Where to Ground Jump Start and Battery Questions

[Red Beard]

I've had to jump my battery a lot lately and I can never find a good enough ground under my hood because everything was painted with that rust-proof lifetime paint they covered the body in.

I was wondering what you guys grounded your jumper cables to?

Also, I just installed a mac mini into my Cruiser and my battery, as you know, has been dying. I'm thinking I'm going to need a new battery. I've seen a lot of people with these Red-Top batteries. Also, a lot of people with lights and sound systems have 2 batteries, one for the lights and accessories, I presume and the other for the engine. How does this work?

Also, how are those red-top batteries? Good enough for 6 KC's, 1 Mac Mini with many USB Accessories and a 3FE?

 

[CappyKD]

I would go dual battery if I was you. Red tops are starting batteries. Yellow Tops are off-road / deep cycle batteries. If you are going to go with Optima's then I would reccomend a Wrangler NW dual battery setup. I have one ordered for my cruiser and have used them in the past on other rigs. With Dual batteries you keep one just for starting and factory accessories then you run all other stuff like lights, inverter, stereo to the second batt. This way if you drain the second battery with the add-ons you still have the starting battery charged.

 

[cubiclecaptive]

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=104630

Try the above link for dual battery info. Lots of good ideas there.

 

[Lka1988]

I've had to jump my battery a lot lately and I can never find a good enough ground under my hood because everything was painted with that rust-proof lifetime paint they covered the body in.

I was wondering what you guys grounded your jumper cables to?

I use the hood latch as a ground point.

 

[Red Beard]

I use the hood latch as a ground point.

Ah, Thanks! Duh!

And and thanks for the dual battery links. I'll give it a look.

 

[jvazquez53]

I have gone thru two Optimas within 18 months. Maybe is me, but after having that experience with those, I don't like them. The system on the vehicle was working fine, I returned the battery to the store. With the $$ I got back from the battery ($148.00) went to COSTCO and got me one with with even better warranty and only $60.00. The ground point I use on mine is that motor hook that I guess is used for lifting the motor.

 

[Beowulf]

I use the hood latch as a ground point.

The engine hook is bare metal. That is what you should use for the ground connection as documented in your Owner's Manual.

Do your homework on the dual battery system before you jump in. There is a lot to learn and a lot to decide based on your requirements. The link posted by Cubile is the place to start.

The first thing you need to do is to learn how to compute the load on your batteries from your equipment. That will be your starting point for deciding which battery is best for you. If you don't want to think about it then just buy the biggest deep cycle you can afford and shove it into the 2nd battery tray (call C-Dan) and buy a Hellroaring isolator, then hook all your after-market junk to the secondary battery.

-B-

 

[Lka1988]

The engine hook is bare metal. That is what you should use for the ground connection and I believe that is what is given in the Owner's Manual.

-B-

....

 

[Grench]

Parallel operation option

I would go dual battery if I was you. Red tops are starting batteries. Yellow Tops are off-road / deep cycle batteries.

With one exception, the 31 series. The M31 Blue, D31a(t) Yellow Top is both starting and deep cycle.

If you are going to go with Optima's then I would reccomend a Wrangler NW dual battery setup. I have one ordered for my cruiser and have used them in the past on other rigs.

A lot of people have good luck with Hellroaring and other isolators as well. Personally I went without an isolator and used a factory matched pair of D31a batteries in switchable parallel.

With Dual batteries you keep one just for starting and factory accessories then you run all other stuff like lights, inverter, stereo to the second batt. This way if you drain the second battery with the add-ons you still have the starting battery charged.

This is a good way to set them up and if you have even slightly mismatched batteries is the only 'right' way to set it up.

Yes, I had to be different. My switches are manual and 99% of the time I run it in full parallel mode to keep both batteries charged and balanced. So far this has worked well and I like it. The matched batteries is the key to this solution though and I'm not just talking make/model numbers. Optima charges extra for the battery matching service. There is a guy here who can get the D31 batteries matched this way.

So, the isolator and two mismatched batteries is not the only solution, but is likely the most common and 'reasonable'. Of course there isn't much reasonable left in some of our trucks.

 

[IdahoDoug]

Maybe it's just me, but unless you have a winch and/or spend a bit of time camping and using power accessories a quality single battery is plenty of power and you'll spend a third or less on it vs two batteries and the wiring and switches for a dual battery setup. Maybe add $15 to order an alternator brush set from Dan and pop it in to be sure you're getting full output since your alternator may be 15 years old now.

You can jam a pretty good sized quality lead acid battery in that tray. Just another viewpoint.

DougM

 

[latinoguy]

Pardon the ignorance....but....
Could this be another relatively low tech solution: Keep an extra CHARGED battery....anywhere in the truck....or even better: add a second battery tray in the engine bay....and use the Charged battery as a booster battery.

How would you use the booster battery to jump start your vehicle, WITHOUT having to swap their locations? meaning taking out the dead battery and putting the charged battery in place.....

 

[Beowulf]

Pardon the ignorance....but....

I ran like that for over a year; relocated the windscreen washer jug, installed the 2nd battery tray (from an FJ80), and kept a charged battery in that location. Only needed it once and brought out the jumper cables. That was before the fridge and some other accessories though.

A properly installed dual battery system will keep the aux battery charged and will allow you to "self-jump" with the flip of a switch; typically a cabin mounted switch.

-B-

 

[IdahoDoug]

Lots of auto parts stores sell a jump start device that's much smaller, cheaper and lighter to store than a full second battery. I've seen them for around $20. They're good for a jump or two then need to be recharged. Honestly tho - a new quality lead acid battery has been providing reliable starts for automobiles for a long, long time. If you have special needs consider the investment but in the absence of that, you're either going to spend a lot of money for a good system or have a lot of headaches with a home made rigup - pick one.

DougM

 

[CappyKD]

The Wrangler NW kit comes with everything you need including the FJ80 second battery tray, hold down, Slee Washer bottle relo kit and all the 2 gauge cables, connectors soloniod and in dash controls. It's around $599. I am positive that you could piece it all together cheaper, but a complete kit is nice. Another advantage of the Wrangler setup is the ability to combine the batteries for winching etc.

 

[SOCALFJ]

Im surprised im still alive. I always just connect my + with their + and my - with their - Been doing it this way my whole life. I've never found a special ground location on anything. What exactly is the difference between a stationary piece vs the discharged battery - stud?

 

[Beowulf]

Im surprised im still alive. I always just connect my + with their + and my - with their - Been doing it this way my whole life. I've never found a special ground location on anything. What exactly is the difference between a stationary piece vs the discharged battery - stud?

A battery can produce explosive gasses, especially when heavily discharged. The preferred way of connecting is listed in the OM pages above. The reason to use the engine hook is that it gets that final connection away from the discharged battery because that is when the sparks can fly and potentially explode the discharged battery. It doesn't happen often but when it does, severe injury can result.

Thinking about things like battery acid in your eyes will tend to make one a bit more cautious. Like everyone else, I have attached to the battery terminals but when I have a good ground part that is a good distance from the battery yet still within reach of the battery cables.... then I use it.

-B-

 

[SOCALFJ]

So it's the distance your keeping away. Gotcha. And here i thought all along the positive was the one to watch out for.

 

[CappyKD]

If you put the ground on first then the positive would still be dangerous. You need to put the positive on then the negative to a ground away from the battery. It the second jumper cable that will cause the spark reguardless of if it is positive or negative.

 

[TrickyT]

Maybe it's just me, but unless you have a winch and/or spend a bit of time camping and using power accessories a quality single battery is plenty of power and you'll spend a third or less on it vs two batteries and the wiring and switches for a dual battery setup. Maybe add $15 to order an alternator brush set from Dan and pop it in to be sure you're getting full output since your alternator may be 15 years old now.

You can jam a pretty good sized quality lead acid battery in that tray. Just another viewpoint.

DougM

x2. A single large dual-purpose deep-cycle/starting battery offers a lot of utility and saves $300 or more in parts over a dual battery setup, not to mention your time doing the install. And if you do find yourself out in the boonies a lot and want some insurance in case your battery dies, then just bring along a booster battery like one of these: http://www.mytoolstore.com/clore/booster.html

 

[Romer]

I don't see you need a dual battery either. They are nice to have, but I don't think needed for your application.

Cappy - you own stock in that company? Sure its a good Dual battery setup, but everything you said it can do the other systems do as well. That price seems pretty high even for a kit. Have you posted your setup in the FAQ thread on Dual Batteries. There you show your installed system and why yoyu selected yours and then the reader can review yours along with others to make a decision.