Solar charges the house batts great, not the chassis

[jimbo2013]

how or what do I need to do to get power to trickle charge the chassis batts.

I guess the relay stops the charge between the two banks

[Reed Cundiff]

With previous redition of our rig (34 foot 5th wheel and one ton 4x4 diesel), the electric power cable in the pig tail would drain from trailer batteries to car battery (at least there was a drain unless we disconnected). Current system utilizes that cable for the rear looking video.

[Tomtall]

Our Winnebago solar panel was only wired from the factory to charge the two house batteries. I install a three way toggle switch so I can now switch to the coach/cranking battery when I feel it needs a bump of sun power I then will toggle back and leave it on the house batteries most of the time. Switch was $5 at the local hardware store. My solar panel wire was hooked up at the shuttle emergency crank solenoid. I moved that wire to my center post on the 3 way switch and ran the other two switch leads to each dedicated battery bank. Works slick.

[jackfish]

Trick L Start will keep the chassis battery charged.

The Blue Sky SB3024iL solar controller has a 2 amp charger that will maintain a chassis battery.

[jimbo2013]

So the only that charges the engine batteries is the Alternator?????

I researched that one......found


Both the BatteryMinder and Trik-L-Charge are both good units that accomplish the same thing but go about it in different ways.
The BatteryMinder has an advantage in that it uses pulse charge technology. This keeps your battery plates from sulfating and will even clean up a slighty sulfated battery. It requires an AC outlet to plug into.
The Trik-L-Start doesn't give you the pulse charge technology but it will keep your battery charged. It's biggest benefit is it's very simple to install. You simply connect to both battery banks and it's smart enough to know when your shore power is charging the house batteries and it steals some of that power and sends it to the chassis batteries. When the shore power goes away it breaks the connection between the two to prevent the chassis batteries from discharging into the house system.
One thing to consider with the BatteryMinder is that if you store the unit without power, the BatteryMinder will still be hooked up to your batteries It will gradually draw them down over time so you need to disconnect these leads. I installed a relay on mine that was powered by the AC shore power outlet. The relay's contacts disconnected the BatteryMinder's 12 volt leads from the batteries whenever the shore power was not present so now it's all automatic for me.
They both only work when AC power is present and technically the BatteryMinder has an advantage in that the pulse technology helps "clean" the plates as well as keep your battery charged. If you don't mind the extra installation work the BatteryMinder is best, otherwise the Trik-L-Start will do the job with a quick and easy install.

Battery minder cost less also

[BendOR]

Originally Posted by jimbo2013

So the only that charges the engine batteries is the Alternator?????

I researched that one......found


Both the BatteryMinder and Trik-L-Charge are both good units that accomplish the same thing but go about it in different ways.
The BatteryMinder has an advantage in that it uses pulse charge technology. This keeps your battery plates from sulfating and will even clean up a slighty sulfated battery.

...

They both only work when AC power is present and technically the BatteryMinder has an advantage in that the pulse technology helps "clean" the plates as well as keep your battery charged. If you don't mind the extra installation work the BatteryMinder is best, otherwise the Trik-L-Start will do the job with a quick and easy install.

Battery minder cost less also

Sulfating the chassis/start batts usually is not a concern, they are not deep cycle batts.

Also, the Trik-L-Start is all DC. It does not need AC to operate. It will work off your converter when on shore power/genset and off your solar controller when either are charging the batts.

Ultra Trik-L-Start, Starting Battery Charger/Maintainer for Gas or Diesel Engines - RV Power Supply

[jimbo2013]

Originally Posted by BendOR

Sulfating the chassis/start batts usually is not a concern, they are not deep cycle batts.

Also, the Trik-L-Start is all DC. It does not need AC to operate. It will work off your converter when on shore power/genset and off your solar controller when either are charging the batts.

Ultra Trik-L-Start, Starting Battery Charger/Maintainer for Gas or Diesel Engines - RV Power Supply

Sulfating is an issue in any battery,

the Battery Minder may work better for me with solar and AC always avail.

[airmon]

If you switch from a diode type isolator to a relay type isolator, when your house batteries are full, the relay will kick in and charge the chassis batteries as well.

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-Dual-Bat.../dp/B00400IYTK

[Uncle Dave]

Take a look at the ctek d250 and smart pass.

Is the smartest DC charging device Ive seen for medium duty applications.

It gets more our of your alternators than they do on their own, and when on solar alternates between filling the chassis bank and the house bank.

Uncle Dave