National Luna Dual battery install

[MaddBaggins]

Thanks Kurt, your opinion is a valued one :ylsmoke:

I'll keep an eye on it and see if things mellow out after a while. Having never had dual batts and never montored my voltage this closely before this is new territory for me.

 

[findleywarren]

luna

I have been looking at this kit for awhile and believe the idea is good for installation in the mog. My question is how does installation of this kit interact with a trailer battery setup. I have two optima red tops wired in 12v series for the mog(need both for starting the diesel at 10 degrees). How would I connect a third trailer battery to this system and control the charging? Im building this trailer and cant figure out how to deal with the power control. Thanks

 

[ckkone]

I have this kit and I ran a fused 8 gauge wire from my second truck battery to the back of my truck. In the back of the truck I have a fused distribution block, and from there another 8 gauge wire that goes to my 7pin trailer plug. On the trailer I have deep cycle battery that connects to my truck via the 7pin plug. With the National Luna kit the solenoid to charge the second truck battery kicks on after the truck has been running for 5 min. which charges the second truck battery and the trailer battery.

 

[findleywarren]

luna

Ok-running a secondary wire from the backup battery to a fused link-then to the third trailer battery. Does this cause unequal discharge to your secondary battery vs primary-there by reducing battery life?

 

[ckkone]

I think as long as the trailer is not plugged in while the truck is off you would be okay. Hopefully someone else will give their opinion as I have not tested this for myself yet.

 

[MaddBaggins]

The instructions with the kit also included diagrams for more than just dual batts.

 

[findleywarren]

luna

If I already have dual batts, is it worth the $375 for the complete kit? or better to just spend $175 for the needed parts?

 

[MaddBaggins]

If I already have dual batts, is it worth the $375 for the complete kit? or better to just spend $175 for the needed parts?

I would just buy the extra parts/wire. You can download the National Luna instructions from their site, get the parts you need and knock it out.

 

[Moody]

Madbaggins-
What accessories are you running off of your second battery?

I have the NL setup, and it seems like my second battery is discharging significantly (down to the 25% mark) running just an engel, and does so just overnight, or when the car sits throughout the day....

 

[cruiseroutfit]

...I have the NL setup, and it seems like my second battery is discharging significantly (down to the 25% mark) running just an engel, and does so just overnight, or when the car sits throughout the day....

Keep in mind the "25%" mark on the in-cab controller does not mean the battery is at 3 volts (1/4 of 12), rather its at the 25% mark of I suppose what they consider a battery that can still start on its own... meaning theoretically your start could be compromised when you get to 0%. Even at 0 its possible the starter would still spin fast enough to fire the motor, haven't tested that aspect yet. Also, if you you lots of short trips, the intelligent solenoid won't have time to adequately charge the aux. battery, that is unless you are manually switching it. I'll be playing around with my Taco setup and the fridge/accessories this coming weekend... and I have a monitor that I am going to integrate into my Cruiser soon too.... I would love to know where the "threshold" of a no-start is, just so I can play it safe.

 

[Moody]

Keep in mind the "25%" mark on the in-cab controller does not mean the battery is at 3 volts (1/4 of 12), rather its at the 25% mark of I suppose what they consider a battery that can still start on its own...

That makes sense. More than anything, I am just anal, and want to be sure I am not going to lose the battery along the way.

I suppose it is dropping faster over the last few months as well since it has been warmer and cycling the compressor more often.
:victory:

 

[Beowulf]

What control over the batteries do you have?

Can you run everything off the main and keep the aux as a complete backup?

What are all the different configurations of isolationa and combing that can be done?


Also, is there a secondary controller or is the controller only in the Monitor display?

 

[Beowulf]

Never mind. Found what I needed. You can indeed use the main for everything and keep the Aux Battery as a standby.

 

[Beowulf]

Any chance of a group buy from Equipt1?

 

[Mlachica]

Madbaggins-
What accessories are you running off of your second battery?

I have the NL setup, and it seems like my second battery is discharging significantly (down to the 25% mark) running just an engel, and does so just overnight, or when the car sits throughout the day....

What model battery are you running?

I think you want to go by your batteries specifications as to what your state of charge is at a given voltage. ie. lifeline deep cycle batteries at a state of charge at 50% is 12.20v. The NL monitor will likely be pretty close to what your battery manufacturer specifies. I think the state of charge refers to the percent of useable energy. Whether your battery will start your vehicle or not at a given SOC depends on the temperature of your battery, and how much current it takes to start your vehicle. So to say this battery starts my vehicle at 15% will only hold true under certain circumstances. Although it would be nice to know if a battery at a SOC of 25% will start up my 80.

Important note: Batteries continually discharged below 50% shortens the lifespan of the battery because of sulfating, which is a chemical reaction within the battery that limits its ability to hold a charge. I put a label on my batteries indicating SOC voltages just so I don't forget.