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FWC Electrical basics and upgrading to lithium!

lithium camper electrical batteries charging

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#41 bike4mee

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Posted 16 February 2022 - 01:12 AM

Thanks! What about a ground wire. Shouldn't the camper be grounded? The existing plug-in has 3 wires, one being a ground. I'm running 2 wires to the truck. Do they both need to be 6 awg?

I guess the IOTA is just for shore, thanks


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#42 Vic Harder

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Posted 16 February 2022 - 05:09 AM

The two wires you are running are positive and ground from the truck?  If so, that ground wire will then be connected to both the truck's frame by the factory wiring harness, and to the camper frame via the stock wiring practices that the factory uses.  So yes, the camper will be grounded too, without any extra wires run by you.


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#43 bike4mee

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Posted 16 February 2022 - 02:01 PM

thanks Vic, your electrical expertise is so helpful. I'm a little confused! In most wiring applications there is a black/Red and a white wire. I believe the white is the common and black/Red the hot or positive. Most also have a green wire which is ground. I think the camper is wired this way. I'm not sure how to do it with just 2 wires   thx


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#44 Vic Harder

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Posted 16 February 2022 - 04:21 PM

Whoa. The wire Colors you describe are for AC house wiring. The two wires you are putting in are carrying DC power.

Different types of electricity, and different wiring codes.

To make matters more difficult, some RV wiring uses Black/White vs Red/Black for +/-ve.
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#45 Jon R

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Posted 16 February 2022 - 06:00 PM

My 2021 Grandby 10 gage truck connection harness came with black/white/green jacketed wire. The green was marker lamps positive. I replaced it all.
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#46 bike4mee

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Posted 16 February 2022 - 09:07 PM

Hummmm  so as long as I keep the negative terminal wire all the way from the truck battery to the camper battery, I'll be fine. And the same for the positive terminal wire. I hope this is as simple as it seems  thx


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#47 jdavis

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Posted 20 February 2022 - 06:58 AM

I have the PD 30amp Converter/Charger for my Lithium upgrade. When running on shore power and charging the converter would provide 14.6v to my DC panel. This would run my furnace, fans, lights etc. Should I be concerned about my furnace and fans getting voltage that high? Should I consider a voltage regulator - something like this: https://www.amazon.c..._qh_dp_hza?th=1

Thanks


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#48 Vic Harder

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Posted 20 February 2022 - 09:26 PM

Hummmm  so as long as I keep the negative terminal wire all the way from the truck battery to the camper battery, I'll be fine. And the same for the positive terminal wire. I hope this is as simple as it seems  thx

 

Basically, yes.

 

Only caveat is that your +ve wire should have 2 breakers inline.  Each to be placed as close as possible to their respective batteries.  I have about 10" between the truck's batteries and the first breaker, and 16" in the camper's battery box.


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#49 pawleyk

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Posted 20 February 2022 - 11:48 PM

I have the PD 30amp Converter/Charger for my Lithium upgrade. When running on shore power and charging the converter would provide 14.6v to my DC panel. This would run my furnace, fans, lights etc. Should I be concerned about my furnace and fans getting voltage that high? Should I consider a voltage regulator - something like this: https://www.amazon.c..._qh_dp_hza?th=1

Thanks

 

It shouldn't be an issue at all. Occasionally, with flooded lead batteries, chargers can reach even higher voltages than that during equalization stages. The equipment in the camper should handle 14.6v no problem. 


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#50 pawleyk

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Posted 20 February 2022 - 11:51 PM

Just learning about lithium batteries for campers and have a couple questions about the original post.

 

Is it OK and safe to have a 4 or 6 gauge wire from alternator to camper lifepo4 battery without a dc-dc charger? Original poster seemed to imply a significant boost to the house batteru with a heavy wire alone. I thought it is critical to control the current into a lithium battery.

Also, if the alternator to camper lifepo4 wire is thin, like 12 or 14 gauge, could that thin wire melt when the truck is running, especially if the lifepo4 SOC is low so it wants to be bulk charged?

 

I'm the original poster, and I'm sure I recommended installing a DCDC charger, along with the heavier wiring for a lithium application. For several reasons, all laid out in the write-up.

 

The thin wire won't melt (generally) but it will significantly limit your charge capability, and the voltage drop would cause your DCDC charger to cut in and out.


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