Optimas are tough....pricey, but tough. Long story....but worth it.
Tournament partner gets a great deal from a local battery dealer as a sponsorship. We started having problems with the trolling motor not holding a charge. Three batteries in series for a 36v system powering a MotorGuide Tour109. Batteries would charge fine, look fine and run fine during intermittant use (not constant on) and otherwise do well (voltage tests were fine too). Until we "leaned" into them searching for bedding fish with the trolling motor in constant on max power (not high bypass). The battereis would last for about one hour like that. They would discharge immediately too, not over a long period of time. Commonly called "dumping" in battery lingo.
Anyway I talked him into making a stop in at the battery center to have them tested. So we pull up and everyone is busy, so we take that batteries out ourselves and walk them in. His contact tests the batteries on a professional load test machine and they all test ok, but as he was about to lift the battery back across the counter he noticed a mark on the cap (colored portion) of the battery. The mark we later surmised came from the batteres colliding in the battery hold down tray we had installed. The collision lifted the cap off the battery, and all of the acid/solution came out (over a span of who knows how long). The battery still would charge, still would run and still showed 12-13v on a voltmeter and even passed a load test....all while being almost dry.....I was as amazed as the guy testing it.
Like I said TOUGH batteries....
Mini
