I need info on duel batteries. At the moment I have a 95 amp battery in my avan poptop it also has a solar panel attached on the roof I would like to change this to two 105 amps ones joined together the reason being is that i have them at home one to power my electric motor and the other one is in my 4x4 both being 12 months old. So then I can use the 95 amp one for my elec motor. I like to think that i can do this BUT im just asking to confirm it
Regards Ray (new newbies)
oldbobsbus said
03:49 PM Jun 18, 2014
Hi Ray and welcome to the forum of knowledge..
They would need to be sealed batteries if you intend to put them inside your van..
other than that so long as you have room there shouldn't be a problem..
just be sure when you have them all connected together you take the power out of the Neg - on one battery and the Pos + on the other..
Phil C said
12:19 PM Jun 21, 2014
I agree with oldbobsbus. The only stipulation I can recall from my RAAF days is the batteries must have the same AH capacity and connected in parallel (ie. pos to pos and neg to neg) be very careful when installing them.
Safe travels
RLLakeside said
09:36 AM Jun 22, 2014
Thanks Bob & Phil you have confirmed what I thought.Also I read someone else who had put a link to a sparkie in england which confirmed my thinking.
Regards Ray
Dougwe said
12:45 PM Jun 22, 2014
Sorry but duell battery system's are a new thing to me, never really been interested but since getting the new tug I have started thinking duell battery. However, a couple of comments in this thread have confused me and that's not hard.
I thought when connecting two batteries together you must have same AH size and as close to same age batteries then connect possitive to possitive and negative to negative, with heavy duty cable of course. If I am reading comments in this thread right one says one way and another says another way, HELP me please but don't hurt and make it simple PLEASE.
I have also seen on-line that you can fit it on top of the rear left wheel arch in the back tub of the RG Colorado Crew Cab.
-- Edited by Dougwe on Sunday 22nd of June 2014 12:46:50 PM
RLLakeside said
06:54 PM Jun 22, 2014
Yes you are right doug.My way and phils way is best You can add another one anywhere it will fit , Best you do it through a isolater. Check tjm or arb to see if they do a battery tray for the engine bay if they do its best that you put it there.
try www.smartgauge.com.uk/batt_con.html Regards Ray
oldbobsbus said
07:13 PM Jun 22, 2014
I may have confused you Mr Doug...
The batteries need to be connected as everyone else said, it is just better to be sure you are using both batteries by taking OFF from different batteries that way you are making sure you are pulling off both batteries and not just the closest one as someone found out here a couple of months ago becoz they had the batteries tooo far apart and the connecting cables weren't doing their job..
PeterD said
10:02 PM Jun 22, 2014
To put it succinctly, you connect the positive of one battery to the positive of the other. Likewise you connect the negative of one battery to the negative of the other. Use fairly heavy cables to do this.
When you connect the array to the system you connect the supply positive lead to the positive terminal on one battery. You then connect the negative lead to the negative terminal of the other battery.
All the respondents are saying this or part of this.
-- Edited by PeterD on Sunday 22nd of June 2014 10:04:26 PM
Phil C said
05:44 PM Jun 23, 2014
I have a dual battery system in our caravan. I replaced the 8mm squared cable between the batteries with 2 x 10mm cables, thus decreasing the voltage drop (the length is 300mm), not happy that the van builder chose the smaller cable diameter.
In my mind the heavier the cable the less volt drop which will reduce the heat effect etc.
A fact of life is that the two batteries will never be exactly the same so one will charge the other by a small amount. No big deal as long as the AH capacity, voltage and I would say brand are the same.
Be very careful with the leads when you hook them up. Do one at a time wont cause a short that way.
Safe travels..
oldtrack123 said
12:06 PM Jun 26, 2014
RLLakeside wrote:
Hi guys
I need info on duel batteries. At the moment I have a 95 amp battery in my avan poptop it also has a solar panel attached on the roof I would like to change this to two 105 amps ones joined together the reason being is that i have them at home one to power my electric motor and the other one is in my 4x4 both being 12 months old. So then I can use the 95 amp one for my elec motor. I like to think that i can do this BUT im just asking to confirm it
Regards Ray (new newbies)
HI Ray
No problem with that as long as you parallell conect the two 105Ahr batterries
That means connecting the Negs together & the Pos together with short heavy cables of the same length
Then preferablly taking the load pos from one battery & the load Neg from the other battery
This is not essential with light loads as you will probably have, but is GOOD practise!
While battery suppliers suggest changing all the batterries to the same size , type ,brand ,[It is good for their profits]
in practical terms there is usually no problem with connecting different Ahr , aged or brand batterries in PARALLELL.
It is just that the aged battery may failure & pull the other battery down with it .
BUt that can /has happened with even all new batterries.
However, being the same type is more important ,the batterries should have the same charging requirements.[fully charged voltage,
Float voltage]
PeterQ
RLLakeside said
08:49 AM Jun 27, 2014
Thanks Peter. All info seems to say the same and I am grateful for all of it.Regards Ray
ozjohn said
12:10 PM Jun 27, 2014
When you connect a new battery with an old one the one with the lower charge (usually the older) will decrease the charge in the other so as they both hold the same charge. You must also remember that the weight of the extra battery will have to be included in the vans payload allowance. Ozjohn.
03_troopy said
03:06 PM Jun 28, 2014
oldtrack123 wrote:
RLLakeside wrote:
Hi guys
I need info on duel batteries. At the moment I have a 95 amp battery in my avan poptop it also has a solar panel attached on the roof I would like to change this to two 105 amps ones joined together the reason being is that i have them at home one to power my electric motor and the other one is in my 4x4 both being 12 months old. So then I can use the 95 amp one for my elec motor. I like to think that i can do this BUT im just asking to confirm it
Regards Ray (new newbies)
HI Ray
No problem with that as long as you parallell conect the two 105Ahr batterries
That means connecting the Negs together & the Pos together with short heavy cables of the same length
Then preferablly taking the load pos from one battery & the load Neg from the other battery
This is not essential with light loads as you will probably have, but is GOOD practise!
While battery suppliers suggest changing all the batterries to the same size , type ,brand ,[It is good for their profits]
in practical terms there is usually no problem with connecting different Ahr , aged or brand batterries in PARALLELL.
It is just that the aged battery may failure & pull the other battery down with it .
BUt that can /has happened with even all new batterries.
However, being the same type is more important ,the batterries should have the same charging requirements.[fully charged voltage,
Float voltage]
PeterQ
What he said 100%
oldtrack123 said
04:15 PM Jun 28, 2014
oldtrack123 wrote:
HI Ray
No problem with that as long as you parallell conect the two 105Ahr batterries
That means connecting the Negs together & the Pos together with short heavy cables of the same length
Then preferablly taking the load pos from one battery & the load Neg from the other battery
This is not essential with light loads as you will probably have, but is GOOD practise!
While battery suppliers suggest changing all the batterries to the same size , type ,brand ,[It is good for their profits]
in practical terms there is usually no problem with connecting different Ahr , aged or brand batterries in PARALLELL.
It is just that the aged battery may failure & pull the other battery down with it .
BUt that can /has happened with even all new batterries.
However, being the same type is more important ,the batterries should have the same charging requirements.[fully charged voltage,
Float voltage]
PeterQ
HI
I should add to the above
Unless one battery is faulty [ shorted cell, high self discharging , 0r not fully charging what ever capacity it has ],It wll not pull the good battery's capacity down to it's capacity level.
This can occur IF one battery is faulty, shorted or has an internal leakge above normal.
PeterQ
-- Edited by oldtrack123 on Saturday 28th of June 2014 04:15:47 PM
Hi guys
I need info on duel batteries. At the moment I have a 95 amp battery in my avan poptop it also has a solar panel attached on the roof I would like to change this to two 105 amps ones joined together the reason being is that i have them at home one to power my electric motor and the other one is in my 4x4 both being 12 months old. So then I can use the 95 amp one for my elec motor. I like to think that i can do this BUT im just asking to confirm it
Regards Ray (new newbies)
Hi Ray and welcome to the forum of knowledge..
They would need to be sealed batteries if you intend to put them inside your van..
other than that so long as you have room there shouldn't be a problem..
just be sure when you have them all connected together you take the power out of the Neg - on one battery and the Pos + on the other..
Safe travels
Regards Ray
Sorry but duell battery system's are a new thing to me, never really been interested but since getting the new tug I have started thinking duell battery. However, a couple of comments in this thread have confused me and that's not hard.
I thought when connecting two batteries together you must have same AH size and as close to same age batteries then connect possitive to possitive and negative to negative, with heavy duty cable of course. If I am reading comments in this thread right one says one way and another says another way, HELP me please but don't hurt and make it simple PLEASE.
I have also seen on-line that you can fit it on top of the rear left wheel arch in the back tub of the RG Colorado Crew Cab.
-- Edited by Dougwe on Sunday 22nd of June 2014 12:46:50 PM
try www.smartgauge.com.uk/batt_con.html Regards Ray
I may have confused you Mr Doug...
The batteries need to be connected as everyone else said, it is just better to be sure you are using both batteries by taking OFF from different batteries that way you are making sure you are pulling off both batteries and not just the closest one as someone found out here a couple of months ago becoz they had the batteries tooo far apart and the connecting cables weren't doing their job..
To put it succinctly, you connect the positive of one battery to the positive of the other. Likewise you connect the negative of one battery to the negative of the other. Use fairly heavy cables to do this.
When you connect the array to the system you connect the supply positive lead to the positive terminal on one battery. You then connect the negative lead to the negative terminal of the other battery.
All the respondents are saying this or part of this.
-- Edited by PeterD on Sunday 22nd of June 2014 10:04:26 PM
In my mind the heavier the cable the less volt drop which will reduce the heat effect etc.
A fact of life is that the two batteries will never be exactly the same so one will charge the other by a small amount. No big deal as long as the AH capacity, voltage and I would say brand are the same.
Be very careful with the leads when you hook them up. Do one at a time wont cause a short that way.
Safe travels..
HI Ray
No problem with that as long as you parallell conect the two 105Ahr batterries
That means connecting the Negs together & the Pos together with short heavy cables of the same length
Then preferablly taking the load pos from one battery & the load Neg from the other battery
This is not essential with light loads as you will probably have, but is GOOD practise!
While battery suppliers suggest changing all the batterries to the same size , type ,brand ,[It is good for their profits]
in practical terms there is usually no problem with connecting different Ahr , aged or brand batterries in PARALLELL.
It is just that the aged battery may failure & pull the other battery down with it .
BUt that can /has happened with even all new batterries.
However, being the same type is more important ,the batterries should have the same charging requirements.[fully charged voltage,
Float voltage]
PeterQ
When you connect a new battery with an old one the one with the lower charge (usually the older) will decrease the charge in the other so as they both hold the same charge.
You must also remember that the weight of the extra battery will have to be included in the vans payload allowance.
Ozjohn.
What he said 100%
HI
I should add to the above
Unless one battery is faulty [ shorted cell, high self discharging , 0r not fully charging what ever capacity it has ],It wll not pull the good battery's capacity down to it's capacity level.
This can occur IF one battery is faulty, shorted or has an internal leakge above normal.
PeterQ
-- Edited by oldtrack123 on Saturday 28th of June 2014 04:15:47 PM