What do I really need for 12V Vehicle/Trailer

[xcmountain80]

Heres the crossroad am I at now, My assets are, dual batteries up front, and 0 or 1 gauge running to the rear of the vehicle for a power point with larger coupler. The dual battery bank is suffering, 1 battery is good and the other not so much. It was like this when I installed them and I knew I would have to eventually replace 1 before it killed the other, national luna electronics for dual batteries, and recently uninstalled dual battery switch, and a butt load of extra wire 1 or 0 gauge, and 2000 watt inverter.

My M416 trailer is coming along and I'm finding the only reason I need power for the trailer is for LED lights around camp, and freezer fridge (which won't always be in the trailer). I can't think of another thing that I will need power for or needed power for in the past.

Should I ditch the dual batt setup in the vehicle but maintain the literal dual battery system, by running a deep cycle in the trailer, a larger cranking amp unit (diehard or interstate of a larger size) and use the feed from the rear to recharge the trailer battery. OR just keep the duals up front and run one as the primary onboard trailer battery (though on the truck)(yes power will be lost when the truck and trailer are not connected).

Some ideas on setups might be more ideal but lets see what we come up with.

Aaron

 

[ntsqd]

My own plan is that the truck will have a house battery capable of running the fridge for a day or two minimum, and the trailer will have a battery that can run it at least that long and hopefully longer as well as meeting the pump & minimal lighting demands. The truck's house battery and the trailer battery will be paired "as one" as far as any battery isolation schemes go when the truck is running if I decide to separate the truck's house and the trailer batteries when the engine is off. If I do separate them it will be along the lines of sequential ACR's/VSR's if that is feasible.
I'm also thinking of a solar trickle charger for the trailer battery, just to keep it from going flat while not in use. Something like the Solargizer products, though perhaps not those exactly.

 

[xcmountain80]

The dualsetup is great when they are both equal but I don't think my alternator (stock) will handle (3) batteries. I did plan on a shore charger for th trailer if I opted for a trailer mounted battery and had also considered though not yet acquired a solar panel from our good boys at the DOT.

A

 

[ntsqd]

If the trailer battery is kept up while in storage then the alternator won't have much work to do there. It is only the deep discharge while disconnected from the truck that will tax that alternator. That is the reason that I'm pondering the sequential ACR's/VSR's. That scenario would be that first the alt brings the starting battery to full charge, then it would bring the truck's house battery to full charge, and then it would lastly bring the trailer battery up. Unless you've really worked the truck's house battery while the truck was off or it was hard to start the first two steps won't take too much time.

I wonder just how necessary that second ACR/VSR really is? In this scenario when ever the trailer electrical was connected to the truck the house battery and the trailer battery would be paired together. Ideally these would be the same make/model/vintage/batch/etc., but I wonder how much that would really matter to batteries that were only paired together infrequently.

 

[xcmountain80]

I feel the difference in type would nearly be irrelevant based on the amount of time the two are to spend together. I'm heavily considering ditching my dual battery under the hood , going with a bigger under the hood unit and similar but in deep cycle on the trailer. Nothing fancy either, just Sears specials but a truck battery none the less. I use the fridge in the truck more often than not (almost enough to warrant a deep cycle) but not enough to warrant the cost. My father who is helpful suggested one of the emergency starter units stored in the trailer just in case I somehow kill the house battery.

A