newbie battery and electrical question
Hi all, new to the forum, bought a 04 E350 to do a camper conversion. so i am considering the electrical things now, just got a norcold 740bb fridge that draws 3.75amp under 12v mode, planning t...
Forum Discussion
Most folks don't bother with the 12v to 12v charger and just take what they get from the vehicle alternator. It is generally not the perfect charging profile for the batteries, but is also usually not on them all the time for all the charging, so the risks are low. The biggest issue is that the voltage is a bit high for the float charge once the batteries are full, but that can easily be handled with a manual disconnect switch, if it becomes a problem. The only reason for a 12 to 12v charger is if you want multistep charging off the vehicle alternator, and you would still want to have a regular charger in place for when you were on shore power.
I would not agree that AGM batteries don't require a multistep charger. Lifeline is even recommending equalizing now. While it is true that they will charge off a single step, they will not charge the best, and not last as long. They will also not get totally full as quickly as they would with a proper multistep. If batteries aren't charged to a full 100% on a regular basis, they lose capacity fairly quickly.
The other thing that I have found out lately is that many of the major brands of chargers (Tripp-lite and Xantrex for example), have fixed charging curves in them that also can make the batteries not get as full as they should. Getting a charger that allows you set the charging stage times, and/or battery bank size appears to be necessary if you want the fastest, most complete, non damaging charging.
If you do decide to go with Trojan wet cells, there are a couple of things to consider. They will need to be well vented, you will need to maintain the water in them, the charger you get should be able to equalize them. Trojan is also recommending higher charge voltages than most chargers put out, so getting the appropriate charger is again important. We have two Trojan T145 (6 volt) and a SCS200 (12 volt) in our Roadtrek which work very well.
If you want air conditioning without shore power, your only real option is a generator. Many folks carry a Honda 2000, which are very nice generators. Of course, not all places let you run a generator all the time. If it is horrible hot, we prefer to find camping spot with shore power for that night, but have a generator also.
I would not agree that AGM batteries don't require a multistep charger. Lifeline is even recommending equalizing now. While it is true that they will charge off a single step, they will not charge the best, and not last as long. They will also not get totally full as quickly as they would with a proper multistep. If batteries aren't charged to a full 100% on a regular basis, they lose capacity fairly quickly.
The other thing that I have found out lately is that many of the major brands of chargers (Tripp-lite and Xantrex for example), have fixed charging curves in them that also can make the batteries not get as full as they should. Getting a charger that allows you set the charging stage times, and/or battery bank size appears to be necessary if you want the fastest, most complete, non damaging charging.
If you do decide to go with Trojan wet cells, there are a couple of things to consider. They will need to be well vented, you will need to maintain the water in them, the charger you get should be able to equalize them. Trojan is also recommending higher charge voltages than most chargers put out, so getting the appropriate charger is again important. We have two Trojan T145 (6 volt) and a SCS200 (12 volt) in our Roadtrek which work very well.
If you want air conditioning without shore power, your only real option is a generator. Many folks carry a Honda 2000, which are very nice generators. Of course, not all places let you run a generator all the time. If it is horrible hot, we prefer to find camping spot with shore power for that night, but have a generator also.
