Battery Suggestions..?

[Toxic4x4…]

Howdy All,

MY Overlander is currently set up with dual batteries however their hooked in series, aka dual starter’s… I’m looking to setting it up with the Starter / Accessory I’d be interested in battery suggestions?

Thanks in Advance…

 

[KILO19]

I went to walmart and got there super start AGM...put in a battery isolator. alternator charges the main battery then when voltage reaches above 13.6v it feeds power to the secondary. Works like a charm. Got the kit from amazon, and was a breeze to install.

 

[KILO19]

Unrelated...my alternator quit on me. I upgraded to a 130amp and haven't looked back. (was the original and had 245k miles on it.)

 

[smritte]

Your running 24 volts to your starter? With dual starters?
What motor do you run for that?

As for batteries, I prefer AGM with a basic isolator. My AGM preference is Odyssey. AGM's will tolerate more than lithium's. Lead acid is good and will tolerate more than AGM.

 

[KILO19]

Lead acid is good and will tolerate more than AGM.

and cheaper too. but my secondary battery is inside the cab...so that wasn't gonna work.

 

[smritte]

but my secondary battery is inside the cab...so that wasn't gonna work.

Some manufactures put lead acid battery's inside the cab. Their in a box, vented. Because of my dealings with batteries, if I put one inside I still would isolate and vent it. I know its not necessary on lithium and AGM but, old habits are hard to kill.

 

[grubworm]

my tundra has a shell on it and i have a separate battery in the back isolated from the truck battery. its an AGM that i charge off a roof mount solar panel and has done great for 2 yrs straight.

im scared of lithium and fires, so i just bought a lithium battery to go with an off-grid cabin i just built. it will be a ways from the cabin in case of problems. supposedly the LiFePO4 batteries are safer and better. ill know after using it for a while...but as far as having a battery inside, id go with AGM

 

[Viking1204]

You can get used lithium batteries off Ebay fairly cheap, well I did a couple years ago. I have a Valance 138ah Lithium battery that has been great. I keep it topped off with a Redarc DC - DC charger and a 100W solar panel and never had a problem with it. I built a battery box for it using a Dewalt toolbox.

 

[M Rose]

Your running 24 volts to your starter? With dual starters?
What motor do you run for that?

As for batteries, I prefer AGM with a basic isolator. My AGM preference is Odyssey. AGM's will tolerate more than lithium's. Lead acid is good and will tolerate more than AGM.

I think he means “Dual Starters” as in dual starting batteries. Also as most non experienced electricians gets confused between parallel and series wiring… he has them wired in parallel meaning positive to positive and negative to negative.

When looking at a battery isolator, look for one that has a bypass option so that in the event your main starting battery fails you have an emergency start solution. Typically I don’t use a commercial battery isolator, I make my own using a solenoid designed for this task set up on a three position toggle switch. Middle position is off and only the start battery is energized to the trucks stock electrical system, position 1 allows the solenoid to be triggered by the alternator to allow charging to both the auxiliary battery and main battery, position 2 continuously holds the solenoid closed allowing the auxiliary battery to combine with the main battery for jump starting. This system is easy to set up, works with all vehicles, and uses common parts that can be sourced easily world wide.

Batteries: I run the Walmart Super Start AGMs for my starting battery and a Walmart Marine/RVStart Deep Cycle for my secondary under hood battery… I also have a complete stand alone secondary battery system consisting of two 100 Ah LiFePO4 batteries mounted inside my rig with a insulation and an RV tank heater connected to a BMS, Charge Controller, and solar. The Stand alone system runs my coms gear and my devices such as phones, tablet, laptop, and other non RF generating devices. All of my lights, fridge, inverter, potable water pump, and other RF generators run off the Auxiliary under hood battery. This gives me “clean” power to my devices, a way to isolate my auxiliary devices from the vehicle.

 

[smritte]

I think he means “Dual Starters” as in dual starting batteries. Also as most non experienced electricians gets confused between parallel and series wiring

I assumed that but, never say cant happen. You are right about terminology though. That why I ask. It did get me thinking about why and how I would set it up like that. We ran 12 volts to our 6 volt starters in our Bugs years ago, it can be done. If the OP was running a higher voltage, I would have had him research high torque starters.

 

[MOAK]

I’d also mention that to extend the life of AGM batteries that it is a good idea to top them off on a regular basis. I use a smart charger to do this with my pair of AGMs. I’m not sure about modern vehicle alternators but my alternator does not crank out 14.5 volts. When out in the field, my solar charge controller gives em the full 14.5vlts. Topping off the AGMs will extend their lifespan. I got 6 years out of my last pair.

 

[M Rose]

I’d also mention that to extend the life of AGM batteries that it is a good idea to top them off on a regular basis. I use a smart charger to do this with my pair of AGMs. I’m not sure about modern vehicle alternators but my alternator does not crank out 14.5 volts. When out in the field, my solar charge controller gives em the full 14.5vlts. Topping off the AGMs will extend their lifespan. I got 6 years out of my last pair.

Modern alternators put out 14.1 to 14.9 volts… a modern alternator is any alternator with an internal voltage regulator. If your alternator is putting out less than 13.8 volts you have a problem with either the voltage regulator, stator, or a ground issue.