I need two batteries to replace the Deka's in my '08 X-Star. I have access to two new Optima Blue tops. The only non-stock stereo equipment is two Wetsounds 485's and two Zapco 750 amps to run them. Would the blue tops be a good choice of batteries, or should I replace with two new Deka's? Thanks for your help.

I would do Deka Seamate AGM batteries. They will give you much better performance dollar for dollar than Optima's. Deka makes group 24, 27, 31 and a few other sizes. The group 24 has better specs than the Optima group 34 and they will be cheaper. You may actually be able to get the group 31 Deka Seamate which have almost double the 20 ah rating of the optima blue tops. They will probaly be pretty close in price to the blue tops. You will need to replace the battery boxes but that is cheap. <BR> <BR>By the way, why do you need to replace the Deka's that are only 2 years old.

Hear is another option. <BR><a href="http://www.odysseybatteries.com" target="_blank">www.odysseybatteries.com</a> <BR>When I end up replacing my batteries, I will seriously consider these.

gotta go for the golf carts if you are concerned with Ah/$ if they installed upright.

Dont get the Blue Tops. They Suck and they're expensive. If they go completely dead, you can't recharge them. Go with a good lead acid battery that can be recharged many times.

Golf carts or Deka Sea Mates.

+1 for AGM Deka Sea Mates. Sealed, no leaks and you can put them anywhere and in any position you want.

Check out West Marine. They use Deka just with WM name on it. Cheaper too, plus there is a sale on them I believe, $40.00 off or something like that.

Thanks for all the info guys. I was really happy with the Deka's that came stock in the boat. But when I pulled them out after I winterized, I can't get them to hold a charge. I spoke with the shop that my dealer got them from, and they said they would pro-rate the warranty left on them, which helped me out about $10 a piece. I was asking about the blue tops because I could get them for free. Thank you all for your info.

Ryan, do you have an onboard charger to plug into most nights? The only other reason I can see the Deka's going bad is if they were starting batteries that were getting discharged while playing the stereo. Honestly with a stock alternator you should probably have one battery that is used for starting and then 2 other batteries wired in parallel to run the stereo. An onboard charger is your best investment though.

I don't have any experience with the Blue Tops but, I know the yellow tops flat out suck! <BR> <BR>If they sit for more than a few weeks their dead. <BR> <BR>DONT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON OPTIMAS!!!!

I went to West Marine and got the "SeaMate AGM" Group 31. Plus I got the onboard charger, Pro 12??, anyway it is 2 bank and I plug it in to keep the batts fully charged. I have an seperate batt just for starting and will keep an trickle charger on that. No problems so far.

Ryan, <BR> <BR>Among prominent battery brands, we havn't found any bad battery choices, only bad charging and maintenance regimens. <BR> <BR>Its good to fill the entire height of your Group 24 case with a Group 24 AGM rather than a Group 34. That little difference can constitute a 40 percent increase in amp/hours without more storage space. <BR> <BR>Get an AC shore charger for sure or you'll experience the same short battery duration. Its friendly to your boat's charging system, your stereo will sound better, you'll get longer play time at rest and you'll save on batteries. <BR> <BR>David <BR>Earmark Marine

David's points are very good. In addition to the batteries lasting longer everything else electric on the boat will last longer if you keep the batteries charged up. Low voltage will shorten the life of the alternator, starter, lights and any other electronics on the boat.

I just picked up a used 2007 Moomba LSV boat and the battery is bad so I'm having to purchase two new ones. I'm also going to install the Blue Sea add a battery system so I can seperate the stereo &amp; accessories, from starting. Should I get one cranking battery and one deep cycle battery or should I get two dual purpose batteries? <BR> <BR>I really don't understand all this battery terminology so what I really need are some web links on what to buy...lol. And I'm not really sure how big of a deep cycle I need. I've seen some that are 80 amp hours, 100 amp hours, or bigger. The boats got 3 amplifiers, 6 inboat speakers, and infinity tower speakers, 10 inch sub. I don't have the luxery of being able to charge my boat in the garage on a regular basis as it's in a storage unit so I'm hoping that driving around for 10-15 hours on the lake each weekend keeps things charged. I generally don't listen to the radio in a cove for more than an hour or two. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ausbill32 on February 16, 2010)

So I learned a lot about batteries this morning and I answered my own questions but thank you for those that PM'd me answers. <BR> <BR>Give or take: <BR>Group 24 is 70-85 amps per hour <BR>Group 27 is 85-105 amps per hour <BR>Group 31 is 95-125 amps per hour <BR> <BR>I haven't decided on my 2 battery choices yet as I'm going to visit Walmart and Cosco after work tonight. So far though I'm liking the Die Hard Platinum PM-1 battery from Sears and it's the same price as the Blue 31M Optima <BR> <BR>Group 31 from Sears for $250 - Die Hard PM-1 has 100 amp hours, 1150 CCA, 205 minutes reserve capacity, and 3 full year warranty and pro rated for years 4 &amp; 5. <BR> <BR>Group 31 - Blue Optima battery is also $250 but 75 amp hours, 900 CCA, 115 reserve minutes, but only a 2 year warranty. <BR> <BR>Group 31 from West Marine $219 - SeaVolt 105 Amp hours, CCA 650, and 175 reserve minutes, only has 1 yr full warranty and pro rated for years 2 &amp; 3. <BR> <BR>Group 31 from West Marine SeaVolt AGM for $280 - 105 Amp hours, MCA 1000, 190 reserve minutes, has 18 month full warranty and 5 year pro rated <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ausbill32 on February 16, 2010) <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ausbill32 on February 16, 2010)

I just checked out the DieHard batts and they look to be solid. Great price for what you get. I might have to check them out the next time I am in the market for batts.

I believe Diehards are made by Johnson Controls who also makes Duralast (AutoZone), Interstate, Kirkland (Costco), Motorcraft (Ford), and some EverStarts. <BR> <BR>Go find an actual Deka dealer. You should be able to get the Deka group 31 AGM(8A31DTM) for under. Crap, I am not even a very large Deka dealer and I would sell that battery to any schmoe off the street for $216.32. They probably don't give quite as good a warranty as West Marine but are the same battery.

So I did my final bit of research. I'll add to the list walmarts Everlast and Costco Kirkland <BR> <BR>Group 27 - Costco - Kirkland Signature $69.00, 115 amp hours, 750 MCA, and 160 reserve minutes. Has 12 month full warranty and prorate through month 30. <BR> <BR>Group 31 - Walmart Everstart MAXX-29 - $75.00, 125 Amp hours, 875 MCA, and 205 rserve hours. I forgot to get the warranty info. <BR> <BR>Wow decisions decisions....lol. Drop $500 on two batteries that I know will last 3-5 years or pick up some Walmart or Costco batteries for $140 and replace them every 1-2 years. <BR> <BR>I don't know any Deka dealers here in Austin otherwise, I'd price those out too.

I've had Blue Optima's for years now, save your receipt if you buy from Costco. <BR>If they go bad in 18 months, I swap them out for new ones, so far they have never lasted 18 months and I'm really good at keeping them charged up all year. <BR>So I guess the moral to the story is they kind of suck if they don't last as long as they warranty.

I have a question on the cheaper ones. If the Walmart's Batt are only going to last 18 months, can you get away with trading them in after each season and starting with fresh? That is if the Walmart's honor the warranty and you have a receipt. I mean after the season is over you take them out to charge them so it would not that much of a pain to exchange them.

My Optima Blue tops have been money. They're around 4 or 5 years old I'm guessing (bought the boat used a few years back). Maybe the newer ones just suck. BTW - I've been running a 1500W system and I beat the batteries pretty good.

If they have a no questions asked warranty then I don't see why you couldn't do that. I know my company specializes in heavy duty charging/starting systems and 3/4 of the alternators, starters and batteries we get back that people think are warranties are not warranties at all. <BR> <BR>It is an ethical question if that is what you are thinking about doing. <BR> <BR>It would only take 1 or 2 times of getting stuck with no way to start my boat that I would question my decision to buy the cheaper/inferior product. Then again if you spend the money on a charger and you use it after every time you take the boat out you should get a good life out of any battery.

Brett, I understand where you are coming from and I have the West Marine AGM Group 31 Batts in my boat. I also have an onboard ProSport 12 Charging system that I plug in as soon as we park it in the garage. So no problems for me and this will be the 2nd year on the batts. They have yet to lose a charge or any problems from starting. You are right as the key is to condition the batts and separate the starting from the stereo. Do this and you will never have to worry about getting off the water. Just my .02 cents.

Had my bluetops for 3 years now, never had any issues.

I decided I'm going to purchase two of the Die Hard Platinum PM-1 battery. It's an AGM battery, military grade construction, suppose to have good vibration resistance, has 3 year full replacement warranty, highest CCA of the group 31s and longest reserve at 205 minutes, similarly priced with-in the top three group 31s' at $250.00, and I'm not going to need to purchase new battery trays as it has a spill proof design. Lastly, the weight is 75lbs, that's extra bow ballast! <BR> <BR>I don't work for Sears or Die Hard so I'm not try to advertise this battery but if this post is still around next year, I'll follow up. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ausbill32 on February 17, 2010) <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ausbill32 on February 17, 2010)

If you come up to Dallas, TX. I can get you in some new Deka Sea Mate 31 series for $200 a piece from a Deka Dealer up here. <BR> <BR>Amp hours is what you need to look. Deka's have 105 amp hours versus the Die Hard that have 100

Strange. I've had the same 2 Blue Tops in my boat for 5 years. I've never charged them and I've never had any problems with them.

Eubanks, I think the bigger issue with Optima's are that they are crazy overpriced. But they did get bought out since you purchased your probably and they aren't using 100% non recycled lead like they used to claim.

Hmm. Maybe so. I hadn't expected them to last 5 years espeically since I don't charge them at all.

That is good life out of batteries that have been beat on pretty good.

I am running the Group 31 - Walmart Everstart MAXX-29 but, i only have one season on it so I cannot give too much feedback.

There are a tone of fishing forums where guys are using these Everstart MAXX-29 batteries for their trolling motors. Seems to be the most commonly used battery amongst them. Based on the amount of responses I read from different forums, most people are reporting 2 or more years which is not bad for $75 bucks. I went to Walmart here in Austin, TX to get some more information about the warranty because I forgot to the other night. After 5 minutes of rambling I think the guy confused himself, he couldn't even explain the return policy to me so I said forget it. He kept saying that it was 3 years pro rated and would not disclose to me if it was completely replaceable with in the first year or even within 6 months so I did some forum researching. <BR> <BR>I did find an interesting forum post about Walmart yanking the full replacement warranty on this battery. Unless you have a receipt that shows warranty information you might be SOL. <BR> <BR><a href="http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/4307463/Everstart_Marine_MAXX_battery_" target="_blank">http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/4307463/Everstart_Marine_MAXX_battery_</a> <BR> <BR>I'm pretty sure I'm still going to go with the Sears Die Hard. The only thing I do really like about the Optimas is that you can rotate them and put them on their side if need be. I measured my bow seats and I only have 10 inches to work with so I may decide to go with the Optima after all. I'll figure it out on Saturday when I get down to it. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by ausbill32 on February 18, 2010)

That is weird, a bunch of bass fishing hicks shopping at Walmart.<img src="http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/clipart/blush.gif" border=0> <BR> <BR>Bill, you can do that with any AGM battery. <BR> <BR>(Message edited by polarbill on February 18, 2010)

Anyone ever used any of these XS batteries? After snooping in some car audio web forums it appears these seem to be common. I've never heard of them though. I think by the time I select a battery, I'll be able to publish a purchasing guide on these things...lol <BR> <BR><a href="http://4xspower.com/products/" target="_blank">http://4xspower.com/products/</a>

I'm starting to realize after reading all of these posts about batteries that I'm a battery retard....no wonder mine never last very long. <BR>I think I'm going to get a nice charger and have someone smarter than me go over my hook up method of batteries and cables. <BR> <BR>JESSSSUSSS, I thought it was all so easy....

Murphy, <BR> <BR>Seems like a lot of people are interested in purchasing some batteries, maybe we could get a group buy going on with a nice discount?