Great Video mate, I have the same setup and only thing different was instead of drilling through the tub floor I came up and in through the taillight cavity then into the tub wall right where my battery is setup.
Hi mate - great video - just thought Id mention a problem that I had with my current setup - no grommet in the hole where you ran the lead through the tub bottom - a similar thing was done by the installer of my current system, after 6 months the hole edge chewed through the wireing and shorted out on the tub frame - blew the main fuse and the car just stopped running and rolled to a stop. Still had some lights - but no juice to the engine - had to get flat bed back to my mechanics - and a new main fuse ordered from nissan. Im constantly on dirt for work - but even on bitumen - any movement of the wiring within the cut hole will eventually cause the insulation to fail. Grommets a must!
Grazie per il video, molto chiaro e realizzato in modo professionale. Uno dei migliori realizzato su UA-cam per l'installazione della doppia batteria. Mi sarà molto utile per l'installazione della doppia batteria sul mio Ranger.
Hi mate what about your smart charge, you didn`t show any wiring for it? from my understand you have to turn off your smart charge off or you run a wire from your fuse box. thanks Adnan
Cheers Dave, Im loving how good the quality of the system is VS the bigger brand name systems...I've saved myself a fair packet and very happy so far how this system performs. cheers for the comment mate.
Hey mate, great to see the install. Just a few points from experience: - Is the box out in the weather? If so you dont want water getting into any of those anderson plugs, not good at all. - You should incase the main twin cable in spit conduit for extra protection. - Does the hole you drilled have a grommet fitted? - if it doesnt already have one make sure to fuse the cable to your trailer and go grab a weather proof rubber cover for the trailer anderson plug.
Great video!! Super simple set up, youve convinced me to set a dual battery up myself!! Just wondering how it held up with being run along the chassis?
Great video showing how you mounted your box, i was told by an Auto Elec, not to piggy back a Anderson plug from your AGM (in the tub) to charge another battery (eg trailer) down to your tow ball. He told me better to run a separate feed from the alternator back to the towball via a midi fuse. Then to install another DC to DC on the trailer. All of this was to prevent voltage drop etc.... any issues with your set up ?? Again great video !
Nice setup , I’ve watched your 1 year review and now found this video too . I’d prob would have gone same way as you but have a tray , a bit worried if I had a battery box and charger on back of tray it might get nicked . I’ve just worked out what I’ve spent on a basic setup not hard to spend $ on these systems : 12V system setup costs for N70 Toyota Hilux (excludes wiring, blade fuses and holders, MIDI fuses and holders, Anderson plugs, marine grade Heat shrink, ring thermals various sizes, Split tubing light harnesses with relays) REDARC BCDC1225D Charger) $540 Bcdcmb004 (Bracket) $72 SBI12 $118 $720.00 Other 6 Fuse box with Buss bar $49 Projector specific N70 Auxiliary battery tray under bonnet $275 105aH SuperCharge MRV70L $278! (Semi retired) sub total $602.00 Grand total $1,322.00
I have just bought a Navara Ute and am looking for ideas for my dual battery set up. Looks like the way to go as I was thinking of behind the front row seats. Thanks for sharing! 😊
Thanks mate.Will be doing this on my 2020 SR5 .Great value.seen they also have a package that includes solar panels and battery for $1285.looks good quality cabling too.
G,day mate , neat job , I have a question, I’m a bit brain dead on this stuff . The lead you run back down to connect to trailer will that charge additional batteries in the trailer from that dc dc charger ? Cheers wayne
Quick question, I have a brand new 2020 GMC Sierra 3500 with a massive fuse relay box on the positive terminal, needless to say, it’s hard to get in there for another lead. Can I bolt the one side of a battery isolator directly to the alternator stud? Reason I ask, I see a single line going to my battery, protected by a 250 amp that come directly off the alternator.... if I put it on the alternator and add a fuse, I see no different than it being on the battery or the stud that is hooked directly to the battery anyhow.
Great video mate! Only thing I was confused about is where do you run your negative/ground cable to from the battery to the back or once at the battery doesn't it need to then go to a ground point on the vehicle? Thanks heaps
Nice video matey. Question when the cars not running is it only using your 2nd battery and not draining the main battery? Then when driving both get charged?
Cheers mate 👍🏻 yep that’s about the long and short of it. When you are stopped, anything you have plugged into the second battery will only draw down from the second battery. If the second battery goes flat, that’s it no power draw will come from the main. Once you start up again, your car will charge your main battery first (what ever power you used to start the car) then once the main is full power will start to flow over to the 2nd battery.
Great video! Just wondering, with these kickass dual battery setups, do you not have to run an ground wire to the chassis? I've seen some people say they do but I don't get how exactly you add a ground wire when the negative cable has the Anderson plug on each end. (I'm clearly new to 12v electrics)
G’day Paul, Don’t worry mate I’m definitely no 12V guru either but I don’t mind giving it a go. With this pre wired kit I’ve used in the video there was no need to earth the line. 8 months on and it’s never given me any grief, I’m guessing all the magic happens in the new DC/DC charger.
@@RoundTheFire Ahh I thought it must have been something like that, that makes it easy. I'm going to do the same next year in my Navara, just need to suss out if my tub has any grommets for the wire to go through or if I just need to drill like you did. I forgot to ask did you feed the cable inside the chassis or on top?
Hi Mate , this is their exact comment " If you are using a smart alternator and the blue wire is not connected, the charger will still work but will not charge the battery fully. The battery charge will be around 75-80% "
That’s very interesting 🤔 When I phoned them back when I bought it they told me no issues with smart alternator...granted I’ve been getting full charge to mine no issues? If you can do me a favour Chris, there is a comment somewhere on this thread from Australian Direct. Pose the question directly to them, I’m sure there will be (as I am) other guys wanting to know what they might have to say??
Cheers mate 👍🏻 I’m still trying to find the happy work/life/UA-cam balance. I really enjoy making these videos and on the same note I really enjoy being a Dad 😎
G’day mate, yes the 2nd battery will only charge when the engine is running and the start battery reaches full voltage. The DC/DC charger on the 2nd battery acts as the isolator so the 2nd battery will never draw down more than itself.
@@RoundTheFire so although it says alternator input, it's really just main battery input and treated as tho it's just another accessory coming off the main battery. No need to wire up to alternator.
Cheers mate, its working solid so far and just survived 3 weeks in the Gulf Country living exposed in the back, rain, dust, sand, sun. First time trying out a portable system so we will see how she goes over time.
G’day Doug. The problem was with the sender unit being installed slightly off causing the float to come in contact with an internal tank baffle basically not allowing the float to drop bellow 1/2. Simple fix by TJM was to slightly rotate the sender unit to free up the float. 👍🏻
Simpleton in regards to this;yet I’m looking to purchase the same set-up. Had a few questions. Any chance of it draining my battery, any chance of a fire? Looking to mount in a drawer system, need ventilation? Just looking to power a camp fridge. Appears to be the perfect solution. I just don’t know enough about it
The 25AMP DC/DC charger also acts as an isolator so as not to drain the main start battery. Chance of fire…I would never say never, but highly unlikely if wired correctly. The charger will get hot when working hard so safer to keep it where it can breathe.
Hi all, very new to all this. I wish I had if seen your video sooner !! I have a 2016 XLT ranger and have purchased a kings dual battery system. It’s no where near as complete as the kick ass system. In any case I’m stuck with what I have so I have had Ford turn off the smart alternator system so I can complete the install using the old style battery isolator switch. I want to put kick ass circuit breaker between the start battery and the deep cycle battery. Can someone recommend size ? I’m looking at the 50 or 100 amp manual reset breaker. I assume this is only to protect against a dead short to earth but would be great to get others views By the way, great videos !!
Hey Damo thanks for another vid mate!! Question not regarding this particular vid. Regarding the rhino platform, thinking about getting one on my raptor. What’s your opinion? Is there a lot of wind noise? A lot of mixed reviews online so I thought I’d check with you as I’m looking at an identical system on the same vehicle? If you have time let us know your thoughts!!!!
G’day Danny, I’m quite happy with the Rhino system so far mate. The whole product looks, feels and performs like quality. Without a doubt she certainly blows the wind, unloaded I would say the sound is no different to other racks on the market but adding a roof rack I think that’s all to be expected. The backbone mounting system probably a little bit of over kill as the mount can handle more weight than the roof is rated for but it is the lowest profile mount in the rhino rack range keeping everything as low down as possible and IMO is the best looking mount. I’m very happy with the overall package and if I had to do it all over again I would still choose this system. 👍🏻
Hey Damo, great to see another video. I thought you would be away on your trip? I have done the same thing with my Raptor but I purchased the Projecta Powerhub. I like the way the Powerhub has the digital screen which tells you charge rate in and amp draw out so you know a time til charged and discharged. I think I will have to follow your lead on running power down to the rear and through the tub. Can I please ask, how did you secure the battery tray? Does it go through the tub as well or just the bed liner? And is it bolted or what? Thanks mate.
G’day Nathan. I’ve just come back from the trip and battled my way through my first week of work 😫 Good choice on the Projecta, This unit and the Powerhub were my top 2 a lot more features on the powerhub at the end of the day not being lithium ready was the key factor for me to go with the KickAss system.
For mounting the tray what I did was use a step drill bit to get a neat large enough hole for the wiring to run up into the tub, feed the wiring up. Then they Battery tray almost sits totally over and conceals the wiring hole. I then drilled through the liner and tub and bolted the tray directly in. Tighten the bolts down evenly as they will compress the ribs in the liner and not allow dirt and water to freely run under the tray. My battery tray and Anderson plugs stay in the back permanently and I can remove the second battery and store securely when not needed 👍🏻
Hey mate, great video, a few questions; Do you still recommend this setup? and do you have a grommet for the hole you drilled in the tray and if so where did you get it from? Cheers Daniel
I’m still liking this set up. For the price it does what the high end stuff can do no worries. I didn’t put a grommet in the hole, I’ve now wrapped the part of the wires where they might rub in some spare bike tube. Works a treat 👍🏻
Great vid mate, that last Anderson plug you talked about for your trailer, could that be used to charge batteries in a caravan when driving? Or is that a different type of set-up?
Depends on your alternator? if you have a smart alternator then it’s a good idea to. There are a few ways to do it (keep in mind these are the dodgy ways) 1. Wire the ignition wire straight to the + terminal of your 2nd batt...this will trick it to think the car is ALWAYS running. 2. Wire the ignition wire to the + side of your volt meter if it has a switch. When you switch your volt meter on the DC/DC thinks your car is running. 3. Ask your dealer to turn off your smart alternator (if they can) I’m not a 12V guru but I’ve found these ways to work.
Gday mate, yep certainly have mentioned it to ford. I’ve already had the complete tub liner replaced under warranty...this one you see in the video is the “new one” 😎👍🏻
Still very happy with the battery set up mate, Ive given it fairly hard time with the elements and it hasn't skipped a beat. Only thing I would change if I did it all again would be to buy either the matching brand solar blanket or a better one than i did, purely so that I could use the unregulated solar power input (my solar blanket over charges the DC/DC if i try to run it without a regulator)
Hi Mate , Great Job , I want to do the same but I have been told to connect the blue ignition wire as these cars have a smart alternator and will not achieve full charge , Where did you connect your one and can you use the box portable away from the Car.
G'day Chris, My kit came pre-wired from the factory, there was nothing additional to do, no extra wires ect, other than hook it up as I did in the video. I still get full charge not a worry? I can still use my box portable away from the vehicle, it is a little bit of effort (4 nuts) because of how i have secured it. Thanks for watching.
@@RoundTheFire Hi Mate , reason why I am asking is when I called Australian Direct told them I have a smart alternator as all these cars have they told me I need to wire the blue cable which it on the bcdc otherwise it does not get its full charge due to the smart alternator. They even stated that on the email they sent me and that was today.
Yeah Mate you too. Hope life is treating you well. Good vids so keep them up. I’m looking to do a similar install on my Pajero Sport so come across your vid and found it useful. Hope I bump into you sometime. I’ll keep an eye out for you.
Ah very nice! I’m kicking around brizzy. I looked for ages before deciding on this model, as far as price and pure ease of DIY install and trouble free this set up easily wins hands down. The ticket is get the full package, it comes all set up. All you need to do is plug it all together 👍🏻
This is a stupid question but will this work for United States vehicles, I know a battery is a battery but some countries setup things differently and have different regulations, connectors, etc
Gday Tom, It’s not possible with the system I’ve installed, however there are systems on the market that will allow you to plug straight into the 20A CIG socket in the tub to charge your 2nd battery. I think the downside to those systems is they have a low Amp/H charging rate.
I'm very curious to see your battery box voltage when you car is on. Being that you haven't tapped into any ignition/accessories cables with the DCDC charger (as your meant to). Wonder if its charging the battery completely.
You are right mate, some DC/DC chargers will require the black accessories wire to be installed. This unit however comes pre wired, as you see the instillation in the video it is exactly step by step according to the manufacturers instructions. I’ve had the unit in for 8 months now and it has never ran flat. Volt meter is showing 13.5 - 14.5 with vehicle running 👍🏻
I have the same question. I just got this kit and installed on my 2019 Ford Everest. The aux battery is still charging when my vehicle is off so I’m wondering if I need to connect the blue ignition wire. Wondering where the best spot to get the ignition connection from might be too.
George Athanasiadis did you end up working out how best to install your cabling. Mine just keeps charging even with the vehicle off now even with an ignition or accessories cable hooked up.
@@scottweaver951 need to enable dual battery charging. Go to local dealership and they can do it easily. I didn't hook up my inginiton cable and having the dual charge enabled it work perfectly.
hey mate great video got me keen to do it , the link doesn't work for battery box you brought . I have searched for primuim battery box and cant find anything on the kickass site . do you know if they still make it ?
G'day Mate, I just had a look...It isn't listed on the site now/anymore? Maybe a supply issue or seems like they want you to purchase all the pieces individually...and i can't be too sure but it looks at first glance like they have put the prices up...??
@@RoundTheFire cheerz mate, would you buy it again now ? if so i might buy them individually then . did you say the charger was riveted to battery box ?
@@loggaification mate to be honest it hasn't skipped a beat and i've pretty much treated it all the wrong ways. the DC/DC is just riveted to the top of the box. Ive upgraded my battery now to a VOLTAX lithium not much more than the kicks battery 1000% improvement.
@@RoundTheFire I ordered the Kickass setup, but I believe Australian Direct has supply issues, so they refunded me (they contacted me and offered the refund, so full credit to them). I found these guys who appear to have the exact same setup, so I ordered the kit from them. Got it couriered to me in 2 days. Will install in the next week or so. www.home12volt.com.au/bbg-dc.html
G’day mate, I had zero issues without the ignition wire hooked up. I’ve since changed out the AGM and dropped in a lithium, for that I hard wired the ignition wire straight to the positive terminal on the second battery. My truck is a 2020 model 👍🏻
I bought and installed the KickAss DCDC charger and Anderson wiring kit last weekend. I already have my own AGM battery and a battery box. Because my Mitsubishi Pajero Sport has a smart alternator, I also have to make and extend the blue Ignition Override wire to the fuse box of the car. I notice your kit has no Ignition Override cable, so does your Ranger Raptor has a smart alternator? If so, shouldn't you need to connect an Ignition Override cable to overcome the smart alternator charging issue?
Gday mate, yes the Raptor does have a smart alternator. The pre wired Red DC/DC charging system doesn’t come with the ignition override wires , from memory I think only the black square projector type requires the additional wire?
@@RoundTheFire That's strange. I have the same red KickAss DCDC charger, not their older Projecta charger. Mine also has additional three wires - Ignition Override, LED indicator light and battery temperature sensor. I only connect the Ignition Override wire because Aussie Direct suggested me to do so due to the smart alternator in my car.
@@RoundTheFire This is the kit I bought from them - www.australiandirect.com.au/buy/kickass-dcdc-mppt-solar-battery-charger-12v-24v-25/KADCDC25A-AND-WK
@@dezzbigred3640 I bought a 4m long 17AWG wire from Jaycar, on one end I connected it to a fuse tap and plugged it into a fuse in the car interior fuse box (labelled Relay which apparently runs off the ignition power). On the other end of the wire I connected it to a female spade connector. I run this wire from the interior fuse box, down into and along the passenger side door seam, and come out into my boot compartment (Mitsubishi Pajero Sport). With my KickAss DCDC charger, it is with my auxiliary AGM battery in the boot, I connected the Ignition Override wire of the DCDC charger with a male spade connector, so I can connect and disconnect to the 4m wire whenever I want.
Gday demo Has your raptor got a option to disable the passenger airbag? Wife due to have a wee baby and bought a baby seat that I need to fit in front Thanks DREW
G’day Mate. Congratulations, you must be doing well to start needing to shuffle the little ones to the front seats. Mate I haven’t had a look, here in Australia it’s not legal to do...but I know in my hilux there is a plug behind the glove box that if you disconnect, it disables the passenger side airbag.
@@RoundTheFire ah ok laws are diffrent down under.. in Scotland we place our baby seats in front seat facing to the back seat and switch of the airbags... I will just place the wee one in back then, as I couldn't find the disable key for airbag. Thanks again mate Drew
G’day Mate, I got the tray from kickass also. I just had a quick look on their site they must have changed the look of the tray, and price!! I paid $80 for mine 🤔
G’day Brent, The main reason for adding a second battery is purely to run constant draw 12V accessories like fridges, work lights or inverters. Wired in correctly, having a second battery will keep your main battery from going flat trying to keep the beers cold 👍🏻
Gday mate. I had an aftermarket long range fuel tank fitted to the Raptor. The fuel sender on the new tank wasn’t seated correctly inside the tank so the gauge wouldn’t read that the fuel tank was empty. Long story short, I ran out of fuel while testing the range of the new tank.
G’day Mate, the kit I bought was all pre wired and assembled from the shop. It had nothing extra to do other than what you see in the video. Best bet give the tech guys a call at Australian direct they were pretty good when I called them about a solar issue 👍🏻
I didn’t with the AGM I had to after I changed the battery to a lithium. All I did was wire it to the volt gauge. So when the gauge is on it thinks the car is on not exactly what shouldn’t be done but a very easy fix
I think it's a great video but when I seen you drill the hole through the tub I knew straight away when you put some weight in the back of its go to rub and cut some Wires and earth out
Great Video mate, I have the same setup and only thing different was instead of drilling through the tub floor I came up and in through the taillight cavity then into the tub wall right where my battery is setup.
That’s very cool 😎 I didn’t even think about that 👍🏻
Pick my 2020 Raptor in January your video's are excellent. thanks for all the add on and food for thought.
Thanks mate, congratulations on the new Truck 👍🏻
Hi mate - great video - just thought Id mention a problem that I had with my current setup - no grommet in the hole where you ran the lead through the tub bottom - a similar thing was done by the installer of my current system, after 6 months the hole edge chewed through the wireing and shorted out on the tub frame - blew the main fuse and the car just stopped running and rolled to a stop. Still had some lights - but no juice to the engine - had to get flat bed back to my mechanics - and a new main fuse ordered from nissan. Im constantly on dirt for work - but even on bitumen - any movement of the wiring within the cut hole will eventually cause the insulation to fail. Grommets a must!
Cheers mate, I've wrapped the wires where there could be potential for fowling with a bit of old pushbike inner tube. working a treat so far.
Grazie per il video, molto chiaro e realizzato in modo professionale. Uno dei migliori realizzato su UA-cam per l'installazione della doppia batteria. Mi sarà molto utile per l'installazione della doppia batteria sul mio Ranger.
Prego. Grazie per il commento
Hi mate
what about your smart charge, you didn`t show any wiring for it?
from my understand you have to turn off your smart charge off or you run a wire from your fuse box.
thanks
Adnan
Definitely a battery box setup for a cheaper install, and portability. All came up looking very neat a job well done. Thanks
Cheers Dave, Im loving how good the quality of the system is VS the bigger brand name systems...I've saved myself a fair packet and very happy so far how this system performs. cheers for the comment mate.
Nice setup! Finish it off with some conduit on those cables you ran along the frame.
Thanks for the great video brother. Very thorough and helpful. Nice truck too👍
Hey mate, great to see the install. Just a few points from experience:
- Is the box out in the weather? If so you dont want water getting into any of those anderson plugs, not good at all.
- You should incase the main twin cable in spit conduit for extra protection.
- Does the hole you drilled have a grommet fitted?
- if it doesnt already have one make sure to fuse the cable to your trailer and go grab a weather proof rubber cover for the trailer anderson plug.
Andy, thanks for the comment mate. Always great to see good constructive feedback 👍🏻🇦🇺🍺
Great video!! Super simple set up, youve convinced me to set a dual battery up myself!!
Just wondering how it held up with being run along the chassis?
Nice setup dude and as we know, clean job done. Welcome back.
🤙🤙🤙🇩🇪
Thanks Mate, good to be back 😎👍🏻
Great video showing how you mounted your box, i was told by an Auto Elec, not to piggy back a Anderson plug from your AGM (in the tub) to charge another battery (eg trailer) down to your tow ball. He told me better to run a separate feed from the alternator back to the towball via a midi fuse. Then to install another DC to DC on the trailer. All of this was to prevent voltage drop etc.... any issues with your set up ?? Again great video !
Nice job mate. Although I would have added split conduit to the cables running underneath for that extra protection
Cheers mate, split tube is definitely a good idea 👍🏻
Nice setup , I’ve watched your 1 year review and now found this video too . I’d prob would have gone same way as you but have a tray , a bit worried if I had a battery box and charger on back of tray it might get nicked .
I’ve just worked out what I’ve spent on a basic setup not hard to spend $ on these systems :
12V system setup costs for N70 Toyota Hilux
(excludes wiring, blade fuses and holders, MIDI fuses and holders, Anderson plugs, marine grade Heat shrink, ring thermals various sizes, Split tubing light harnesses with relays)
REDARC
BCDC1225D Charger) $540
Bcdcmb004 (Bracket) $72
SBI12 $118
$720.00
Other
6 Fuse box with Buss bar $49
Projector specific N70 Auxiliary battery tray under bonnet $275
105aH SuperCharge MRV70L $278! (Semi retired)
sub total $602.00
Grand total $1,322.00
I have just bought a Navara Ute and am looking for ideas for my dual battery set up. Looks like the way to go as I was thinking of behind the front row seats. Thanks for sharing! 😊
Murray Ball did you end up getting a system? If so where you end up putting it ?
Thanks mate.Will be doing this on my 2020 SR5 .Great value.seen they also have a package that includes solar panels and battery for $1285.looks good quality cabling too.
G,day mate , neat job , I have a question, I’m a bit brain dead on this stuff . The lead you run back down to connect to trailer will that charge additional batteries in the trailer from that dc dc charger ? Cheers wayne
Yes 👍🏻
Nice Damo didn't know it would be that easy. Cheers 👍😎
Thanks Phil, It was quite therapeutic putting this system in...I love it when it’s nice and simple 👍🏻
Quick question, I have a brand new 2020 GMC Sierra 3500 with a massive fuse relay box on the positive terminal, needless to say, it’s hard to get in there for another lead. Can I bolt the one side of a battery isolator directly to the alternator stud? Reason I ask, I see a single line going to my battery, protected by a 250 amp that come directly off the alternator.... if I put it on the alternator and add a fuse, I see no different than it being on the battery or the stud that is hooked directly to the battery anyhow.
Great video mate! Only thing I was confused about is where do you run your negative/ground cable to from the battery to the back or once at the battery doesn't it need to then go to a ground point on the vehicle? Thanks heaps
Mate, longtime. Looking good mate and great vid.
Gday mate. Sure has been a while. Welcome to the secret life of me 😉👍🏻😎🍺
Nice video matey. Question when the cars not running is it only using your 2nd battery and not draining the main battery? Then when driving both get charged?
Cheers mate 👍🏻 yep that’s about the long and short of it. When you are stopped, anything you have plugged into the second battery will only draw down from the second battery. If the second battery goes flat, that’s it no power draw will come from the main. Once you start up again, your car will charge your main battery first (what ever power you used to start the car) then once the main is full power will start to flow over to the 2nd battery.
Great video! Just wondering, with these kickass dual battery setups, do you not have to run an ground wire to the chassis? I've seen some people say they do but I don't get how exactly you add a ground wire when the negative cable has the Anderson plug on each end. (I'm clearly new to 12v electrics)
G’day Paul, Don’t worry mate I’m definitely no 12V guru either but I don’t mind giving it a go. With this pre wired kit I’ve used in the video there was no need to earth the line. 8 months on and it’s never given me any grief, I’m guessing all the magic happens in the new DC/DC charger.
@@RoundTheFire Ahh I thought it must have been something like that, that makes it easy. I'm going to do the same next year in my Navara, just need to suss out if my tub has any grommets for the wire to go through or if I just need to drill like you did. I forgot to ask did you feed the cable inside the chassis or on top?
Mate I ran the wire along the top of the chassis 👍🏻
Hi Mate , this is their exact comment " If you are using a smart alternator and the blue wire is not connected, the charger will still work but will not charge the battery fully. The battery charge will be around 75-80% "
That’s very interesting 🤔 When I phoned them back when I bought it they told me no issues with smart alternator...granted I’ve been getting full charge to mine no issues?
If you can do me a favour Chris, there is a comment somewhere on this thread from Australian Direct. Pose the question directly to them, I’m sure there will be (as I am) other guys wanting to know what they might have to say??
Hi Damo! Thanks for the video as always... missed your posts for a while now, but I know life can be really busy! Anyways, great neat job! Well done!
Cheers mate 👍🏻 I’m still trying to find the happy work/life/UA-cam balance. I really enjoy making these videos and on the same note I really enjoy being a Dad 😎
You don’t require an isolator for this setup?
Thanks for the video. Does it only charge off main battery whilst vehicle is running? What stops it from flattening the main start battery?
G’day mate, yes the 2nd battery will only charge when the engine is running and the start battery reaches full voltage. The DC/DC charger on the 2nd battery acts as the isolator so the 2nd battery will never draw down more than itself.
@@RoundTheFire so although it says alternator input, it's really just main battery input and treated as tho it's just another accessory coming off the main battery. No need to wire up to alternator.
That’s right 👍🏻
Can you you charge those batteries with solar panels?
It would be great on camping, no need to turn on the engine to have it charged.
You sure can mate 👍🏻 I’ve got a 12 month review video coming up on very soon on this system
Round The Fire thanks for the info
Looks like a good bit of gear mate 👌🏼
Cheers mate, its working solid so far and just survived 3 weeks in the Gulf Country living exposed in the back, rain, dust, sand, sun. First time trying out a portable system so we will see how she goes over time.
Great video mate
Can you please explain whatever happened with the the brown Davis tank and the fix tjm made to correct it?
G’day Doug. The problem was with the sender unit being installed slightly off causing the float to come in contact with an internal tank baffle basically not allowing the float to drop bellow 1/2. Simple fix by TJM was to slightly rotate the sender unit to free up the float. 👍🏻
Simpleton in regards to this;yet I’m looking to purchase the same set-up. Had a few questions. Any chance of it draining my battery, any chance of a fire? Looking to mount in a drawer system, need ventilation? Just looking to power a camp fridge. Appears to be the perfect solution. I just don’t know enough about it
The 25AMP DC/DC charger also acts as an isolator so as not to drain the main start battery. Chance of fire…I would never say never, but highly unlikely if wired correctly. The charger will get hot when working hard so safer to keep it where it can breathe.
Hi all, very new to all this. I wish I had if seen your video sooner !! I have a 2016 XLT ranger and have purchased a kings dual battery system. It’s no where near as complete as the kick ass system.
In any case I’m stuck with what I have so I have had Ford turn off the smart alternator system so I can complete the install using the old style battery isolator switch. I want to put kick ass circuit breaker between the start battery and the deep cycle battery. Can someone recommend size ? I’m looking at the 50 or 100 amp manual reset breaker. I assume this is only to protect against a dead short to earth but would be great to get others views
By the way, great videos !!
50AMP should do the trick 👍🏻
Thanks mate appreciate it. Looking forward to the next video
Fantastic job and tutorial, is that knife a bench grippie ?
Cheers mate 👍🏻. The knife is a Benchmade “North Fork Family” gpod size EDC and light duty hunting knife. 😎
There should be a purpose built plug in the cab end of the wall in the tray
G'day Damo, would you please be able to send me a link to the exact kit that you've used here?
Cheers mate.
Thanks for the video, I just wanted to find out if you can do this setup with a deep cycle battery as an auxiliary battery? Is this possible?
This setup is using a Deep Cycle battery, no worries
Hey Damo thanks for another vid mate!! Question not regarding this particular vid. Regarding the rhino platform, thinking about getting one on my raptor. What’s your opinion? Is there a lot of wind noise? A lot of mixed reviews online so I thought I’d check with you as I’m looking at an identical system on the same vehicle? If you have time let us know your thoughts!!!!
G’day Danny, I’m quite happy with the Rhino system so far mate. The whole product looks, feels and performs like quality. Without a doubt she certainly blows the wind, unloaded I would say the sound is no different to other racks on the market but adding a roof rack I think that’s all to be expected. The backbone mounting system probably a little bit of over kill as the mount can handle more weight than the roof is rated for but it is the lowest profile mount in the rhino rack range keeping everything as low down as possible and IMO is the best looking mount. I’m very happy with the overall package and if I had to do it all over again I would still choose this system. 👍🏻
Round The Fire cheers mate looking forward to more of your vids
Hey Damo, great to see another video. I thought you would be away on your trip? I have done the same thing with my Raptor but I purchased the Projecta Powerhub. I like the way the Powerhub has the digital screen which tells you charge rate in and amp draw out so you know a time til charged and discharged. I think I will have to follow your lead on running power down to the rear and through the tub. Can I please ask, how did you secure the battery tray? Does it go through the tub as well or just the bed liner? And is it bolted or what? Thanks mate.
G’day Nathan. I’ve just come back from the trip and battled my way through my first week of work 😫 Good choice on the Projecta, This unit and the Powerhub were my top 2 a lot more features on the powerhub at the end of the day not being lithium ready was the key factor for me to go with the KickAss system.
For mounting the tray what I did was use a step drill bit to get a neat large enough hole for the wiring to run up into the tub, feed the wiring up. Then they Battery tray almost sits totally over and conceals the wiring hole. I then drilled through the liner and tub and bolted the tray directly in. Tighten the bolts down evenly as they will compress the ribs in the liner and not allow dirt and water to freely run under the tray. My battery tray and Anderson plugs stay in the back permanently and I can remove the second battery and store securely when not needed 👍🏻
Round The Fire Perfect mate grea job.
Hey great vid! Quick question, what size fuse does it have in the engine bay end?
Thanks
G’day Daz, the set up is running an 80A mega fuse linking the 2 battery’s ties in closest to the main battery.
How did you manage to get the 80amp fuse in the fuse box? Which fuse holder did you use in the engine bay?
@@AdventureLifeOz it’s an inbuilt fuse in the kickass wiring
Hi mate, did the battery box mounting tray come with the kit? If not where did you get it from? Thanks!
G’day Mate, the tray was not included in the kit. You can buy them as an extra piece from Australian Direct when ordering the Dual Battery kit.
Awesome thanks mate...👍🏻
No worries 👍🏻 i think they are a fairly standard sort of battery tray. You should also be able to find one cheaper 🇦🇺🍺
Hey mate, great video, a few questions; Do you still recommend this setup? and do you have a grommet for the hole you drilled in the tray and if so where did you get it from? Cheers Daniel
I’m still liking this set up. For the price it does what the high end stuff can do no worries. I didn’t put a grommet in the hole, I’ve now wrapped the part of the wires where they might rub in some spare bike tube. Works a treat 👍🏻
@@RoundTheFire Do you still have the set-up, it's 07/22.😊
Great vid mate, that last Anderson plug you talked about for your trailer, could that be used to charge batteries in a caravan when driving? Or is that a different type of set-up?
Thats exactly right mate, the anderson at the rear will charge your camper trailer/caravan batteries when driving.
@@RoundTheFire thanks mate, I'm going to grab this system 👍
Hey mate did you need to run a wire straight to an ignition source?
Depends on your alternator? if you have a smart alternator then it’s a good idea to. There are a few ways to do it (keep in mind these are the dodgy ways)
1. Wire the ignition wire straight to the + terminal of your 2nd batt...this will trick it to think the car is ALWAYS running.
2. Wire the ignition wire to the + side of your volt meter if it has a switch. When you switch your volt meter on the DC/DC thinks your car is running.
3. Ask your dealer to turn off your smart alternator (if they can)
I’m not a 12V guru but I’ve found these ways to work.
I see the sides of your tub liner are bowing in. This seems to be quite common. Have you told ford about it??
Gday mate, yep certainly have mentioned it to ford. I’ve already had the complete tub liner replaced under warranty...this one you see in the video is the “new one” 😎👍🏻
@@RoundTheFire and the replacement is doing it as well?
Yep...the liner bows exactly where the sports bar would sit and support it. As soon as it get hit the liner gets soft.
6 months on, you still happy with the purchase? Anything you'd change if you did it again?
Still very happy with the battery set up mate, Ive given it fairly hard time with the elements and it hasn't skipped a beat. Only thing I would change if I did it all again would be to buy either the matching brand solar blanket or a better one than i did, purely so that I could use the unregulated solar power input (my solar blanket over charges the DC/DC if i try to run it without a regulator)
G'day mate, where did you wire the blue ignition wire?
G’day Conor, No ignition wire to hook up with the pre wired kit 👍🏻
Hi Mate , Great Job , I want to do the same but I have been told to connect the blue ignition wire as these cars have a smart alternator and will not achieve full charge , Where did you connect your one and can you use the box portable away from the Car.
G'day Chris, My kit came pre-wired from the factory, there was nothing additional to do, no extra wires ect, other than hook it up as I did in the video. I still get full charge not a worry? I can still use my box portable away from the vehicle, it is a little bit of effort (4 nuts) because of how i have secured it. Thanks for watching.
@@RoundTheFire Hi Mate , reason why I am asking is when I called Australian Direct told them I have a smart alternator as all these cars have they told me I need to wire the blue cable which it on the bcdc otherwise it does not get its full charge due to the smart alternator. They even stated that on the email they sent me and that was today.
Nice install vid mate.
Littles! Been a while since I’ve seen your name pop up mate. Hope you are doing well 👍🏻
Yeah Mate you too. Hope life is treating you well. Good vids so keep them up. I’m looking to do a similar install on my Pajero Sport so come across your vid and found it useful. Hope I bump into you sometime. I’ll keep an eye out for you.
Ah very nice! I’m kicking around brizzy. I looked for ages before deciding on this model, as far as price and pure ease of DIY install and trouble free this set up easily wins hands down. The ticket is get the full package, it comes all set up. All you need to do is plug it all together 👍🏻
This is a stupid question but will this work for United States vehicles, I know a battery is a battery but some countries setup things differently and have different regulations, connectors, etc
As far as I know mate this setup should be compatible over there in the US. 👍🏻
Great video mate, thanks very much.
Cheers mate 👍🏻
Great video, thanks! Can you charge the 2nd battery straight from the power socket that comes stock in the tub? Cheers.
Gday Tom, It’s not possible with the system I’ve installed, however there are systems on the market that will allow you to plug straight into the 20A CIG socket in the tub to charge your 2nd battery. I think the downside to those systems is they have a low Amp/H charging rate.
The auxiliary battery should have its own earth going to the vehicles earth. I noticed this set up does not do that, can anyone explain why?
I'm very curious to see your battery box voltage when you car is on. Being that you haven't tapped into any ignition/accessories cables with the DCDC charger (as your meant to). Wonder if its charging the battery completely.
You are right mate, some DC/DC chargers will require the black accessories wire to be installed. This unit however comes pre wired, as you see the instillation in the video it is exactly step by step according to the manufacturers instructions. I’ve had the unit in for 8 months now and it has never ran flat. Volt meter is showing 13.5 - 14.5 with vehicle running 👍🏻
I have the same question. I just got this kit and installed on my 2019 Ford Everest. The aux battery is still charging when my vehicle is off so I’m wondering if I need to connect the blue ignition wire.
Wondering where the best spot to get the ignition connection from might be too.
@@scottweaver951 I'm hoing to install mine soon. I'll keep you posted with where I tap into the accessories power.
George Athanasiadis did you end up working out how best to install your cabling. Mine just keeps charging even with the vehicle off now even with an ignition or accessories cable hooked up.
@@scottweaver951 need to enable dual battery charging. Go to local dealership and they can do it easily. I didn't hook up my inginiton cable and having the dual charge enabled it work perfectly.
would just i battery 120amp run my portable aircon 16000 btu
Quick question , where did you buy that complete kit including the battery tray mate ?
Kick Ass - Australian Direct
@@RoundTheFire. Thanks for that. Appreciate it 👍
Good video
Nice work Damo👍
Cheers Mate 🍺👍🏻
Hey mate, just wondering how does it go exposed to the elements? Does it hold up alright with rain etc?
Not a problem at all other than a bit of fading of the colours after a while. Ive had mine in for a few years now, still going strong.
hey mate great video got me keen to do it , the link doesn't work for battery box you brought . I have searched for primuim battery box and cant find anything on the kickass site . do you know if they still make it ?
G'day Mate, I just had a look...It isn't listed on the site now/anymore? Maybe a supply issue or seems like they want you to purchase all the pieces individually...and i can't be too sure but it looks at first glance like they have put the prices up...??
@@RoundTheFire cheerz mate, would you buy it again now ? if so i might buy them individually then . did you say the charger was riveted to battery box ?
@@loggaification mate to be honest it hasn't skipped a beat and i've pretty much treated it all the wrong ways. the DC/DC is just riveted to the top of the box. Ive upgraded my battery now to a VOLTAX lithium not much more than the kicks battery 1000% improvement.
@@RoundTheFire I ordered the Kickass setup, but I believe Australian Direct has supply issues, so they refunded me (they contacted me and offered the refund, so full credit to them).
I found these guys who appear to have the exact same setup, so I ordered the kit from them. Got it couriered to me in 2 days. Will install in the next week or so.
www.home12volt.com.au/bbg-dc.html
@@timblue191987 That setup looks good mate, thanks for sharing the link.
Gday mate do thay just sell the cables
Hey mate, yep they sure do, or you can also check “JayCar” have a heap of the same pre set up wiring 👍🏻
What's the 12v out put for the trailer for?
To charge the 3rd battery located in the trailer which runs another fridge/freezer and a water pump.
Hey mate, where'd you get that battery tray? Cheers!
G’day Mate. The battery tray was also from Australian Direct (Kick Ass). I had to add it in as an extra item to the kit 👍🏻
Hey Damo how you going without the blue wire ignition feed had it drained the main battery yet and what model Ranger is yours bud ?
G’day mate, I had zero issues without the ignition wire hooked up. I’ve since changed out the AGM and dropped in a lithium, for that I hard wired the ignition wire straight to the positive terminal on the second battery. My truck is a 2020 model 👍🏻
You can also get the dealer to turn off the smart alternator so it pumps hard all the time
I bought and installed the KickAss DCDC charger and Anderson wiring kit last weekend. I already have my own AGM battery and a battery box. Because my Mitsubishi Pajero Sport has a smart alternator, I also have to make and extend the blue Ignition Override wire to the fuse box of the car. I notice your kit has no Ignition Override cable, so does your Ranger Raptor has a smart alternator? If so, shouldn't you need to connect an Ignition Override cable to overcome the smart alternator charging issue?
Gday mate, yes the Raptor does have a smart alternator. The pre wired Red DC/DC charging system doesn’t come with the ignition override wires , from memory I think only the black square projector type requires the additional wire?
@@RoundTheFire That's strange. I have the same red KickAss DCDC charger, not their older Projecta charger. Mine also has additional three wires - Ignition Override, LED indicator light and battery temperature sensor. I only connect the Ignition Override wire because Aussie Direct suggested me to do so due to the smart alternator in my car.
@@RoundTheFire This is the kit I bought from them - www.australiandirect.com.au/buy/kickass-dcdc-mppt-solar-battery-charger-12v-24v-25/KADCDC25A-AND-WK
Hey noodlefoo, how'd you go about extending the ignition override wire? I need to do this myself, but can't work out exactly how to do it.
@@dezzbigred3640 I bought a 4m long 17AWG wire from Jaycar, on one end I connected it to a fuse tap and plugged it into a fuse in the car interior fuse box (labelled Relay which apparently runs off the ignition power). On the other end of the wire I connected it to a female spade connector. I run this wire from the interior fuse box, down into and along the passenger side door seam, and come out into my boot compartment (Mitsubishi Pajero Sport). With my KickAss DCDC charger, it is with my auxiliary AGM battery in the boot, I connected the Ignition Override wire of the DCDC charger with a male spade connector, so I can connect and disconnect to the 4m wire whenever I want.
Gday demo
Has your raptor got a option to disable the passenger airbag? Wife due to have a wee baby and bought a baby seat that I need to fit in front
Thanks
DREW
G’day Mate. Congratulations, you must be doing well to start needing to shuffle the little ones to the front seats. Mate I haven’t had a look, here in Australia it’s not legal to do...but I know in my hilux there is a plug behind the glove box that if you disconnect, it disables the passenger side airbag.
@@RoundTheFire ah ok laws are diffrent down under.. in Scotland we place our baby seats in front seat facing to the back seat and switch of the airbags...
I will just place the wee one in back then, as I couldn't find the disable key for airbag.
Thanks again mate Drew
👍🏻
Hey mate, just wondering where you picked your battery tray up from?
G’day Mate, I got the tray from kickass also. I just had a quick look on their site they must have changed the look of the tray, and price!! I paid $80 for mine 🤔
Just curious on what's the purpose having dual batteries?
G’day Brent, The main reason for adding a second battery is purely to run constant draw 12V accessories like fridges, work lights or inverters. Wired in correctly, having a second battery will keep your main battery from going flat trying to keep the beers cold 👍🏻
after a month mate..what happend to your raptor.?why it didnt start.?just wondering...
Gday mate. I had an aftermarket long range fuel tank fitted to the Raptor. The fuel sender on the new tank wasn’t seated correctly inside the tank so the gauge wouldn’t read that the fuel tank was empty. Long story short, I ran out of fuel while testing the range of the new tank.
@@RoundTheFire ah ok mate cheers.!watching your vids regularly..contenplating on buying a raptor myself here the philipines..D
God willing..
did this come with all the wiring or did that have be got separately
Complete Kit, plug n play
Hi Damo.
What did you do with the blue & brown wires?
G’day Mate, the kit I bought was all pre wired and assembled from the shop. It had nothing extra to do other than what you see in the video. Best bet give the tech guys a call at Australian direct they were pretty good when I called them about a solar issue 👍🏻
Could you send the link what you actually bought please thanks
G’day Mate, hope this helps 👍🏻 www.australiandirect.com.au/buy/kickass-12v-premium-battery-box-with-25a-dcdc-and/KABB-KADCBATCOMKIT
Did you end up connecting the blue ignition wire ?
I didn’t with the AGM I had to after I changed the battery to a lithium. All I did was wire it to the volt gauge. So when the gauge is on it thinks the car is on not exactly what shouldn’t be done but a very easy fix
Looks great!
Cheers mate. Not as tidy as your trailer set up 👍🏻
Aussie as, working with the flip flops on #thug
I think it's a great video but when I seen you drill the hole through the tub I knew straight away when you put some weight in the back of its go to rub and cut some Wires and earth out
Are yo u still running the DP chip ?
still in there mate, going hard
@@RoundTheFire Nice, thinking of doing the same, once i get my Raptor.. Great channel by the way mate
@@mixalis6168 Cheers Mate :)
This guy looks like Eric Banner
😎👍🏻🍺🇦🇺
Is the dc/dc charger pop riveted to the lid of the box?
Yep 👍🏻
Love ya hate bunji
210821 👍👍👍
I was about to say that is the worst install I have ever seen. Until you relocated those ridiculous wires over the tub.
Chicks *don't* dig hunters
😂 It says “shooters”...it’s an ARMY thing...you are welcome 👍🏻🇦🇺🍺
english subs please!