cheaper option than Optima battery

[Sparky223]

Something with a high amp hour rating?

[Blindrage]

The real expense is the requirement for a deep cycle battery.

A normal battery, also called an SLI battery for "Starting, Lightning, and Ignition" , is designed to provide a very quick burst of amperage to start an engine and then a quick recharge. In most cases these batteries never go below 95% charge before being recharged. They work this way due to the large surface area of the plates in the battery, but as few as 30 discharges below 80% will results in an inability to maintain normal charge (read that as you will need a new battery). Each time the battery is deeply discharged the elements are damaged and store a little less capacity on the recharge. Do not use them to run devices.

A deep cycle battery is designed for use longer term use. The plates in the battery are much thicker, and they discharge slower. Most of them are designed to suffer no damage down to 50% discharge, and some can go as low as 80% discharge without any ill effects. This is the type of battery that is used to power equipment, and can be recharged hundreds of times before failing.

[archangle]

Do you want it for travel/camping, or for home use for power outages?

[Sparky223]

camping weight not really a factor

[Blindrage]

Sorry, I should have read your question closer.

Deep cycle batteries go up in price based on the Amp Hours they provide. So what Optima are you looking at? How many Amp Hours do you need? What equipment are you trying to run, ie. with humidifier or not, what model, etc.? How long do you need it to power the CPAP before you can recharge the battery?

Some simple examples.

http://www.overtons.com/modperl/product ... ING_449530
55 Amp Hours is $219
75 Amp Hours is $280

http://www.batterymart.com/c-deep-cycle ... eries.html
35 Amp hours for $70
And there is a:
55 Amp Hour $113
74 Amp Hour $165

Hope those help.

[GumbyCT]

While I have heard good things about the Optima, I have never used one bc they are pricey and bc I use my Jump Starters.

They are not high amperage but you may be able to get 2 for the price of one Optima or already have one sitting around. Leaving 1 on charge while using the other is not a bad way to go. Mine came with a DC cord to charge from the car, also.

Might be worth the read for you...
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=64943&p=702353&hili ... n+#p652662

[Sparky223]

While I have heard good things about the Optima, I have never used one bc they are pricey and bc I use my Jump Starters.

They are not high amperage but you may be able to get 2 for the price of one Optima or already have one sitting around. Leaving 1 on charge while using the other is not a bad way to go. Mine came with a DC cord to charge from the car, also.

Might be worth the read for you...
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=64943&p=702353&hili ... n+#p652662

I read that. That's is an option I am looking at also. The Duracell 600 has a 28ah battery. Enough for one night without the humidifier. Then I could through it in the car to recharge.

[GumbyCT]

I read that. That's is an option I am looking at also. The Duracell 600 has a 28ah battery. Enough for one night without the humidifier. Then I could through it in the car to recharge.

fwiw - The Sears I have is a 22ah - I got almost 3 nites on my BiPap before charging. Plus they usu come with an AC Inverter for small things.

I still use the Sears like a UPS of sorts - still going strong.

The nice thing about the jump starters is they usu. come with chargers and all in a package for folks who are not handy about hooking up batteries, etc.

Amazon has had some sales on the Duracell.

[Sparky223]

I read that. That's is an option I am looking at also. The Duracell 600 has a 28ah battery. Enough for one night without the humidifier. Then I could through it in the car to recharge.

fwiw - The Sears I have is a 22ah - I got almost 3 nites on my BiPap before charging. Plus they usu come with an AC Inverter for small things.

I still use the Sears like a UPS of sorts - still going strong.

The nice thing about the jump starters is they usu. come with chargers and all in a package for folks who are not handy about hooking up batteries, etc.

Amazon has had some sales on the Duracell.

I am watching a Sears one on ebay. The one you have. Its 16 hours left. I may snipe it at the end.

[archangle]

http://www.overtons.com/modperl/product ... ING_449530
55 Amp Hours is $219
75 Amp Hours is $280

You do not want "dual purpose" marine batteries. You want "Deep cycle" or "trolling" batteries.

"dual purpose, starting/cranking, or starting/cranking" batteries are a compromise between regular batteries and true deep cycle batteries. Deep cycle batteries will survive more and deeper discharge cycles, but they're a bad choice for starting an engine.

A "dual purpose" battery is better than a starting battery for CPAP use, but not as good as a deep cycle.

[GumbyCT]

I am watching a Sears one on ebay. The one you have. Its 16 hours left. I may snipe it at the end.

Hope it is new.

[GumbyCT]

Plus IF it IS more time (ah) you need you can always hook a jump starter up in parallel with a larger capacity battery simply by connecting the jumper cables as designed.

[Super Iridium]

check out the back-up battery design created by John B. Franklin on this website.

I followed his plan exactly and got almost all of the components on a website called http://www.atbatt.com. Even using the "more expensive" option for virtually all of the items, I still ended up with a total cost of around $150. The battery I ended up with has 35 ampere-hours of capacity, and I keep it topped off with a Battery Tender Junior float charger.

After building the battery using John's advice, I'm amazed at how much money is wasted on these other CPAP battery solutions.

[Sparky223]

check out the back-up battery design created by John B. Franklin on this website.

I followed his plan exactly and got almost all of the components on a website called http://www.atbatt.com. Even using the "more expensive" option for virtually all of the items, I still ended up with a total cost of around $150. The battery I ended up with has 35 ampere-hours of capacity, and I keep it topped off with a Battery Tender Junior float charger.

After building the battery using John's advice, I'm amazed at how much money is wasted on these other CPAP battery solutions.

You have the same cpap as I do. How long can it go on a full charge. No power to charge.

[Dan Jacobs]

I hate to say it, because some folks don't believe it or have poor statistical data trying to prove it wrong, but if you go cheap, you too often get exactly what you pay for.

Get a good battery from somewhere/someone that will stand behind it, take proper care of it, and you will be happy.

Read this: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/1347382/Emerge ... 0Power.pdf, if nothing else pay attention to the parts I highlighted, and with a little effort, a good charger, and care, your battery will help you while out camping and last a long time.