charger (two battery banks).

Good luck,
Scott