Connecting a second 12VDC battery
How is the second battery electrically connected? Just paralleled? Do you add a disconnect for each for quicker charging one at a time? Thinking another battery would be better for boondocking.
Forum Discussion
SoundGuy wrote:BFL13 wrote:
Use the diagram shown above. Note that you get more than twice the time at the same amps draw by having that second battery used together. So don't use them one at a time. (Peukert works for you!)
OTOH if the OP's original battery has been in use for awhile but he still wants the benefit of having two batteries available for dry camping then he should use them separately to avoid the old original from degrading the newly purchased battery. He can easily accomplish this by wiring the batteries with a dual battery disconnect switch such as the Blue Sea m-Series 6007.
True. However you can get away with using two dissimilar batteries together for a few days camping, but then be sure to separate them at home to recharge each to its own True Full.
Once each is full, the safe thing is to also Float them separately. Time2roll says the single float charger will supply enough to each to "float all boats", but other advice warns about eddy currents even so. I don't know how that really works, so I opt for separate floats to be safe.
