Fitting second Leisure Battery

[Smudger 41]

Hi i want to fit a second leisure battery in our motohome. The battery is under the drivers seat and another battery could be put under a seat behind which is close by.Is it just a case of extending cables from exsisting battery to new one ? Is there any thing else i need to know ???

 

[sinbad1]

Hi i want to fit a second leisure battery in our motohome. The battery is under the drivers seat and another battery could be put under a seat behind which is close by.Is it just a case of extending cables from exsisting battery to new one ? Is there any thing else i need to know ???

As long as its the same capacity ie if 100ah then you would need another 100ah connect heavy duty cables + to+ and -to - , make sure they are secure job done

regards

 

[buellster]

My van has a similar setup, I placed the 2nd battery in a box behind the passenger seat and used jump leads cut down to the correct length to connect both, + to+ and-_ to-. The battery box has 12v acs. sockets, the jump leads have a breaker plug so the battery box can be removed and used as an independent power source. We do a bit of wild camping and this arrangement worked very well last year. I also plug a solar panel into the battery box which charges both batteries. It has been a good reasonably cheap way of supplying power.

 

[peter marshall]

2nd battery

Hi I fitted a second battery to my bessacar 465 all that was needed was 2 extention leads from each terminal, and I screwed a frame to the round the battery for secureity, I hope this helps but remember both batteries will have to be match. :thumb:

peter

 

[The vagabond]

second battery

I have done this too, please remember.......the fumes given off by batteries are explosive, so it should be properly vented.

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[pappajohn]

a few posts mention using battery jump lead sized cable.

i use 50 amp stranded cable, around 1 mtr long. its only about 1/8" > 3/16" thick.(conductor size)

from a safety aspect, fit a fuse at each end of the pos cable, if this cable chafes or gets damaged and shorts to earth it will produce FIRE.

i use 30 amp blade fuses in proper holders fitted close to the battery terminals.

 

[sinbad1]

a few posts mention using battery jump lead sized cable.

i use 50 amp stranded cable, around 1 mtr long. its only about 1/8" > 3/16" thick.(conductor size)

To pass a BSC battery link cables etc must be a minimum of 25sq.mm thickness which is about 170amp capacity. However, I think most people go a little thicker my links are 40sq.mm . In most 12V systems rather than just considering capacity resistance also is an important factor in choosing the right cable.

Regards