Batteries

There are two batteries on Rhapsody. Battery 1 is the house battery. It's used to power lights and electronics. Battery 2 is the starter battery which is used for starting the engine.


I knew the batteries were dead since none of the interior lighting would turn on. I just wasn't sure how dead they were. From what I've read, a 12 volt battery is considered dead if it falls below 10 or 11 volts. Using my volt meter, I checked the two batteries and found out they were significantly lower. One was .9 volts and the other 1.1 volts. I thought of using my truck to jump start but with how low the batteries were, I wasn't sure how safe it would be. Since one battery was covered with beeswax, I wrapped it up in a trash bag and turned it in at Wal-Mart for disposal.

The house battery is a Group 31.

The starting battery I had to look up but seems to be a Group 24. I'm thinking to switch to Group 27.

So, new batteries are on the list of things to get. Found out recently (From this post: Battery Buyers) that the AGM Marine batteries at Sams Club comes from the same manufacturer as the West Marine branded batteries. The main difference is the price. The batteries at Sams Club are not priced so high.

For example, to replace my Group 31 battery:
Sams Club    $166.32
West Marine $307.99

So, it helps to shop around.