Rick Rolls

We just got back from picking up our new batteries from Miami.  We ended up picking them up from their warehouse as the shipping costs per battery were just ridiculous.  Again, we used it as an excuse to take a rode trip and be someplace new.  We were able to get, with my hotel discount, a nice suite with a balcony overlooking Ft Lauderdale for $40!  I don't know what it is about fancy hotel rooms, but Frank and I just love them.  Maybe it's the unlimited cable tv, or perhaps the 1000 ct bedsheets, or the king size bed that I can sprawl out in, but whatever it is, Frank and I just can't get enough.

The view from our $40 hotel room

We ended up choosing 4 Rolls Surrette S530 batteries from DC Battery located in Miami. Our new batteries are 6-volt and 400 AH that we plan on wiring in series and in parallel to give us an 800 amp-hour battery bank at 12 Volts.  We opted for these specifically for their durability, plate thickness, and unique shape.  The batteries have a 12 1/4" x 7 1/8" footprint and are 16 3/4" tall.  This works great for us as we have a narrow but tall space in our old "Generator Room" for them to fit.  Rolls batteries come with a 10 year warranty and are often considered the Rolls Royce of batteries ( perhaps thats where they got their name from ;-). We figured we'd invest a little more money now to save in the long run by not having to re-buy them as soon as we would have had we chosen the cheaper alternatives.  To these, we have also added Water Miser battery caps that recombine the gases that are normally vented. When charging, the plastic pellets capture up to 90% of the moisture and acid droplets. This reduces acid fumes, corrosion, and keeps the battery tops much cleaner and dryer. Excess water is dropped back into the battery cell.  We hope this will help maintain our batteries without too much actual maintenance on our part.

New batteries currently sitting under
our saloon table waiting to be installed

After picking up the batteries, of course, we/I had to indulge in the yummy Cuban food that Miami has to offer before heading back up to St Augustine.  We went to Puerto Sagua located on Collins Avenue in Miami Beach.  Frank had the fried pork chunks, which were as the name implies, deep fried marinated chunks of pork.  I had the churasco steak with chimichurri sauce that ended up being the best skirt steak I've ever had.  This was one of the best cuban places we've visited in Miami hands down.  Of course, being the glutton that I am, I ordered a Tres Leches (yellow cake soaked in 3 different types of milk: evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream) to go, as I didn't have room for anymore food.  It was also just as yummy as our main courses.

Mami beach

Puerto Sagua

Tres Leches, YUM!

For those of you wondering what the heck the title of this blog post is all about, click here to be "Rick Rolled".