Genesis Gen 3 dual battery, Redarc, lithium third battery question

[John@HankTheTankJKU]

Hello,

I have a 2016 Jeep JKU that I am currently rebuilding into an overlanding rig. I have a Genesis Offroad Gen 3 dual battery kit (two agm 34 batteries) with a switch Pro unit for my offroad lights, air compressor and lockers. My question is if I want to add a 100ahr lithium battery in the cargo bay as a as a house battery behind a with a Redarc redvision system, is this possible? will I still be able to keep/use the Genesis system? Before anyone comments: I should eliminate the Genesis or how much better Lithium is over agm..I already know that. I am keeping the Dual agms because I live in the Ohio and it get very cold here for a third of the year, I need the reliability of an agm startup battery and functionality of my off-road locker, winch and comms and aux lights ALL the time. Unfortunately, my current location prevents just using lithium as my 2nd battery. My goal is to power my overlanding gear (fridge, camp lights, camp comms, mobile device chargers) when I go on multi day trips. I want to be able to use my main battery, solar or shore power to charge/rechard the lithium battery via the redarc. It would aslo be nice if I could totally decouple the redarc connection from the primary vehicle battery connected to the (Genesis Gen 3).

Thanks in advance.
John

 

[Ethan N]

I do believe the ideal setup would not be to add any batteries, but to throw a solar panel on the roof and connect it to your dual battery setup. When people are looking into power out in the field, the options are generally solar setup, or dual battery. Your dual batteries and the software in the wiring are designed to run all of your needs until it drops to a low but still safe level to start your engine still. Adding a solar panel will extend that ability. You do not need to add a whole nother battery.

Hope this helps you decide what to do. If you're bent on adding a battery to the back, just run it as a totally separate setup. Then you won't have to worry about touching your existing stuff at all. Options are out there, but I think you're already sitting in a great spot for power with the dual kit.

 

[socal66]

I have the same Genesis dual battery setup in my Jeep JL with two AGM group 25 batteries. I have two circuits to my cargo area from the secondary battery bus bar. One circuit provides power to a number of USB outlets, a Dometic fridge, and also a 50 amp Bluetti portable battery and the other provides solar power back to the secondary battery through an inexpensive PWM controller (<$20 Amazon) and around 100W of panels.

I find that this setup is more than adequate to meet my needs of keeping my fridge running and providing power to all my USB-based battery chargers and accessories. After a night at camp the vehicle will typically fully charge both batteries in a half hour or so the next day. If the Bluetti needs charging (it is only typically used by my wife for an electric blanket in the tent at night) that is usually done in a couple hours but that is due to the charging rate limitation for the Bluetti and not the Genesis setup. The Genesis handles the charging so efficiently from the alternator that the solar charging really isn’t necessary in most cases unless I’m staying put in one location for a couple of days.

I think that adding another power manager such as the Redarc would be unnecessary and would provide more complexity without much or any benefit.

 

[John@HankTheTankJKU]

I have the same Genesis dual battery setup in my Jeep JL with two AGM group 25 batteries. I have two circuits to my cargo area from the secondary battery bus bar. One circuit provides power to a number of USB outlets, a Dometic fridge, and also a 50 amp Bluetti portable battery and the other provides solar power back to the secondary battery through an inexpensive PWM controller (<$20 Amazon) and around 100W of panels.

I find that this setup is more than adequate to meet my needs of keeping my fridge running and providing power to all my USB-based battery chargers and accessories. After a night at camp the vehicle will typically fully charge both batteries in a half hour or so the next day. If the Bluetti needs charging (it is only typically used by my wife for an electric blanket in the tent at night) that is usually done in a couple hours but that is due to the charging rate limitation for the Bluetti and not the Genesis setup. The Genesis handles the charging so efficiently from the alternator that the solar charging really isn’t necessary in most cases unless I’m staying put in one location for a couple of days.

I think that adding another power manager such as the Redarc would be unnecessary and would provide more complexity without much or any benefit.

Thank you for info that was helpful. Which Dometic are you using? I am planning on getting the CFX3 75dz

 

[socal66]

Thank you for info that was helpful. Which Dometic are you using? I am planning on getting the CFX3 75dz

Dometic fridges are pretty good and one of the better one’s in terms of power usage so that will also help with managing your overall power requirements. I have the CFX3 35 as that is the best sized for what I need and the cargo space I have available. We had someone in our group with the 75 in a Landcruiser and he shortly had to trade down to a smaller unit as it took up most of his cargo space. You may want to measure out the overall dimensions of that fridge vs. your cargo space and everything else you need to stuff back there as our rear cargo areas are smaller than that Landcruiser.

 

[HKLover]

I have a Genesis Dual in my '17 JKU and I recently added a Redarc BCDC1225 in the rear area and installed a 50ah LifePo4 battery as well. What I did was I removed the factory sub from the cubby area and installed the battery in there and I also relocated my ARB Twin compressor in that spot as well. I did it using American Adventure Labs stuff. It'll be easier for to just put the links here than it will be to explain it.

Jeep JKU Cargo Compressor and Auxiliary Battery Mount - American Adventure Lab

See our “Lead Time” page for current and estimated Lead Times. NOTE: The battery that we have used to fit in this mount is the Odyssey PC950. And now the Type B Batteries. Utilizing all of the space in a JKU is a tough task. Most often, the space in the little cubby hole below the cargo floor [...]

americanadventurelab.com

Jeep JK ARB Compressor Remote Kit - American Adventure Lab

On-board air is an absolute necessity for a properly equipped off road vehicle. The engineers at Jeep unknowingly created the perfect location to store a dual ARB compressor. The space beneath the floor of the rear cargo area in the Jeep JKU provides a dry, secure, and sound deadened space to...

americanadventurelab.com

Wiring Kit - Rear Mount - American Adventure Lab

See our “Lead Time” page for current and estimated Lead Times. The Dual ARB compressor pulls 55 amps at maximum. Due to the long run (from cranking battery) we recommend going 4 gauge wire. 4 gauge wire is rated at 70 amps. This gives you a few extra amps for low draw rear mounted accessories [...]

americanadventurelab.com

I also added a cut off switch in between the main batteries under the hood and the Redarc charger. I leave my Jeep parked for long periods when I am out of town working. I also added a circuit breaker in between the LifrPo4 battery and the fused panel that I can open to turn off power to the fused panel.

My LifePo4 battery mainly runs my ARB50 fridge that I have mounted on the AAL Flip and Slide and I also have two 6" AAL drawers in the back.

I DO NOT run the ARB Twin air compressor off the LifePo4 battery. That runs off the Genesis under the hood.

 

[John@HankTheTankJKU]

I have a Genesis Dual in my '17 JKU and I recently added a Redarc BCDC1225 in the rear area and installed a 50ah LifePo4 battery as well. What I did was I removed the factory sub from the cubby area and installed the battery in there and I also relocated my ARB Twin compressor in that spot as well. I did it using American Adventure Labs stuff. It'll be easier for to just put the links here than it will be to explain it.

Jeep JKU Cargo Compressor and Auxiliary Battery Mount - American Adventure Lab

See our “Lead Time” page for current and estimated Lead Times. NOTE: The battery that we have used to fit in this mount is the Odyssey PC950. And now the Type B Batteries. Utilizing all of the space in a JKU is a tough task. Most often, the space in the little cubby hole below the cargo floor [...]

americanadventurelab.com

Jeep JK ARB Compressor Remote Kit - American Adventure Lab

On-board air is an absolute necessity for a properly equipped off road vehicle. The engineers at Jeep unknowingly created the perfect location to store a dual ARB compressor. The space beneath the floor of the rear cargo area in the Jeep JKU provides a dry, secure, and sound deadened space to...

americanadventurelab.com

Wiring Kit - Rear Mount - American Adventure Lab

See our “Lead Time” page for current and estimated Lead Times. The Dual ARB compressor pulls 55 amps at maximum. Due to the long run (from cranking battery) we recommend going 4 gauge wire. 4 gauge wire is rated at 70 amps. This gives you a few extra amps for low draw rear mounted accessories [...]

americanadventurelab.com

I also added a cut off switch in between the main batteries under the hood and the Redarc charger. I leave my Jeep parked for long periods when I am out of town working. I also added a circuit breaker in between the LifrPo4 battery and the fused panel that I can open to turn off power to the fused panel.

My LifePo4 battery mainly runs my ARB50 fridge that I have mounted on the AAL Flip and Slide and I also have two 6" AAL drawers in the back.

I DO NOT run the ARB Twin air compressor off the LifePo4 battery. That runs off the Genesis under the hood.

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@HKLover I love the setup. I have a goose gear platform, I wonder if that would affect the performance of the arb or the battery.

 

[HKLover]

@HKLover I love the setup. I have a goose gear platform, I wonder if that would affect the performance of the arb or the battery.

I don't know anything about how the Goose Gear system mounts into the back of your Jeep, but if you look at the pic that shows the ARB and battery in the subwoofer cubby, you will see the AAL crossbars are raised a little bit off the deck allowing for a little extra room for that 50ah battery. Originally, I ordered the AAL kit for that with a bracket to fit a 30ah battery, but the 30ah battery that AAL recommended isn't made anymore, so the mounting bracket was worthless. I ended up buying the 50ah and had it held in temporarily with some velcro straps till I can make an actual bracket. The other thing about the AAL mounting system is that it has a lot of "L track" holes in the mounting plates and there is plenty of space around the mounting platform for air to circulate.