Dual Battery Thoughts and Advice (1 Viewer)

[Manuelsv]

Hey everyone.
I am hoping some of you electrical gurus can give me better advice on my COVID bored time project for my 97.
So I recently bought an ICECO Vl60 dual zone. And I would like to get a 2nd battery to upgrade my electrical system.

Current Situation: 8x 18W Led lights, 12k LB winch, Sub-woofer amp, aftermarket head unit, 1000 Watt inverter, CB radio, additional AC cooling fan, and ICECO VL60 fridge 60-65W ? (All on the Main battery).

So I think with the addition of a more permanent load being the ICECO fridge I think I need a dual battery now.. (Please correct me if I am wrong)

I am building a shopping list and the basics are just that basics.. I need a battery box, suitable inline circuit breakers or fuses, wire (I am thinking 6AWG because I already have a bunch)

Decision time.. DC-DC Charger? ACR/VSR? Or Plain ol Isolator? At this time I am leaning towards the Renogy 12V DC TO DC On-Board Battery Charger (20A) $107 on the Walmart site, and I will also need a 2nd Battery, what type size and brand?

I am leaning towards the DC-DC charger because I would like to have the option of a Deep cycle battery or mix and match battery types in future. I now have a standard Costco battery for the main that is only 6 months old.

So advice is welcome before I pull the trigger and start my shopping. My plan is to put the second battery under the hood, and if I go with the DC DC charger to run that under a front seat? if ACR/VSR then everything under the hood.

 

[Willy beamin]

From my experiences with big trips is unless youre leaving your truck parked for days on end and running all the accessories then a dual battery is not warranted. A simple Main battery swap to a group 31 AGM and a good jumper pack, read as Norco, will get you there and back and save you on weight, money and time. As long as the alternator does its job. Your fridge may have software that will shut it down before your main battery enters into a critical voltage point for starting the truck. Ignore my post if youre beyond that thinking path. Good luck

 

[GeoRoss]

Hey everyone.
I am hoping some of you electrical gurus can give me better advice on my COVID bored time project for my 97.
So I recently bought an ICECO Vl60 dual zone. And I would like to get a 2nd battery to upgrade my electrical system.

Current Situation: 8x 18W Led lights, 12k LB winch, Sub-woofer amp, aftermarket head unit, 1000 Watt inverter, CB radio, additional AC cooling fan, and ICECO VL60 fridge 60-65W ? (All on the Main battery).

So I think with the addition of a more permanent load being the ICECO fridge I think I need a dual battery now.. (Please correct me if I am wrong)

I am building a shopping list and the basics are just that basics.. I need a battery box, suitable inline circuit breakers or fuses, wire (I am thinking 6AWG because I already have a bunch)

Decision time.. DC-DC Charger? ACR/VSR? Or Plain ol Isolator? At this time I am leaning towards the Renogy 12V DC TO DC On-Board Battery Charger (20A) $107 on the Walmart site, and I will also need a 2nd Battery, what type size and brand?

I am leaning towards the DC-DC charger because I would like to have the option of a Deep cycle battery or mix and match battery types in future. I now have a standard Costco battery for the main that is only 6 months old.

So advice is welcome before I pull the trigger and start my shopping. My plan is to put the second battery under the hood, and if I go with the DC DC charger to run that under a front seat? if ACR/VSR then everything under the hood.

What I did as a "temporary" fix was to run a power line from the main battery to the fridge (WitsEnd @NLXTACY ). I then have a second 100Ahr AGM battery mounted by the fridge. When I'm driving, I connect the fridge to the battery. When I'm base camped I connect to the second battery that I keep charged with a 100W Renogy panel and 20A Morningstar regulator. I keep meaning to wire up the second battery via an isolator, but since my storage area is in flux and I'm still trying to figure out how to make this modular so I can swap the fridge to the 4Runner it is on the back burner. I'm not an expert, but from what I understand our alternators are not smart so the DC-DC charger is not really necessary unless you like having an integrated solar charge regulator. The experts can correct me.

 

[chap79]

@Manuelsv What capabilities are you looking to have out of your dual battery setup? Do you want to just separate the start (main) battery from the house (auxiliary) battery? Battery isolation to not always draw from the start battery? Combine batteries to self jump start? Are you looking to add anything else in the future? Solar setup?

whatever route you take DO NOT hook your winch up to the house battery. The winch should be directly connected to the start battery to be able to draw the most current from the alternator, up to 400amps.

 

[Manuelsv]

What I did as a "temporary" fix was to run a power line from the main battery to the fridge (WitsEnd @NLXTACY ). I then have a second 100Ahr AGM battery mounted by the fridge. When I'm driving, I connect the fridge to the battery. When I'm base camped I connect to the second battery that I keep charged with a 100W Renogy panel and 20A Morningstar regulator. I keep meaning to wire up the second battery via an isolator, but since my storage area is in flux and I'm still trying to figure out how to make this modular so I can swap the fridge to the 4Runner it is on the back burner. I'm not an expert, but from what I understand our alternators are not smart so the DC-DC charger is not really necessary unless you like having an integrated solar charge regulator. The experts can correct me.

At this very moment the solar panel is not in my wish list, but... with over 10 years of this Cruiser addiction .. I have learned to never say never and leave options open. Better to spend a little extra now, then have to go back and spend 2x in-future to redo the system when I change my mind and do want a solar setup.. I mostly do one weekend camp trips but once a year I'll do an epic 2 week Baja run that will require a long time off grid. I do like your modular approach were the fridge and battery pack can transplant to other vehicles.. But for me the cruiser is my only go to vehicle for overland and camping trips., so I would probably never even take it out of the cruiser.

 

[Manuelsv]

@Manuelsv What capabilities are you looking to have out of your dual battery setup? Do you want to just separate the start (main) battery from the house (auxiliary) battery? Battery isolation to not always draw from the start battery? Combine batteries to self jump start? Are you looking to add anything else in the future? Solar setup?

whatever route you take DO NOT hook your winch up to the house battery. The winch should be directly connected to the start battery to be able to draw the most current from the alternator, up to 400amps.

Basically my new concern is the fridge being able to go for a max 2 week outing and still have a cold drink, safe food, and well be able to start the engine every day. On the winch I did not know that it needed to be hooked up to the main battery so thanks for the info I will keep it on the main..

 

[chap79]

93-97 80 Series Dual Battery Kit now available

 

[Manuelsv]

93-97 80 Series Dual Battery Kit now available

Sweet Kit.. I like it a lot.. (I probably spent the last week reading and researching kits.. and did not find this one..) But my main concern is still do I use a DC-DC Charger? If I go with an ACR this is well worth it ass a kit.

 

[chap79]

Sweet Kit.. I like it a lot.. (I probably spent the last week reading and researching kits.. and did not find this one..) But my main concern is still do I use a DC-DC Charger? If I go with an ACR this is well worth it ass a kit.

I've been using a Blue Sea 7622 ACR for years and it has never failed me. Charges the house battery, disconnects and isolates when voltage drops, and can self jump start via a switch on the dash. In the 80 I had multiple pod and light bars, aux ports galore, OBA, 50qt fridge, 1500w inverter, ham radio, CB, upgraded horns, GPS , aircraft GPS receiver, dash cam, back up cam, 150amp alternator, and probably a bunch of other crap.

With the 7610 ACR you could jump start by pop the hood and using jumper cables to do the same thing.

 

[chap79]

I would also recommend installing a second fuse block for your accessory circuits to simplify wiring and fuse location if you don't already have one. But for under the hood temps I would use fuses over breakers to minimize loss and reduce thermal failure.