Daul Battery --2014-2018

[ramv]

Anyone done a second battery? I bought mine off the showroom floor, so no dual alternators (which I would order if new but for retrofit, think a second battery is more applicable, more current for short bursts, seldom do I need it for long bursts...)

I put my air compressor under the front of the box, thinking you could do a second battery under the body as well. Would be AGM, likely use a remote solenoid to isolate (Warn rear winch kit, so plenty of amp rated) and run a two guage positive, ground to the the frame or back to the stock location.

Brain storming at this point.

[Reloaderguy]

http://forum.powerwagonregistry.org/vie ... &start=125

[Ducky's Dad]

There is a lot of room for batteries under the cab on my 3G. Two Optima Grp 34s mounted on their sides, bolted to the frame rail, tucked way up and out of the way. Controlled thru a Painless Performance solenoid/isolator, plus a Blue Seas rotary switch so that I can use one, two, or all three batteries simultaneously, or hold one in reserve while winching. Battery boxes are from Summit Racing, with some mods to strengthen them and facilitate installation.

[Idaho RC]

That is an impressive setup! Is the third main battery an Optima Grp 34s also? Aren't the batteries supposed to be in matched pairs or trios?

[Ducky's Dad]

Starting battery is an Odyssey Grp 31 Extreme Marine. Alternator is 270 amp and cables are 3/0 welding cable. It's a good idea to match all batteries if they are not isolated when the truck is not running, but not necessary if they are isolated. Mine are all AGM with similar chemistry and similar (but not identical) charging profiles. My solenoid can isolate the batteries when the truck is running, or combine them when running, or isolate/combine when the truck is shut off. I can put one or two or all three into the starting or winching circuit, and can cut one or two or all three out of the charging circuit, depending on how I set the switches. Nothing is automatic, all done with one toggle on the dash and one rotary switch under the back seat. My Indel B fridge lives on the back seat platform, and I have a double National Luna battery monitor back there, with a single monitor on the dash for the Odyssey. When this Odyssey dies, I will probably replace it with a Northstar 31, and Northstar 34s when the Optimas expire. All batteries are about 2-1/2 years old now. Planning to add a 100W solar panel to keep the Odyssey happy when truck sits for long periods, but have not yet decided what to use for the solar controller. If I were doing this again from scratch, I'd try to stuff in bigger batteries than the Grp 34s, but they made sense at the time because I had three other trucks all running Grp 34s or 34/78s, so I always had those batteries around.

[olyelr]

Starting battery is an Odyssey Grp 31 Extreme Marine. Alternator is 270 amp and cables are 3/0 welding cable. It's a good idea to match all batteries if they are not isolated when the truck is not running, but not necessary if they are isolated. Mine are all AGM with similar chemistry and similar (but not identical) charging profiles. My solenoid can isolate the batteries when the truck is running, or combine them when running, or isolate/combine when the truck is shut off. I can put one or two or all three into the starting or winching circuit, and can cut one or two or all three out of the charging circuit, depending on how I set the switches. Nothing is automatic, all done with one toggle on the dash and one rotary switch under the back seat. My Indel B fridge lives on the back seat platform, and I have a double National Luna battery monitor back there, with a single monitor on the dash for the Odyssey. When this Odyssey dies, I will probably replace it with a Northstar 31, and Northstar 34s when the Optimas expire. All batteries are about 2-1/2 years old now. Planning to add a 100W solar panel to keep the Odyssey happy when truck sits for long periods, but have not yet decided what to use for the solar controller. If I were doing this again from scratch, I'd try to stuff in bigger batteries than the Grp 34s, but they made sense at the time because I had three other trucks all running Grp 34s or 34/78s, so I always had those batteries around.

Dayum.

[ramv]

There is a lot of room for batteries under the cab on my 3G. Two Optima Grp 34s mounted on their sides, bolted to the frame rail, tucked way up and out of the way. Controlled thru a Painless Performance solenoid/isolator, plus a Blue Seas rotary switch so that I can use one, two, or all three batteries simultaneously, or hold one in reserve while winching. Battery boxes are from Summit Racing, with some mods to strengthen them and facilitate installation.

Battery box 7.jpg

Yes!

[Colibri]

Pulsetech solargizer is what you want Ducky’s Dad. I use them on equipment I don’t run frequently. You can sometimes find nos units mil surplus at a pretty decent discount. Works very well

https://www.pulsetech.net

[Ducky's Dad]

In fact, I do have a PulseTech Solargizer mounted on the cowl and connected to the starting battery. PulseTech said it would work, Odyssey said it wouldn't. Danny (aka Redman) had one on his truck and he swore by it, so I figured it was worth $100 to try it. It was a waste of money, and now I have four small holes in the cowl, so I just left it there. Gets a few questions from onlookers. Put a meter on it and it is generating current, but not enough to make a difference. Danny was using his on the OEM FLA Grp 65 battery, and I have had a lot of issues with the Odyssey Grp 31, so I think the problem is the battery rather than the Solargizer.

I also tried a couple of the Noco solar panels that sit on the dash and plug into the cigarette lighter, with no noticeable effect.

[TwinStick]

Based on the advancement in batteries, you would think someone would make an adjustable voltage output alternator, so we could run AGM batteries & charge at 14.8v or more.

[Colibri]

Darn, sorry to hear that ducky’s dad. I’ve had good luck with mine, even with an odyssey battery in the loader backhoe.

[Ducky's Dad]

you would thing someone would make an adjustable voltage output alternator, so we could run AGM batteries & charge at 14.8v or more.

Pretty sure I posted this a couple years ago, but I spoke with a Dodge dealer service manager who seemed to know his stuff, and he told me that the voltage regulator on my 3G is part of the the ECM and is not programmable, even at the dealer level. External regulator is a possibility, but would probably confuse the hell out of the truck's computer. Might be able to tweak a DC-to-DC charger like the Ctek D250S Dual to boost voltage by some percentage over whatever the ECM thinks the voltage should be, but what about overcharging? Simpler to just add a solar panel with a good controller. Odyssey tech support told me solar is a good idea with their Grp 31.

[Ducky's Dad]

To OP, my 3G has plenty of room between the radiator and the grill to mount a pair of Grp 34s. When I was fabbing the cradle for my air compressor in that location, I did a test fit with a couple of Optima 34s on the cradle to to be sure they would fit if I ever needed to do that. Took pics with one battery there, but two definitely fit, no interference with the grill or hood mechanism. Probably similar or more space in a 4G, but you'll have to pull the grill to do the install. The last pic shows the Warn compressor after installation on that cradle.

[TwinStick]

Yup, you did Ducky.

Even my Cabela's Pro Series 20 amp x 2 charger, set in AGM mode, only keeps them at 13.06 volts. It has been hooked up to 2 batteries all winter. It does have a 21 day storage recondition mode. But every time I have put the volt meter to them, it comes up 13.06 volts.

[ramv]

Thanks. Grill area looks tighter on 4G. Hesitant on air flow blocking too...

[Ducky's Dad]

Grill area looks tighter on 4G. Hesitant on air flow blocking too...

Air flow is not a problem, at least on mine. That Warn compressor is bigger than a pair of Grp 34 batteries and my truck spends most of its fun time in the AZ desert in summer and fall, with ambients up to 128F and lots of slow running on dirt roads. Truck cooling system runs at 206F all year around and has never gone above 210F, even in the summer. You'll notice an electric aux fan on the passenger side, to the left of the pics. That is switched separately from the dash, and the only times I have used it were long periods of idling in hot weather.

[Ducky's Dad]

Even my Cabela's Pro Series 20 amp x 2 charger, set in AGM mode, only keeps them at 13.06 volts.

I have the Odyssey 40amp 3-bank charger and their newest 20amp single charger, and neither one will finish my 2150 above about 12.65V OCV after a 12-hour rest. Full charge on that battery is 12.85 or higher, and the charger usually takes it to 12.85-12.86 at the end of the reconditioning cycle on the 20amp charger, but battery drops back to 12.65 by the next morning. I have gotten into the habit of running a full recondition and charge cycle on that battery every weekend that I am home, unless I'm out driving the PW. This is my third 2150 in that truck, and they have all behaved pretty much the same way, and I have gotten to be real diligent about running the recondition cycle on the battery. Sometimes if I get lazy I use the Ctek 7200 8amp charger, doesn't seem to make any difference on the 2150, but the Optimas seem to like it better.

[stooper]

Pretty sure I posted this a couple years ago, but I spoke with a Dodge dealer service manager who seemed to know his stuff, and he told me that the on voltage regulator my 3G is part of the the ECM and is not programmable, even at the dealer level. External regulator is a possibility, but would probably confuse the hell out of the truck's computer. Might be able to tweak a DC-to-DC charger like the Ctek D250S Dual to boost voltage by some percentage over whatever the ECM thinks the voltage should be, but what about overcharging? Simpler to just add a solar panel with a good controller. Odyssey tech support told me solar is a good idea with their Grp 31.

It is, silly Chrysler thing. I have seen them externally regulated, not everyone wants to buy a pcm for a simple no charge condition.

[TwinStick]

The new "smart chargers" seem to be dumb.

The old "dumb chargers" seem to be smart.

ONLY advantage I can see is the big convenience factor of the "smart chargers". Leave em hooked up indefinitely with no problems.
My manual dumb charger or my 50 amp x 3 Odyssey Optimizer are the only things that will get them to 13.6v +.