Battery charging rate - charger vs Alternator
It's impossible to judge how much a single complete discharge would hurt a particular battery bank. If left discharged for a period, damage is greaty increased. If the battery is old it could spell the end. In cold weather, the damage is likely less pronounced. You can likely get some figures from battery mfg sites....seems like I read about 3% or 5% might be a rough estimate of power loss due to a single complete discharge...
Re: Battery charging rate - charger vs Alternator
I know that I cycle my inverter batts between 50-90%. This what the manufacturer (Lifeline) rec's . They say an occasional discharge to 30 % is ok .Every batt has different specs and yes if you fully discharge any lead acid batt you have damaged it,deep cycle or not. Deep cycles just don't get damaged as much by deeply discharging as say a starting batt would.......Pat
Re: Battery charging rate - charger vs Alternator
The only difference I see in a deep cycle batt is the thickness of the plates. Thicker plates take more time to charge, hold more amp hours of power and take more time to discharge or get the power back out of them. Thinner plate starting batts, provide power more quickly for starting applications, but they do not retain the power as long as deep cycles. If you want a good deep cycle batt, just look at the weight. More lead, means more amp hours. I don't see how completely discharging either type will have any difference on longevity. Both will be damaged.
Battery charging rate - charger vs Alternator
I stumbled across a statement in Calder's Boatowners book saying maybe 100 complete discharges would end a battery's useful life...just an approximate generalization....