charging an optima red top good or bad?

I just recently bought an Optima red top battery for my truck. I drained two normal Duralast batteries and decided enough was enough. I believe that the Duralasts didn't last because my alternator is not strong enough to keep up with the demand of my audio system. And I do not listen to the radio with the truck off, for those who are wondering.

My question is, until I can get a HO alternator, would it be wise/necessary/practical to every so often charge my battery to keep it from draining? Or would this cause more problems than just operating as normal? My truck is a daily driver, so it's not like I spend a whole lot of time in it to play music.

All the pertinent info is in my sig. What do you guys think? Thanks.

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VEHICLE: 2002 GMC Sonoma ZR2
Alpine CDA-7940
AudioControl EQT x2
JL Audio 1000/1
JL Audio 10W6 (originals) x3
Kicker ZR120
Kicker ZR460
Polk GXR-6 x4
Polk GXR-4 x2

Red Tops are built to withstand physical, not electrical abuse.

If you drain it below 10~11v, it won't work properly again.  It isn't made to be recharged - it needs to stay at 12.5v for it to work properly.  So you have *some* headroom - but certainly not enough to recharge the thing back up to 12.5v.  If you find yourself doing this, you might as well head to the auto-parts store. . . .

Get a Yellow variant - the design is built to withstand electrical abuse AND be recharged - the Red isn't designed to do either of those things.

There will be like ten posts following mine with crazy-talk like "Red Tops are actually better" - please remember that Optima itself expressely tells people that Red's are NOT designed for car stereo applications OR for Deep Cycling - this myth - unlike the Red Top - won't die.

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"I'm finished!" - Daniel Plainview

sedate wrote:

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Red Tops are built to withstand physical, not electrical abuse.

If you drain it below 10~11v, it won't work properly again.  It isn't made to be recharged - it needs to stay at 12.5v for it to work properly.  So you have *some* headroom - but certainly not enough to recharge the thing back up to 12.5v.  If you find yourself doing this, you might as well head to the auto-parts store. . . .

Get a Yellow variant - the design is built to withstand electrical abuse AND be recharged - the Red isn't designed to do either of those things.

There will be like ten posts following mine with crazy-talk like "Red Tops are actually better" - please remember that Optima itself expressely tells people that Red's are NOT designed for car stereo applications OR for Deep Cycling - this myth - unlike the Red Top - won't die.

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Good info, sedate. Thanks.

I will admit to two things here that influenced my decision on the Red Top - price point and what I had seen here on the forums. I was able to get the Red Top for $105 after core returns and "refund" since this last Duralast battery was out of warranty.

The other thing I failed to mention in my original posting was, I have not yet upgraded to the Big 3 yet. I think this would only prolong the inevitable, but I'm sure it would help. I'm guessing a HO alt is in my immediate future...

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VEHICLE: 2002 GMC Sonoma ZR2
Alpine CDA-7940
AudioControl EQT x2
JL Audio 1000/1
JL Audio 10W6 (originals) x3
Kicker ZR120
Kicker ZR460
Polk GXR-6 x4
Polk GXR-4 x2