[silentbob97]

I need to run 2 optima yellowtop batteries and I just wanted to know how the setup would work. If I wanted to run them parallel is it + to + and - to ground? Or + to + and - to -? Thanks for any info

 

[IntegraX97]

wait, - to -? thats giving no ground!!! need a ground to the chasis!! do a + to - and then a - to chasis and the other positive use for power!!! correct? i may be wrong but it sounds good!

 

[whitegsr]

both get their own ground wire that goes to chasis if both batteries are in same location they get bolted to the same ground bolt and then the positive goes from one battery to the other

a extra batt. conects EXACTLEY like a CAPACITOR for a sound system... EXACTLEY THE SAME so find the instructions for one of thos if you can. You DO NOT have to charge the battery with a resistor. Also make sure that if one batt. is in the trunk and one is under the hood that right after the battery under the hood you have a fuse then right before that wire gets to the batt in the trunk another fuse. Think of it this way regardless of what some may have told you the fuses are used to keep wires from melting and catching on fire... and in the case of an accident they make sure that a crimped wire dosnt ground out and heat up so think of it this way. SO YOU DO NEED THEM. and they DOOO NEED TO BE PROPERLEY SIZED. 60-80amp depending on length for a high quality 4au wire the shorter the wire the higher amperage it can incure. The best way to run the wire is down the center of the car or the passanger side,


I worked for Tweeter/Sound Advice(goodguys hifi buys etc.) and Circuit City and have done plenty of installs if you have n e questions email me [email protected]

 

[silentbob97]

Ok thanks for the help chris and william. So I need 2 fuses between the batteries I never would have guessed that. I actually have 1 guage wire that I am using to connect the batteries. Does that affect the amperage on the fuses or is 80 amps still ok? Hooking up 2 batteries is a lot more work than I thought. Well its back to pep boys for me lol. Thanks again!

 

[whitegsr]

1au wire will take ALOT of current. Question is though what type of 1au wire is it. If its flexcable (welding power wire) then its about equivilent to 2au high grade car audio power wire. If it is high grade car audio power wire you can run extremeley high amperage on it but its better safe than sorry. If you are going over 100amp you will need to use ANL type fuses instead of Glass AGU. ANL fuses are the 2 inch long flat fuses. They are extremely exspensive. Most likley you will not HAVE to go over 100amp unless you have tons of amps in your trunk.

I had alpines biggest 4 channel the MRV-F540 and (2) MRD-M500s and an Alumapro 5 Farad Cap running off a 80amp fuse and it never broke.

 

[Me007gold]

if you dont mide me asking, what kinda system are you running that you need two barreries?

 

[silentbob97]

I am running the 1 guage welding cable so I don't think I need more than 100 amps. I am running a lot of lighting including fiberoptics that use a super bright haologen bulb and moving color wheel. So it is a big draw I think its like 500 watts or so. I'll post pics of the finished product so you know what i'm talking about.

Oh yea I set down my yellowtop battery on the grounf in the Ace parking lot and someone said that the ground was drainign the battery. How does that work? What about on the ground inside a car or house?

 

[cybrsamurai]

unless the parking lot was wet or made of metal and you put your batteries top down with both posts touching to create a circuit It wasn't draining your battery. I don't know what the guy was talking about, I wouldnt worry about it.

 

[silverbullit]

I am running the 1 guage welding cable so I don't think I need more than 100 amps. I am running a lot of lighting including fiberoptics that use a super bright haologen bulb and moving color wheel. So it is a big draw I think its like 500 watts or so. I'll post pics of the finished product so you know what i'm talking about.

Oh yea I set down my yellowtop battery on the grounf in the Ace parking lot and someone said that the ground was drainign the battery. How does that work? What about on the ground inside a car or house?

The old myth about a battery draining to the ground went placed direcrtly on the ground, is just that, an old myth. I would ask that same someone, how the heck a battery would drain itself through the plastic casing into the ground. If that were the case, you would feel a shock every time you touched your battery.

 

[Vivisector]

holy crap, don't listen to Chris. Doing it that way will put them in series not in parallel. This would give you 24V across everything bang bang pop. Make sure you run them in parallel, much like you thought in your first statement, but yes a fuse might be a good idea.

 

[racerx159]

Back in the day before plastic enveloped batteries, it was bad to place a battery on the ground, cause it would discharge, or drain. But ever since the batteries switched to plastic covers, there's no need for that anymore.

 

[ajinct]

unless you want to buy an alternator every couple of weeks you are going to need an elecrtrical set up to handle it. take this from a man who has messed this up before and found ways to fix it. you will need a battery isolator/regulator. This is the safest, easiest, and most effective way to charge and maintain multiple batteries. this will save you alot of time trouble batteries and alternators. I have one question tho do you plan to run these accesories while the car is running or not. IM me at AJinCT if you got an more questions or want some help. good luck


look here for a lightning audio one
look here for a rockford fosgate

 

[silentbob97]

So yea I am going to be running this mostly with my engine on. I have upgraded my alternator to I think its 160 amps. I have looked into the isolator, but from what I understand they are only beneficial if you are worried about killing your starter battery.

I am not really concerned about having my batttery die when running the lights with the engine off. I just need a lot of juice to run all my accessories.

Is my new alternator not fit to charge both batteries at once? Besides aren't isolators difficult to install and expensive? I'd like to skip it if I can get away with my settup now.
So its + to + and - to ground for my current setup right?

Thanks

 

[ajinct]

110 amps is what you need for just one of those huge batties. i'de say go with the more powerfull alternator if you have time to make yourself a custom mount for it try to get a police alternator or some thing off a truck. You need alot of juice to charge two large bats. two mids or one big alt. but the voltage regulators will make sure one charges and then charges the other one. they are a little expensive but they are well worth it

 

[silentbob97]

Ok so what kind of battery isolator do you recomend and where's a good place to get one? Dam this project is getting so expensive! $180 each for the batteries over $60 for the cables and connectors, $250 for alternator and installation, and now an isolator. We'll I'll have to work some overtime for the next month or so, but hopefully after everything is finally installed it will be worth it. I'll post pics of the project in case anyone else attemps this ambitious task.

 

[Vivisector]

Just a silly question??? Why are you adding the batteries again??? You mentioned your car is going to be running while the lights are on, and your alternator is upgraded to 160 amps? You have more then enough power to run all these without the batteries, and actually what you are doing may actually cause more drain on your alternator if thats what your worried about. After the car is started, if your draw is larger then what your alternator can put out, your batteries will discharge, and you won't have any bonus to having these anyways.

You also mentioned what your connecting is drawing about 500 watts, which is not much at all, only 41 amps. If your alternator is capable of 160, this leaves you with almost 120 amps left for whatever else your car is doing at the time.

Big question. Do you have a lager audio system hooked up in the car that is also pulling major draw from the alternator? Say 1000 Watts of audio equipment? I have 1500 Watts of Audio equipment connected to my yet original 80 Amp alternator, or there about, and don't notice any brownouts or anything when its cranked up. Yes I do know my alternator will be burning out relativley soon.

 

[silentbob97]

Thanks for the in-depth reply. Ok, You might actually be right about not needing another battery. The reason why I think I do is because I have this fiber optic lighting system that has a halogen bulb and rotating color wheel that draws a lot of power. My AC inverter that I plug the fiberoptics into has a low voltage warning that goes off after a few minutes of running the fiberoptics with the car on. Now I think the problem was that I was plugging the AC inverter into the cigarette lighter instead of running it directly to the battery. But I am running a lot of stuff here is the list:

500 watt fiberoptic lighting
400 watt inverter for "lighted window tint"
another 400 watt inverter for "lighted window tint"
80 watt inverter for lighted graphix
?? watt ICELED UFO 2 million color LED underbody kit
?? streetglow GS underbody kit
?? lighted pinstriping and interior blacklights

So there is a lot of stuff to run off 1 battery. I am only assuming that I need 2. What do you think?

 

[Vivisector]

hmmm, ok I see you have a lot more draw then what you mentioned. Well for the most part, you should still only be running off alternator when car is running, battery is supposed to be charging off the excess to get back what it lost starting the car. If you are indeed drawing it down past the alternators limit, if you are going to run 2 batteries, I would recommend getting the isolation circuitry and voltage regulator, do to the fact if you are indeed going to be sucking every last amp of draw from the alternator, and then some, you don't want to find yourself with 2 dead batteries, in which case you won't be able to start your car. The batteries don't create extra amperage for your car, they just store electricity from what is leftover from the alternator. Therefore if your drawing from them, you will eventually have 2 dead batteries.

 

[sneeedle]

ok, not to go off topic, but what in the heck is lighted window tinting.. I jsut did a search on google, and came up empty handed.. I definitly wanna see pictures of your car when all is said and done.

 

[codenamezero]

do you drive a teg or UFO with wheels? i bet your neigborhood have alots of UFO sighting huh? hehe... post pic man.

btw, get a 150amp alternator upgrade, or get something even higher.