Questions: Dual Bat setup and Power Distribution block from Shrock

Hi Guys,

I've tried searching and haven't had much luck when I do searching. Although I clicked on a few builds I didn't look at very build so I might have missed stuff too.

I'm looking to do a dual Bat setup come spring. I really like inbetween different builds and a couple questions will let me figure out which way I need to go

1) What battery trays are everyone using? Where are most people mounting them?

I saw dirty parts has a kit made for the 4th gen I haven't really been able to find anyone else. It's probably a little more money that I originally wanted to spend.

Dirty Parts

2) is anyone on here or know of everyone using dirtypart.com kit? any feedback?

3) If I do a dual battery setup do the batterys have to be the same? brand/size/relative age?

4) any other kit someone else can suggest? I'm mainly looking for battery trays as I'm leaning though the Cheap-Dual-Bat Setup like http://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/125772-dual-batteries-cheap.html





Second group of questions..

Is anyone using Shrockworks Power Distribution Module?
Power Distribution Module

It looks awesome, pricey but I love how clean it looks and how it looks almost OE. Just wanted to see if there was any feedback regarding that as well?

Many thanks!

Almost 100 views so I'm guessing both of these products are not used by many people on the board.

I used the Dirty Parts tray, but I didn't buy their kit because I didn't really like the components that were used.

I just designed built my own that was a lot more feature rich and more robust than the " Cheap-Dual-Bat Setup ".

This including a bunch of features that some logic based hardware that also protects the starter battery from a fault like an under voltage condition on the house side.

I am just going to copy paste this from another thread I made a post on, but this should give you an idea of how I went about it...

The most challenging part of the kit was probably just making the cables and actually finding a place to mount stuff. It wasn't difficult but it was a bit time consuming it make it nice.

I made everything myself, including the mains cables which were crimped and protected with adhesive lined shrink + a layer of regular stuff.

My electrical project and needs started with a requirement for more storage/amp hours to run smaller but more persistent accessories loads like an ARB fridge, accessory charging, and radio communications gear... while maintaining saftey for vehical starting for those off-grid adventures and leisure camping trips.

Dirty Parts Dual Battery Tray
2nd Battery
MEGA fusing for mains cable, no crappy car audio stuff here. Crimped and bolted cable.
New Wiring / Refresh crimped Connectors for everything.
Blue Sea ACR (Automatic Charging Relay)
Blue Sea m-LVD(programmable low voltage disconnect feeding both aux fuse panels)
Blue Sea Fuse Panel x 2 (One under hood, one in cab)
Wire
Solar Panel (for emergency or extended stays when I dont feel like starting or driving to charge)
MPPT Solar Charge Controller
Anderson Powerpole quick disconnects for accessories.

As my needs change and as I keep adding items I will eventually need to upgrade my alternator, but as of now, my loads are still well within a safe operating range.

The system is robust and worry free, you can't mess it up even if you tried. Not having to worry about the starter battery going dead is a pretty big piece-of-mind item for me... almost mission critical considering the type of camping I do sometimes... The system is 100% isolated when the engine is not running plus I have protections in place to maintain the health of the accessory battery.

I also take the time to turn everything on to test and measure all electrical loads... Lighting, compressors, ARB fridge, 2 x Ham Radios...




external battery pack made from 3 x old APC SLA cells








fusing, switches, led indicator, and control wiring...





Outdoor = Inside freezer / Inside = Car cabin temp

rcebowl said:

Second group of questions..

Is anyone using Shrockworks Power Distribution Module?
Power Distribution Module

It looks awesome, pricey but I love how clean it looks and how it looks almost OE. Just wanted to see if there was any feedback regarding that as well?

Many thanks!

Click to expand...

If you are looking for a pre-fabricated solution that is probably one of the nicest ones I have seen... and its good hardware.

If you know how to wire a relay, or even make your own crimped connections... you can just make your own and save a bunch of cash. Its not hard, its just labor intensive work and you have to crimp to tie in those connections anyways so instead of making butt connections just terminates your own wire ends and have a cleaner setup too. Doing it yourself even leave you with a healthy budget for tools, which is nice to have in the recovery / tool bag on the trail.

That said, I would be happy to wire my rig with anything from Bussman or Blue Sea...

Bumbo, awesome job! Are those solar panels you can connect hanging off the side of the truck?

fo'dilly said:

Bumbo, awesome job! Are those solar panels you can connect hanging off the side of the truck?

Click to expand...

Thanks... its probably one of my more successful mods or projects.

Yes, the solar panels on the side are a 60 watt folding panel which turned out to be really convenient and useful piece of kit. That said, using a reliable meter it only nets about 40 watts in real world conditions which still keeps me ahead of my fridge load.

I can connect to front or back of the truck using those Anderson Powerpole quick disconnects.

great setup! thanks for sharing. Do you like their bat tray? any regrets?

rcebowl said:

great setup! thanks for sharing. Do you like their bat tray? any regrets?

Click to expand...

I do like the tray... I just thought it was a bit overpriced for what it is... That said, it was a good quality tray, worked as advertised, and had actually held up well to some heavy off-road use which was a concern at the time.

No regrets... It did helped me accomplish my end goad without having to spend weeks figuring out how to get a battery in there with a DIY solution.

I just wanted it to go together without issues as I had a lot more on my plate with the rest of the electrical project...

I did a lot more that wasn't documented in this thread... including wire sizing calcs, radio communications, lighting, antenna wiring and a bunch of in-cab electrical work as well.