Fitting 2nd leisure battery

[welsh winger]

I am looking in to fitting a second leisure battery, so the question to be asked is do I need to fit a second split charger to the 1st leisure battery and that way let them charge in sequence, or will the one split charger be able charging to the 2 battery's.

For a bit more detail I already have a 120 amp LB and intend to fit the same size for the 2nd

Nick
Welsh Winger

[Giles B]

Where abouts in the vehicle are you fitting them? I ask more out of interest in doing similar myself and less from any ability to provide advice. Except that I have heard others mention that the battery does output some gas and having too much of it under the bonnet is not a great plan. Mind you I presume if you're fitting a second then it's not under the bonnet right as there won't be enough space?

[g8dhe]

There won't be a problem with gas under the bonnet, its well ventilated! However if you have the battery inside the vehicle that's another matter, especially in a closed area.

The other aspect is that batteries in the vehicle need to be will fastened down securely, I think there are regulations about it somewhere.

Back to the original question, if you have identical batteries then it shouldn't be a problem to wire the two L/B in parallel however you will need to fuse the feeds from each one. Don't mix the battery types however i.e. a standard lead acid and a calcium one they have slightly different voltages and one will steal most of the charge/discharge cycle. Having them on two different relays is not necessary, but neither will it do any harm other than to your wallet.

[peanutcrusher]

you might be able to fit a third battery in the tool box area, i've just fitted an amp in there.

[welsh winger]

To clear thing up I actually sold my bongo last week and bought a larger motor
home, I miss the bongo already but the wife told me we needed a bigger van so...........

The leisure battery I had in the bongo was a what I call a sealed type, you cannot take the caps off the check the levels, it cant have been totally sealed as it had a vent pipe outlet on the side, so I drilled the floor and fitted a pipe for it to vent

I intend doing some thing similar on the new van, as the original leisure battery is under the drivers seat, with the same space available under the passengers seat.

Back to the bongo the plan was to make a battery shelf and fit that in the engine bay under the passenger seat for the second battery.

we have been tending to go away for 7 to 8 days at a time and finding the one battery even a 120 amp does not last, I blame the telly, the iron, and a few other essential I am told we need

Hope this covers my dilemma

Nick
Welsh Winger

[peanutcrusher]

buy better batteries. i got a optima yellow top battery cost more than a leisure but loads better, they put them in things like tanks for the army etc.

http://www.optimabatteries.com/

[PisceanJoy]

How much was the Optima?About to get a Leisure battery put on tomorrow

[welsh winger]

As a post script I phoned an well known e-bay suppler, this morning he was saying they fuse the split charger at 20 amps, the normal load expected being 10 amps, so 2 battery's would max out the fuse, I asked him about using 2 split chargers, he was honest to say he was trying to think of a way of suggesting it himself without sounding like he was touting for trade, so 2 split chargers it is as I ordered 2 there and then.

Nick
welsh winger

[Jon 41]

I've fitted a second leisure battery to my bongo. I made the battery tray out of 16's gauge steel to fit a 120 amp battery with screw down clamps and suspended it under the nearside towards the rear. It can be drilled and nut and bolted through the tool compartment and on my tray I had legs going downwards to meet up with a couple of perfectly placed sill drainholes to again nut and bolt, making it completely rigid and secure. I then ran the positve wire through the chassis (making sure both ends are fused of course) and there is a perfectly placed original captive nut above the battery to earth the negative side of the battery to the body. All very discreet, and bags of ground clearance as it doesn't hang down as far as the axle tie bar mounting does. I found this was the only place I could fit it, where I could still access it without a major stripdown.

[g8dhe]

As a post script I phoned an well known e-bay suppler, this morning he was saying they fuse the split charger at 20 amps, the normal load expected being 10 amps, so 2 battery's would max out the fuse, I asked him about using 2 split chargers, he was honest to say he was trying to think of a way of suggesting it himself without sounding like he was touting for trade, so 2 split chargers it is as I ordered 2 there and then.

On the input side fuse it at 40 Amps on on the output side take two feeds and fuse them for each battery at 20 Amps. Provided the relay itself is adequately rated for breaking 40Amps you won't have a problem.

Remember fuses protect the cable NOT the device either relay or battery in this case.

[The Great Pretender]

I've fitted a second leisure battery to my bongo. I made the battery tray out of 16's gauge steel to fit a 120 amp battery with screw down clamps and suspended it under the nearside towards the rear. It can be drilled and nut and bolted through the tool compartment and on my tray I had legs going downwards to meet up with a couple of perfectly placed sill drainholes to again nut and bolt, making it completely rigid and secure. I then ran the positve wire through the chassis (making sure both ends are fused of course) and there is a perfectly placed original captive nut above the battery to earth the negative side of the battery to the body. All very discreet, and bags of ground clearance as it doesn't hang down as far as the axle tie bar mounting does. I found this was the only place I could fit it, where I could still access it without a major stripdown.

Any chance of some pics?

[Jon 41]

I've fitted a second leisure battery to my bongo. I made the battery tray out of 16's gauge steel to fit a 120 amp battery with screw down clamps and suspended it under the nearside towards the rear. It can be drilled and nut and bolted through the tool compartment and on my tray I had legs going downwards to meet up with a couple of perfectly placed sill drainholes to again nut and bolt, making it completely rigid and secure. I then ran the positve wire through the chassis (making sure both ends are fused of course) and there is a perfectly placed original captive nut above the battery to earth the negative side of the battery to the body. All very discreet, and bags of ground clearance as it doesn't hang down as far as the axle tie bar mounting does. I found this was the only place I could fit it, where I could still access it without a major stripdown.

Any chance of some pics?

I'll see what I can do

[Jon 41]

As promised pics posted below:

http://www.webtech1.co.uk/018.jpg
http://www.webtech1.co.uk/019.jpg
http://www.webtech1.co.uk/020.jpg
http://www.webtech1.co.uk/021.jpg
http://www.webtech1.co.uk/022.jpg
http://www.webtech1.co.uk/023.jpg

hope this helps

[wonkanoby]

I assume you dont live in london

as the first speed bump round my way would see you picking up bits

[Jon 41]

I assume you dont live in london

as the first speed bump round my way would see you picking up bits

There are plenty of speed bumps in Oldham. If you managed to scrape the battery tray you would also have scraped the rear of the gearbox and the front of the rear suspension. You must have some huge speed humps in London