Awesome system, Did you design and install the system yourself?, looking at getting a 25" Bigfoot rear twin bed and will want truck & solar charging also.
We designed and installed both the solar and alternator charging systems ourselves. Hope your able to get the Bigfoot of your dreams! Thanks for watching.
Sorry for the late reply. We choose the #1/0 cable because we don't use a DC-DC battery charger. Instead, we are using a Li-BIM (Lithium Battery Isolation Manager) per the recommendation of Battle Born Batteries. This device charges at the full available alternator current for 15minutes, then disconnects to let the alternator cool down for 20 minutes. It then repeats the cycle until engine is shut down or lithium Ion battery bank is full. The system works great!
Have you taken a look at the 7.2kW generator that some models of the newer F-150s have on board? It's a pretty slick technology and one that I am hoping we will see in more and more trucks in the years to come.
I have researched the Ford onboard generators available as an option in 2021 and newer F150 models. Sounds like something that could be very helpful to the RV users that need power while dry camping. Way cool. Kudos to Ford for being 1st to market with this!
Great to hear from you David! Thanks for watching. We previously considered a second alternator (or larger replacement), but have since decided it's really not needed. Our factory 160A alternator is providing just over (90A) or 1,200 watts while this system is charging. This is very sufficient for our needs. Besides, if we were to add another alternator, or upsize the existing alternator, we'd need to also upsize the wiring, circuit breakers and connectors to gain any benefit. The current system has worked super well for 4 years now. Still on that original factory alternator.
I'm new to lithium and had a question about the alternator isolation switch. Is this required when using a lithium battery? I just got thru installing lithium in place of AGM batteries.
Thanks for dropping us a comment. The Lithium battery isolator accomplishes a few things...It keeps the Lithium house batteries from running down your starter battery when the engine is not running (isolates the two systems). The device also prevents over-heating of your engine's alternator. If you run large gauge wires from your Lithium batteries to your alternator, you will want to limit the rate of charge to prevent premature failure of the alternator from over-heating. The Lithium battery/s will accept current at a much faster rate than lead acid, putting additional strain on the alternator from the increased current flow. The LI-BIM device we use limits the strain on the alternator by cycling on-off-on the charging current to the Lithium house battery/s. However, if you are only charging through the 7-pin trailer connector with small 10GA wires, you may not need to limit the charge current. The small wire size will automatically reduce the current flow. If you are just connected to the alternator thru the 7-pin connector, you will also either need to disconnect the 7-pin trailer connector from the tow vehicle during times when the engine isn't running, or you will need to use a battery isolator like the LI-BIM we mention.
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Nice work Jeff. You must be some kind of engineer.
Thanks Charlie! I've been accused of that before😉
Awesome system, Did you design and install the system yourself?, looking at getting a 25" Bigfoot rear twin bed and will want truck & solar charging also.
We designed and installed both the solar and alternator charging systems ourselves. Hope your able to get the Bigfoot of your dreams! Thanks for watching.
Enjoying your adventures. Wondering why did you go with #1/0 for the dc-dc cable? Just noticing for my 30amp dc-dc charger, asks for 6awg wire.
Sorry for the late reply. We choose the #1/0 cable because we don't use a DC-DC battery charger. Instead, we are using a Li-BIM (Lithium Battery Isolation Manager) per the recommendation of Battle Born Batteries. This device charges at the full available alternator current for 15minutes, then disconnects to let the alternator cool down for 20 minutes. It then repeats the cycle until engine is shut down or lithium Ion battery bank is full. The system works great!
Have you taken a look at the 7.2kW generator that some models of the newer F-150s have on board? It's a pretty slick technology and one that I am hoping we will see in more and more trucks in the years to come.
I have researched the Ford onboard generators available as an option in 2021 and newer F150 models. Sounds like something that could be very helpful to the RV users that need power while dry camping. Way cool. Kudos to Ford for being 1st to market with this!
Jeff brilliant! Exactly how I wish to mount our system and create energy to storage. What size amperage is your alternator(s)?
David
Second view I see you have 1x160 A alternator. Did you consider a second or upsized alternator?
D.
Great to hear from you David! Thanks for watching. We previously considered a second alternator (or larger replacement), but have since decided it's really not needed. Our factory 160A alternator is providing just over (90A) or 1,200 watts while this system is charging. This is very sufficient for our needs. Besides, if we were to add another alternator, or upsize the existing alternator, we'd need to also upsize the wiring, circuit breakers and connectors to gain any benefit. The current system has worked super well for 4 years now. Still on that original factory alternator.
I'm new to lithium and had a question about the alternator isolation switch. Is this required when using a lithium battery? I just got thru installing lithium in place of AGM batteries.
Thanks for dropping us a comment. The Lithium battery isolator accomplishes a few things...It keeps the Lithium house batteries from running down your starter battery when the engine is not running (isolates the two systems). The device also prevents over-heating of your engine's alternator. If you run large gauge wires from your Lithium batteries to your alternator, you will want to limit the rate of charge to prevent premature failure of the alternator from over-heating. The Lithium battery/s will accept current at a much faster rate than lead acid, putting additional strain on the alternator from the increased current flow. The LI-BIM device we use limits the strain on the alternator by cycling on-off-on the charging current to the Lithium house battery/s. However, if you are only charging through the 7-pin trailer connector with small 10GA wires, you may not need to limit the charge current. The small wire size will automatically reduce the current flow. If you are just connected to the alternator thru the 7-pin connector, you will also either need to disconnect the 7-pin trailer connector from the tow vehicle during times when the engine isn't running, or you will need to use a battery isolator like the LI-BIM we mention.