wfscot
Member
Hey all,
I have a Hawk on a Ram 2500 diesel. The current setup is the standard FWC wiring (separator to truck batteries) with two massive deep cycles in the Hawk (210Ah total).
Normally, the camper batteries seem to charge quite well whenever we drive for a few hours or more. That said, recently we let the camper batteries run way down and after 15+ hours of driving, the batteries were only at three LEDs (66% or so, goind to add a better monitor soon, but that's currently all we have). After talking to FWC, it seems this is quite normal as the battery separator will cycle off quite frequently to protect the truck batteries when the camper batteries are very low. They recommended plugging in which did the trick when we were finally able to do so.
That experience got me thinking about ways to improve the charging from the truck when the camper batteries are low. Beyond that, I can't help but think that the current setup is less than ideal since it is essentially a dumb charger (fixed voltage from the alternator, right?). We spend a ton of time on the road (50% or so) and we often don't have a chance to plug in. Thus I'd like to get the most out of the truck while it's running.
Does anyone have any experience with battery chargers that run off 12V? I think these are often called "DC to DC chargers". Here's one example from a quick Google search: http://www.wmjmarine.com/33313.html
In my mind, it seems a good DC-DC charger could charge the batteries better than the current setup. This would especially be true when the batteries are low since it could charge full time (instead of the cycling behavior of the separator). Furthermore, it seems it could help battery longevity and safety by optimized, multi-stage charging.
Thoughts? Any product recommendations?
FYI, we'll soon be adding a solar system. I don't think that negates any of the above reasoning, though.
Thanks!
-Scot
I have a Hawk on a Ram 2500 diesel. The current setup is the standard FWC wiring (separator to truck batteries) with two massive deep cycles in the Hawk (210Ah total).
Normally, the camper batteries seem to charge quite well whenever we drive for a few hours or more. That said, recently we let the camper batteries run way down and after 15+ hours of driving, the batteries were only at three LEDs (66% or so, goind to add a better monitor soon, but that's currently all we have). After talking to FWC, it seems this is quite normal as the battery separator will cycle off quite frequently to protect the truck batteries when the camper batteries are very low. They recommended plugging in which did the trick when we were finally able to do so.
That experience got me thinking about ways to improve the charging from the truck when the camper batteries are low. Beyond that, I can't help but think that the current setup is less than ideal since it is essentially a dumb charger (fixed voltage from the alternator, right?). We spend a ton of time on the road (50% or so) and we often don't have a chance to plug in. Thus I'd like to get the most out of the truck while it's running.
Does anyone have any experience with battery chargers that run off 12V? I think these are often called "DC to DC chargers". Here's one example from a quick Google search: http://www.wmjmarine.com/33313.html
In my mind, it seems a good DC-DC charger could charge the batteries better than the current setup. This would especially be true when the batteries are low since it could charge full time (instead of the cycling behavior of the separator). Furthermore, it seems it could help battery longevity and safety by optimized, multi-stage charging.
Thoughts? Any product recommendations?
FYI, we'll soon be adding a solar system. I don't think that negates any of the above reasoning, though.
Thanks!
-Scot