A few questions about twin batteries

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sidewaysste

sidewaysste

Active Member
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Now I've made space in my second battery compartment, I want to make use of it.

I've currently got a halfords calcium 072 battery that I've been very impressed with. it was on the disco when i bought it and didn't bat a terminal at being left without charging for most of a year.

I want the second battery to power the winch so that I don't flatten the starter battery when winching out if the engine dies mid water filled muddy hole. (not that it would, being one of those V8s renowned for their disregard for water) I'd also thought about using it to power some electric cooling fans - that way they can be wired to operate even when the engine is off without fear of not being able to restart...

I also want to be able to use the second battery in parallel with the first to boost start the car in very cold or wet conditions... (or to provide extra power to the winch if needed) I'd have thought an isolator switch connected between the two positive terminals or even a high current relay would do the trick here( the short term way of doing this would be to connect jump leads across the two)


Question 1 does anyone have a good reason why I shouldn't buy another HCB072 bearing in mind that I can get them for £72?

Question 2 Where can I buy a split charge relay of sufficient current carrying capacity? same for a conventional relay...

Question 3 Is there anything I've missed or any other hints people can give from experience (note buy a diesel is NOT a helpful hint :p )

EDIT: thinking about it, if the engine is running then the winch will be drawing from both batteries anyway as the split charge relay will have in effect connected the batteries in parallel. I guess the flipside is that the split charge relay could burn out if it can't handle the current?
 
Last edited:
Question one) recommend deep cycle battery as they are designed to go beyond normal batteries discharge capacity when winching and and take a high current when charging it again.

Two) xeng do x charge or t max do a set up that you can monitor the batteries from in the truck £80 ish on e bay (also lets you over ride the unit so you can self jump if needed)

Three) bout it so you can charge the battery
 
A deep cycle battery seems bloody expensive -I can destroy two calcium batteries and still buy a third with what a deep cycle battery would cost
 
well they all seem around £180. Also I've just realised I have about 8 batteries of various shapes, sizes and terminal configurations that I could use until I can afford a posh one...
 
Get one of these batteries:

Optima Red Top Battery RTS 4.2 Car Battery Starter Battery Boat 4x4 Van Lorry | eBay

They are excellent batteries, I have currently got one fitted on its own and this will be powering my winch as well as the rest of the truck... They have a CCA of 815 although mine tested up at 1015CCA, more than man enough to run a winch...

As for split charging, alot of people have different opinions but I personally would use a £10 relay system. They are very simple, when ignition is on the relay connects both batteries directly, the engine will charge both. When you switch off the ignition the relay will disconnect between the 2 batteries and then you have 2 seperate batteries...

Also I would run everything non essential of the 2nd battery, extra lights, winch, stereo e.t.c. and leave only the factory stuff on the main battery...
 
Deep cycles is the only way if you plan on heavy use you will destroy a normal one very quickly deep cycle should last years correctly maintained
 
sidewaysste said:
well they all seem around £180. Also I've just realised I have about 8 batteries of various shapes, sizes and terminal configurations that I could use until I can afford a posh one...
Click to expand...
Ouch, Didnt realise the price of em....Would caravan batteries be of any good? thems a lot cheaper
 
Don't want to bustle in and spoil the show, but:

I've got two Halfords 072 batteries, have been sweet for 2 years. No hassle there.

My superwinch 10000 (ok its a cheapo) is fused at 150A.

My split charge relay is 120A and the battery link wiring is fused at 100A.


So, IMO you probably don't need as much heavy duty super expensive stuff as you might imagine!
 
i use a couple of winch solenoids to join both my batteries using 50mm2 tri-rated in parrallel in normal running use (de-energised) and switch them into series for running the winch. you could set it up in a similar way to disconect the batteries when winching
 
Must admit I do like the idea of the T-Max system. Presumably if it has a manual linking facility this could also be used when starting?
 
sidewaysste said:
Must admit I do like the idea of the T-Max system. Presumably if it has a manual linking facility this could also be used when starting?
Click to expand...
on the old system it was a simple button

Photo0874.jpg
 
top-cat said:
i use a couple of winch solenoids to join both my batteries using 50mm2 tri-rated in parrallel in normal running use (de-energised) and switch them into series for running the winch. you could set it up in a similar way to disconect the batteries when winching
Click to expand...

You have a 24volt winch?
 
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