AGM battery for 3124KS

The battery in our 3124KS recently appeared to have died of a natural death. It was a hybrid "Marine-RV" lead-acid battery. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the storage battery's location in a 3124KS, it is located in the end of the long kitchen cabinet that is opposite the doorway. Access to the battery is gained through a small, door at the lowermost end of the cabinet. Since the battery is nestled in a tiny, cramped space below the space heater and right next to the 20 gallon water tank, it is almost impossible to check the battery's electrolyte levels while the battery is in this location. I have had to disconnect the battery, lift it up out of its plastic case, and then sideways out through the small doorway - before I could check the electrolyte fluid levels. The difficulty involved in this task made for infrequent electrolyte checks. Therefore I am considering replacing my dead battery with an absorbed glass mat (AGM) lead-acid battery. This is a sealed, recombinant type of battery that does not require electrolyte checks because it does not lose any electrolyte.

Have any of you used AGM deep-cycle batteries in your travel trailers? If you have, what brands and models of AGM batteries have you used successfully in your RVs?

Have you 3124KS/KB (perhaps 3225 also) owners noticed the poor design of the mounting of your trailer's storage battery? My battery's present plastic case, for example, sits in a rectangular hole cut out of the 3 inch thick foam of the trailer's floor. Since the case is too tall, its flange sits about 1-1/2 inches above the TOP of the trailer's floor. This means that the battery's entire weight is supported by the BOTTOM aluminum skin of the 3 inch laminated floor. In other words there is only the thin aluminum skin betwen the battery and the ground/roadway outside. This skin and the strength of the glue bond between it and the foam may be strong enough to support the weight of the battery. However I still do not like the idea of a 30 pound Marine-RV battery bouncing up and down on this lower aluminum skin while I'm towing my trailer on the highways. Since the replacement AGM battery that I'm thinking of installing will weigh 65 pounds, I can imagine that there will be an even higher risk of delaminating this lower aluminum skin from the floor and an eventual fatigue failure of the skin. Even if my replacement battery is another Marine-RV one, I intend to fabricate another battery case. This will be a shorter one so that its flange rests on the top of the floor. In this way all of the battery's weight will be supported on the top of the 3 inch thick floor, i.e. supported by the full thickness of the floor.

I'd appreciate any responses or comments you might have concerning my battery dilemma. ???

I have a 3326  and it's battery is easier to access than the batteries in the motor home I had. After years of struggle to check the battery electrolyte level the only battery I will buy is a maintenance free type. I think they last longer because the electrolyte level is never a problem.

As a follow-up to the message I posted in December, I finally purchased an absorbed glass mat battery (AGM) for our 3124KS. It is a Group 27, Concord "Chairman" deep-cycle battery. It cost me $130 plus tax and shipping, which was twice the amount of a Group 27 "Marine-RV" battery. The latter type is not a true deep-cycle battery however. AGM batteries have thick lead plates with the electrolyte acid absorbed in glass mats. Therefore they are spill proof and may be mounted on their sides. They also recombine the hydrogen gases released by lead-acid batteries and therefore have a minimal risk of explosion. AGM batteries have other advantages which you may read about at the Wind and Sun site "All About Deep Cycle Batteries!!

http://www.windsun.com/batteries/Bat...of%20Batteries

I learned a lot about deep-cycle batteries from this site - and now consider myself more of an expert on this subject than most RV salespeople. Most of whom are still recommending Marine-RV batteries for our trailers.

On a different but perhaps more EXCITING note, Sears Roebuck is now selling Sylvania 13" color TV-VCR sets with dual AC/DC voltage input - for $199.95 (at least in our local Central Calif. stores). That's $115 less than the discounted price of the Sylvania unit being sold by Camping World. If you, like us, are in the market for a new TV set for your TM, it may be worthwhile for you to search for it at your Sears store.