Adding second battery, need bulkhead connector for cables?

[pirlbeck]

I am adding a second battery to a Lance 845 and will be locating the battery between the LH side of the camper and the bedside in front of the wheel well. I am looking for some type of connecter that I can attach to the cable and mount to the camper to connect the 2 cables. I am familiar with Anderson connectors but there is no way to panel or bulkhead mount the larger sizes. I am thinking about using this style.


Link for 200amp connector

I could put a hole in the wing just above the LH wheel well and make the battery connection from the bottom by going in the bedside access door inside the camper. Anyone have a better idea or a better connector? I do not want to just drill some holes to bring the cables out and have them dangling there.

Thanks!

[bb_94401]

Anderson SB series connectors, with the environmental boots, are great connectors. Like the Powerpole series, any arcing of contacts, when hot connected, occurs on the tips when initially mated. As they are pushed in further to fully engage, they are now making the connection on clean metal.

The only downside of this design is that the mating / unmating force is high for the two pole connectors.

Series
SB50 - 15 lbs
SB120 - 20 lbs
SB175 - 25 lbs
SB350 - 30 lbs

Having good access to both ends of the larger size connectors helps a lot.


For the battery fuse, it is sized to protect the battery and wires if they are accidentally shorted. For sizing consider that a discharged flooded battery can accept current at ~20% of the amp hour capacity of the battery or battery bank. An AGM battery will accept even more current when charging. I'd size the battery fuse to at least 1.5 x the maximum output of your converter so you don't blow fuses when charging the battery.

[Geewizard]

Nemo667 wrote:
I like these with the Anderson connections:

Environmental boot - source side

Environmental boot - load side

I second this. I used Anderson connectors and these boots for my portable solar panel. And Anderson connectors without the boots for all 2-100AH battery connections as well as a Blue Sea Dual Circuit battery switch (1, 2, 1+2, Off)

[Nemo667]

pirlbeck wrote:
OK, thanks for all of the replies. Some of those connectors look interesting, especially the Anderson PowerMod, as it has a higher amp rating. Also I am going to look into those Blue Sea MRBF fuses as I an looking for something to use for fuse protection at the battery.

Edit to add: What would be a good amp rating for a fuse at each battery. I don't have any plans to add an inverter so what would you guys recommend?

Thanks again and Merry Christmas!!!

I used the Bue Sea Circuit Wizard to determine proper wire size and fuse protection for my charge circuit. I also used a Blue Sea circuit breaker mounted in the passenger side foot-well of the truck and the MRBF fuse blocks linked above by bb_94401.

[Nemo667]

I like these with the Anderson connections:

Environmental boot - source side

Environmental boot - load side

[hedge]

usually fuse size would depend on the size of wire you are using to connect to the battery but since you are not using an inverter you could go by the size of the draws to your converter... likely 30-45a

[pirlbeck]

OK, thanks for all of the replies. Some of those connectors look interesting, especially the Anderson PowerMod, as it has a higher amp rating. Also I am going to look into those Blue Sea MRBF fuses as I an looking for something to use for fuse protection at the battery.

Edit to add: What would be a good amp rating for a fuse at each battery. I don't have any plans to add an inverter so what would you guys recommend?

Thanks again and Merry Christmas!!!

[bb_94401]

mcc272 wrote:
.... It might make sense to put some form of disconnect in the positive side to allow a no load connection.

One thing that was not clear (but I may have missed it) is the question of polarity. It seems to indicate, but not clearly, that the plugs have polarity which would be nice so that they only go together one way, pos to pos and neg to neg. Avoiding sparks and explosions is always good when working with electricity. ....

I have a Blue Sea Systems P/N 6006 single circuit ON / OFF switch wired to the positive terminal of the PowerMod HP bulkhead connector, just inside the TC.

I also used pressure sensitive tape to attach a Mega Fuse to the battery. Blue Sea Systems also has a MRBF Terminal Fuse Block that attaches to the battery. Their fuses themselves are a little rarer than MEGA or ANL fuses.

The polarity of the PowerMod HP connector is maintained by the triangular piece in the center of both parts of the connector. In the correct orientation they slide by each other and allow the contacts to mate. In the wrong orientation the ends interfere with the connection.

[mcc272]

The Anderson PowerMod HP Series B posted by bb_94401 looks really interesting as it allows for the use of 4/0 cable if you get the right part. It also looks like the mating cycles is severely degraded if you mate it under load compared to the 500 cycles under no load. It might make sense to put some form of disconnect in the positive side to allow a no load connection.

One thing that was not clear (but I may have missed it) is the question of polarity. It seems to indicate, but not clearly, that the plugs have polarity which would be nice so that they only go together one way, pos to pos and neg to neg. Avoiding sparks and explosions is always good when working with electricity.

I am thinking about adding a battery in the truck bed as a way to expand the size of my battery bank as well as there is no way to add another battery in the battery compartment.

Thanks to bb_99401.

[bb_94401]

Rather than a lift gate power connection, I mounted under the wing an Anderson Power Products POWERMOD HP A Series connector rated at 225A. The "B" series is a 400 A rated connector.

The are latching and come in a bulkhead fitting shown below.



The mating connector (also available as a 90 version)




If you want to go with a through wall, panel mount, power post, VTE Warehouse makes a Copper Core Power Bushing that handles 550A. They have mounting plates listed under their Copper Core Jumper Bushing. They also have a variety of insulators.

[Jack_Hart]

http://products.batterytender.com/Accessories/Power-Connect-Battery-Connector-Set-Black.html

[ticki2]

HMS Beagle wrote:
The Pollak connector in the OP (or the philips equivalent) is what I used. It is normally called a "liftgate" connector at truck suppliers. A nice robust connector.

I also use these for the heavy charge line from the truck . It works great and are available at NAPA and online . However , they will only accommodate up to 4 ga wire . If the OP is going heavier wire he should probably use something else .

[2oldnslow]

I did that with Anderson connectors. The camper-side connector is screwed to the camper wall right above the access door so I can plug the cable from the battery in with one hand - easier than 2 loose leads.

The problem I see with the single-pole connectors is that it is possible to connect them backwards with catastrophic results. The Anderson (and the OP's connector) can't be connected wrong once they are wired correctly. Very important.

[Chris_Bryant]

A very heavy duty option is the Camlock style single pole connectors



These are 150 amp, but they also have 400 amp version, which i have used for inverter quick connects.

[HMS_Beagle]

The Pollak connector in the OP (or the philips equivalent) is what I used. It is normally called a "liftgate" connector at truck suppliers. A nice robust connector.