Marine vs Regular battery for ShurFlo

[Christopher 102]

Hello Everyone,

I am getting a backup pump and was wondering what is the best way to go for the 12 volt source: Marine or Regular car battery? I have heard good things about both but would like some more info. Please share your experiences and any pro's and con's between each battery. I am going 12 volt because I will not have to run my generator to do some small jobs or roof jobs. Thanks.

[PressurePros 248]

A marine battery will discharge at a given amperage over a longer period of time. For something with a low steady draw like a pump, I would think that would be the way to go. A quicker discharging capacitor (which is what a battery is) is good when you need high bursts of power such as to turn a starter, or to power a car stereo with a ton of wattage.

[RyanH 14]

Deep cell marine battery with as many Amp-hours as you can afford, or atleast as many as you feel you will need in a day.

Good way to tell...take the amperage draw from your pump, multiply it by how long you think you will be using it (2,3,5,8 hours???), and divide by 0.75 as a good measure, and you will get an approximation of the amp-hour range you should look into.

[CCPC 26]

Another thing to keep in mind is that your pump isn't running the whole time you are using it. Expample: For a three hour roof job you may only run your pump for 30 to 45 minutes.

[beyoungsr 14]

IMHO a marine battery would be over kill just for a Shurflo. In addition you will have to deal with the added extra weight of a large marine battery.

Heck some old boys just use the small 12 volt garden tractor batteries.

[tropical wave 22]

Just finished building my shurflo setup tonight, only thing left is the battery, and Im getting more confused.....was thinking marine battery, just checked the sears website for the heck of it and the cheapest they sell is over 150 bucks.. I didnt really think I wanted to spend that much..... my pump draws 4 amps, would any type gell battery be ok, jetski, tractor eyc be ok.... gonna mostly spray stripper, ox and sealer.......

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

We use a deep cycle marine battery.

Charge it once a week and keep a spare on hand.

Rod~

[GymRat 14]

I have been using a battery pack combo that has the cables for jump starting, air compressor and air pump all in one. I have done two roof jobs in one day and still have plenty of battery charge left per the meter on the pack. You can purchase these multi purpose batterys for approximately $50. This battery pack can also be charged from your cigarrette lighter plug.

[RyanH 14]

Check walmart...got mine for around $70 (even though I HATE walmart). High quality jet ski batter will work also. Might have a point with that garden tractor battery.....just check the numbers to how they work.

[CCPC 26]

Why do you hate Walmart?

[RyanH 14]

From a capitalist perspective, I have the ultimate regard for Walmart. From an economics perspective, they are pretty decent. However, walmart has complete disregard for the personal property and liberty of property owners and make changes that negatively impact the immediate area where they construct their buildings. Of course, they are not autonomous and solely responsible; they could not do the things they do if local government officials had the balls to do what their constituents put them there to do in the first place. But, I'm not a socialist, so things like this bug me.

[Pams Pressure & Clean 64]

Ryan,

me too..

Chris,

Go deep cycle marine battery.. Any good auto parts store or Wally World.

[rocco 14]

when I first started using my sureflo i used and old battery from the garage cause I didnt know exactly how much I would use it. By the time I went to get a new batt I had made enough money from using the old batt I had in the garage to warrant buying a new one. Of course I am still part time and I still use a regular car batt but might change as I get more jobs! I think what I am saying is that for everyone its different so just go with something cheap or free and base your decision on how much you utilize it! I have all kinds of stuff I have been told to try out or just wanted to and then I use it once and go back to my old way so it collects dust in the garage and was just a waste of money!

Just my 2cents .

[tunatussle 14]

Chris, I am sure you have either a West Marine or Boaters World near you. They carry

marine deep cycle batteries for about $60. I have two on my boat and run pumps, radar, GPS, lights, radios al night long on one battery. I do replace them every 2 years if they need it or not. &5+ miles offshore is not a place to be without a battery. They are made to be discharged and then recharged after you run them down. They do have a limited number of recycles, so you do not want to recharge just because you ran the pump. My pump is a 3.5 gpm 45 psi and draws between 5 and 9 amps. So at that rate you could run the pump continuously for about 10 hrs and only draw a max of 90 amps.

[R. Williamson 14]

West Marine & Boaters World are great places to buy all kinds of things for pressure cleaning rigs, All kinds of 12 volt stuff, hoses,fittings,gas tanks & fishing pole rack holders work great for lances. And lots of STAINLESS!