second battery

[Road_Phantom]

I'd like to add another battery to my trailer, however, after giving up room for a sway control and distribution hitch along with the standard electric jack from the manufacturer, there isn't any room left for the second battery. Is there another option, like inside the front storage compartment. Has anyone done this, or should I have a two tier bracket made so that another batter can sit over the old one?

[westend]

Easy way--Either extend the battery platform on the tongue and position your second battery there or modify the tongue area to position the second battery.

Hard way--Mount two batteries inside the storage area. The area around the batteries needs to be enclosed and ventilated. The bottom of the enclosure should be able to withstand acid. Your battery wiring will need to be changed to reach the new location. You may wish to install a slide so that battery maintenance can be performed.

I have a steel box on the tongue of my rig, big enough to hold 2 grp 31 batteries. I chose to install batteries inside the cabin for a few reasons. I went through the steps listed above to do that.

[myredracer]

The photo shows where I relocated our battery to in our last TT using a sealed & vented battery box. With the way the bulge was in the front cap, the battery did not intrude much into the pass-through. I also added some additional storage for hoses and other stuff. There would have been space for two batteries. Not the greatest of locations for checking the electrolyte level in the battery. I don't think I would use this location again and would look for a spot that is more accessible.

The MTS Products box I used had the upper and lower halves attached together with nuts & bolts. A HUGE PITA to take the lid off to check the battery. The latest version of this box appears to have integral clips instead.

You haven't posted a pic of what your front tongue area looks like. Perhaps you could cut out the angle iron supports, drop them down and weld it back up? I don't think lowering the batteries around 2-4 inches would be an issue.

SLA batteries must be in properly sealed and vented battery box. If you put this box in a confined space that can heat up, this space should be ventilated so that the battery(s) do not overheat. If you go to a dealer's lot and look at FW trailers, you will see a sealed and vented battery box in the front storage compartment. All the ones I have seen so far are the MTS products box and have an exhaust vent and intake at the bottom. This is how RV manufacturers do a sealed & vented box with SLA batteries and it's a good model to base your own design on.

AGM type batteries *can* off-gas if overcharged and it is recommended that they go in a sealed and vented battery box. Many don't bother, but I'd rather be cautious. If I relocate batteries inside again, I would most definitely use sealed batteries so you don't need to periodically check the electrolyte level in them.

I've read about a few owners that have mounted batteries underneath their camper frame next to the axles. Have not seen photos and don't know if this is a good idea or not.

[Community Alumni]

travisej wrote:
I do believe if you get the glass mat type batteries you can use them inside a storage compartment or even in the trailer because they dont boil or give off gas when charging. Maybe someone with more knowledge with this type wil chime in.

Sealed AGM's won't off gas during normal charging, but will in catastrophic situations like severe overcharging. Although the batteries are sealed, there's still a venting system in them to relieve excess pressure from overcharging. So providing some venting is still a good idea, although much isn't needed. An area with some air movement should be enough. They're generally considered safe for indoor environments. Really regular lead acid batteries could be used indoors as well. If you could isolate the batteries from any ignition source then it would be ok. The batteries can just vent to the open air. With the right precautions, batteries really aren't as dangerous as people think.

[poncho62]

I have a spot for a 2nd battery in the engine bay of my pickup. I added it there, tieing it in to the trailer charging wire. Also installed a isolating solenoid, so it cant drain the truck battery when we are parked and using it. It doesnt help with boondocking unless the truck is connected, but is great if we stop overnight somewhere. If boondocking and the trailer battery gets low, I would have a charged battery I could swap out

[mbopp]

Two batteries wouldn't fit in the factory, below the frame rack in the TT. I welded up a longer rack that sits on top of the frame rails:

http://i1114.photobucket.com/albums/k530/starmaster1953/North%20Trail%2021FBS/100_1342_zps33bffe81.j...

[NY_RVer]

I added a second battery with no problem, just like in the second picture above. You should have plenty of room.

[travisej]

I do believe if you get the glass mat type batteries you can use them inside a storage compartment or even in the trailer because they dont boil or give off gas when charging. Maybe someone with more knowledge with this type wil chime in.

[RoyB]

Surely you add a couple of Batteries to your tongue area. Looks like plenty of room behind the propane tanks shown here.




Perhaps you can add some angle sections and extend out on both sides of the top of the tongue to fit additional batteries.

Mounting the batteries inside the enclosed area require venting for fumes and capture of fluids if they boil out on you... Not really a good idea for wet cell type batteries.

The battery fumes are very corrosive and will eat your exposed metal item very quickly..

Your best purchase is two each 6VDC golf cart batteries mounted in series to give you the 12VDC you need. Alot of folks like to mount two of these 6VDC batteries in a metal box on the trailer tongue for safe keeping. Having around 220AHs battery capacity is really nice when camping off the power grid...

Roy Ken