SWharton Posted April 7, 2017 Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 Our house batteries are approaching 3 years and of course they are 3 year batteries. While at Sams Club we looked at their golf cart batteries and discovered they are now 8v instead of 6v. Batteries are not my strong point. Can I use the 8v to replace my 6v? Why the change? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yarome Posted April 7, 2017 Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 29 minutes ago, SWharton said: Can I use the 8v to replace my 6v? Why the change? Unfortunately, no. Not without stepping the voltage down to 12v... and the big question would be if your charger could even charge them properly (more than likely, no). They may just be out of the 6v at the moment or the clerk grabbed the wrong ones. It's not really a "change". 8v golf cart batteries have been around for ages and do have some advantages over 6v batteries in battery operated vehicles (golf carts). They cost and weight less per/AH than 6v batteries, but have a shorter lifespan and don't really have the range that 6v batteries do. Most places that stock GC batteries carry both 6v and 8v. You might want to load test the ones you still have to see if they really do need replacing. Maintained properly, I would expect to see more like 5 years out of a set of Sams/Costco's. Possibly at a diminished capacity so a load test would give you a decent idea of overall health. You just need to adjust your mental calculations of "available" AH's accordingly. Then again... they really aren't all that spendy so the yearly cost... even at 3 years is fairly reasonable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWharton Posted April 7, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 Thanks for the education. I'll see if I can find someplace to load test our current batteries Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kirk W Posted April 7, 2017 Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 4 hours ago, SWharton said: Can I use the 8v to replace my 6v? Why the change? While you could use them, they would fail very quickly since you would have 16V initially with a pair in series, or you could have too little voltage if operated singly at only 8V. Since your system is designed to charge based upon an operating voltage of 12 V the batteries would either be under charged and never come close to proper charging if paired or be overcharged and boil dry if singled. My Club Car golf cart uses 8V batteries and it is a 1995 model. As previously stated, they have been available for many years and tend to be used more by some manufacturers. Most golf carts run sets of 6 batteries in series as a power source, meaning that the two common cart voltages are 6 batteries of 6V each for 36V power or 6 batteries of 8v each for a working source of 48v. Good travelin !...............KirkFull-time 11+ years...... Now seasonal travelers.Kirk & Pam's Great RV Adventure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SWharton Posted April 7, 2017 Author Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 I had never seen nor heard of 8v batteries before so I thought the world was changing over. I will need to be careful to ask for 6v golf cart batteries when I buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ruelens Posted April 7, 2017 Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 Deep cycle golf cart batteries come in different voltages: 6volt, 8 volt, 12 volt. A different voltage rating can not be interchanged without extensive changes. The 6 volt batteries are very popular and available through lots of sources. I believe Costco has them for approx. 80-85 bucks each. All the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yarome Posted April 7, 2017 Report Share Posted April 7, 2017 3 hours ago, SWharton said: I had never seen nor heard of 8v batteries before so I thought the world was changing over. I will need to be careful to ask for 6v golf cart batteries when I buy. You certainly wouldn't be the first RV'r that ever went in asking for golf cart deep cycle batteries and walked out with 8v'er's! You DO have to be careful because some of those sales clerks don't know they come in 2 flavors either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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