Similar to the 7pin connector on a travel trailer or 5th wheel (that runs the camper running lights, brake controllers, and actually can send a little bit of dc power to your camper, but mainly for trickle charging at a low amperage), the idea is to run another high-amp connection from the tow vehicle (on an additional / separate cable to the 7pin towing cable) which is capable of delivering much more power directly to a DC charger which is connected directly to the house batteries of the camper. Please note the temperature sensor is not included and it cannot use with Lithium batteries. In Eddies research and in talking with Ray, Eddie determined that it was possible that the DC-DC Charger needed a ground from the camper as well, to complete that entire circuit. Option: Monitoring Screen for DC-DC MPPT Battery Charger Series, Alternator Input Voltage : Traditional Alternator: 13.2-16VDC Smart Alternator (Euro 6): 12-16VDC". Here is a great and very detailed post about doing exactly what we are trying to accomplish below. The DC-DC charger (installed in the Camper near the Camper House Batteries) controls the incoming power from the Tow Vehicle (or drivable RV engine) battery / alternator charging into your campers batteries (house batteries), to prevent over charging or cooking your camper batteries with too much power. I anchored these to the wall so there would be no real stress points and tested all connections. This Renogy DC-DC On-Board Battery Charger with MPPT was specially die-cast aluminum designed for efficient and ZERO dB noiseless heat dissipation. Installing your own DC-DC Charger at home is actually incredibly simple when you follow this easy step-by-step guide! What is a DC-DC charger? Please note the D+ Ignition Cable is not included. Renogy DC-DC On-Board Battery Charger is designed to charge service batteries from a starting battery linked to an alternator or by utilizing solar panels connected directly to the unit, offering multiple charging options and ensuring your battery stay fully charged. The Renogy unit is +10 amps more than the allowable MB guidelines of 40A. This Renogy DC-DC battery charger is compatible with traditional and smart alternators. I had seen Ray over at Love Your RV do this upgrade on his 5th wheel, so we were hoping to do the same. The charger is overheating in Scotland in Mid winter and where the charger sits its about 15c and it has plenty of air. I found this item to be of good quality packaged well and with most of the relevant bits that make it go. For the RV system, The generator ensures stable power supply to the starter battery, and uses the extra power of the starter battery to supply power to the house battery. in Redstone, Colorado.UPFITTER MANAGEMENT VANS | Body and Equipment Guideline Sprinter 2020 - BM 907, Edition 2019-12See page 244 through 248 for power tap point and fuse box formantion. So if you leave the solar on on a cloudy day, yo will get 25 amps from the alternator and maybe 1 amps from the solar, you are then losing around 24 amps. The charger will overheat and go into error 6 mode when driving using the alternator. It is able to charge: Flooded, Gel, AGM, and Lithium batteries using multi-stage charging. Renogy is a well-known manufacturer of power systems. Stage 1: Boost- this offers the greatest voltage possible when charging a depleted battery. SUCCESS ! So I chopped the alligator clips, and these wires had an impossibly small #20 wire. If you have any questions regarding this product, please submit a case ! Brian, this is exactly what I am trying to do. The DC-DC battery charger isolates the input and output to prevent voltage transmission errors and interfere with house battery charging. Totally demoralizing after a long 6-7 hour overall project effort. This is a great piece of kit that is very easy to wire up. This multi-stage, multi-input battery charger can charge the house battery from a starter battery linked to the car alternator or by utilizing solar panels connected directly to the unit. That would make a nice durable coating/covering for the 2 #4 wires. 12V 40A DC to DC Battery Charger w/o Solar Input. Naturally, we needed the 40amp DC-DC charger. Meaning your panel array can be much larger when using the NLDC-40. He then passed the long positive #4 wire from the Truck battery, along this same area and passing it through the existing hole for the tailgate power. Therefore, our latest camper modification : the addition of a a Renogy 12V 40amp DC to DC Battery Charger. The key components of a solar van installation are: Solar panels: Solar panels come in two main types: monocrystalline and polycrystalline. I solved this problem by installing a switch to isolate the solar when driving and in this way the alternator side produces and charges at 50 amps. My search stopped at the Renogy with the DCC50S, not Australian made but, because it was precisely what I wanted and at a sub $350 price (at the time). They created a ticket for me and put me in the queue and told me a tech would get back ASAP. Please note the D+ Ignition Cable is not included. 480 watts solar, more than will fit on your small compact roof. 2. Renogy's DC to DC charger packs all the same capabilities as any other manufacturer's, at a lower price point. With Built-in Maximum Power Point Tracking (MPPT), Renogy DC-DC On-Board Battery Charger will charge your service batteries with maximized solar power, providing 3-phase charging (Bulk, Boost and Float) to regulate the whole charging and ensure the batteries will be accurately charged at the correct voltage levels to 100%. The DC-DC battery charger isolates the input and output to prevent voltage transmission errors and interfere with house battery charging. The DC-DC battery charger adopts the design of the DIP switch and it provides 6 charging voltage settings through five gears. Your email address will not be published. What types of battery does the charger support? It's the smart way to keep yourself fully charged and off-grid longer! In countries like the U where the sun is low or never out at all, you need to add a solar power cut off switch, this will fool the charger in thinking its nigh so will go from 50% 25 amps per 50 mode to 100% mode. I use a solar cut off switch to gain the full power when driving, this is causing an overheating issue and is the same when the solar has turned itself off when dark. There is possibly some extra demand and wear that this will put on your alternator, especially if used when not driving. The compact and robust design makes it suitable for all conditions. Bluetooth Monitoring Ready! These are very reliable connectors (used for things like powering winches and snowplows), have a nice weatherproof cover, and are rated for 50amps of power. I had to swivel the seat base in order to get a socket onto the back two bolts. It has multifunctional safety technology including over-voltage protection, over-temperature protection, and reverse polarity protection to make it safer for use. She had one priority in regards to energy usage when we were starting our camper journey, which was, above all, she would prefer to not be reliant on using a generator, ever if possible. If you have any questions regarding this product, pleasesubmit a case. The idea is, the alternator on the your tow vehicle (or in the case of a van, or drivable RV) creates extra surplus power that can be used charge the house batteries of the camper. If you have any questions regarding this product, please, 2.65 X 1.38 X 0.55 in (67.3 X 35 X 14 mm), SBPVW (Self build panel vans with windows) on Mar 23rd 2021, 12V 20A DC to DC On-Board Battery Charger, DCC50S 12V 50A DC-DC On-Board Battery Charger with MPPT(New Version), 12V 40A DC to DC On-Board Battery Charger, 12V 60A DC to DC On-Board Battery Charger, 12V 100Ah Lithium Iron Phosphate Battery w/ Bluetooth, RBC3050D1S Fuse Installation Instructions, Monitoring Screen for DC-DC MPPT Battery Charger Series manual, Alternator Input Voltage : Traditional Alternator: 13.2-16VDC Smart Alternator (Euro 6): 12-16VDC, Operating Temperature Range : -31F~149F / -35C~65C, Dimensions : 9.6 x 5.7 x 3.0 in / 244 x145 x77 mm, Communication Port:RJ45 (RS485 Protocol), Operating Temperature Range: -4F~113F / -20C~45C, Dimension: 2.76 x 4.33 x 1.25 inch / 70 x 110 x 31.8 mm. Make sure that the plug cannot tough the post by pushing it down out of the way. This is clearly not a problem when you're parked (not running your engine) or driving at night - no solar. Well after having this fitted for just over 2 weeks I can honestly say how easy it was to fit. Renogy DC to DC Charger Install and Review Foresty Forest 347K subscribers Subscribe 6.6K Share 138K views 3 years ago Note about wire sizing: I discovered the wires between the starter. The Renogy hides the input cables and uses posts to connect the ca. This battery charger is compatible with both traditional and smart alternators. For even more flexibility, we added a portable 100 watt panel in the fall of 2018. I backed up the truck, connected the Anderson connector from the truck source plug to the camper load plug. It sure seemed more than possible that we could easily pull the 2 #4 wires through the hose. How to choose a suitable battery charger? At this point, it was WELL PAST happy hour. I know for sure the 4g worked just fine, so Id just go with that. For our style of camping, having only solar power, we are covered for about 90% of the time. After 25ft of 4ga wire, the voltage would be down to 11.5V. With RJ45 communication port featured, you can unlock monitoring features exclusively using the BT-2 Bluetooth Moduleand Renogy DC Home App, control and monitor the device remotely through your phone in real time. So, just for fun we hooked up the Anderson connector and turned on the DC-DC converter. Be careful not to over-torque the terminals on the DCDC as over-torquing may cause irreparable damage (Do not exceed 16 N-m / 3.3 ft-lb). The left terminal is for a positive DC wire. 18-16AWG copper cable recommended. Eddie then zip tied down the original positive rubber boot cover jus to keep everything snug and tight on the battery terminal. This battery charger is compatible with both traditional and smart alternators. 18-16AWG copper cable recommended. Step 7: mount the breaker to the Truck compartment, and pull the new #4 wire for connection to the breaker. Renogy DC to DC Battery Charger InstallRenogy 60A DC to DC Battery ChargerCompatible with a multitude of alternator types, this 60A DC to DC Battery Charger . This Renogy DC-DC battery charger is compatible with traditional and smart alternators. Isolating the solar solves the problem. In short, Id suggest youre probably better off with a higher rated. If you have any questions regarding this product, pleasesubmit a case. I put the question out to Matt of the awesome adventurousway.com, why do you need a fuse on battery and a circuit breaker both? 1. They were just totally overwhelmed, trying their best to have their techs work remote and adapt to the Pandemic workflow. In the picture below, was the existing setup done by Eddie back in the Summer of 2017, showing all the DC loads and Trailer Frame Ground coming in to the left side of the shunt. Hey guys, so I've been meaning to figure out how to properly have my alternator charge my house batteries. This took way longer than I had hoped, mainly because I had never used a hammer crimper before. Click here for prices on amazon.com victron orion tr smart dc to dc battery charger Get Started With Off-Grid Solar Power I'll post a video of this on my Youtube channel, just google youtube vangonow, https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqYGzyL-IjKkQRi2IDnbGIw. Next up was creating a camper-side connector wire, which would run from the tail of the Truck, along the inside of the A-Frame of the trailer, and terminate inside the camper near the battery compartment, existing inverter, and the soon to be installed DC charger. # 1. Your email address will not be published. A DC-DC charger is, by its nature, going to limit how many amps it tries to pull from the source. This is a good quality hose, very pliable and wide. 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