AGM Battery GM Voltage Booster

[4RunnerAquasport]

My ride to work is only about 15min each way,

For new AGM owners:
I have 2 starter batts and one Deep Cycle/Starter batt as house power for the 5th gen. They do not like to sit, and they don't like short trips. Having a smart charger is a good way to keep your battery investment in good condition. I top mine off with it once or twice a month even though I run the boosters. If you're averaging 50 to 100 miles a day, that might be enough to keep it topped off with the voltage booster.


X2 on the ArcLight, well made unit. I have a Dirty Parts booster on my 4th gen and it's been working well also. Just make sure you use one with the 7.5 amp fuse. The GM diode mod doesn't have the fuse, and it would be a slim chance, but it could cause problems in a collision, or other unexpected situations. And like was mentioned earlier, the voltage may be weak or inconsistent.

Sorry to hear about Northstar, didn't they make the X2?
I hope Odyssey keeps up the quality in that line. Expensive but they have been trouble free for years, with lots of abuse/vibration offroad.

 

[comtn4x4]

Sorry to hear about Northstar, didn't they make the X2?
I hope Odyssey keeps up the quality in that line. Expensive but they have been trouble free for years, with lots of abuse/vibration offroad.

Yes Northstar made the X2 line for Batteries Plus. The purchase was finalized late '19 so it's been a few years now. I haven't seen any conclusive information, however, it appears the X2 line may still be made in the Northstar plant.

 

[4RunnerAquasport]

Yes Northstar made the X2 line for Batteries Plus. The purchase was finalized late '19 so it's been a few years now. I haven't seen any conclusive information, however, it appears the X2 line may still be made in the Northstar plant.

From what I understand, for awhile Odyssey had some QC issues right after they opened the Mexico plant. I haven't heard anything bad for a few years now.

So hopefully they are putting out the quality that they did when they made a name for themselves.

The X2s are stupid expensive, but I've had my share of batt issues, so it was worth it to me. Most people will be fine with an economical choice in batteries, but in the performance offroad and marine industry, they take a beating.

 

[comtn4x4]

From what I understand, for awhile Odyssey had some QC issues right after they opened the Mexico plant. I haven't heard anything bad for a few years now.

So hopefully they are putting out the quality that they did when they made a name for themselves.

The X2s are stupid expensive, but I've had my share of batt issues, so it was worth it to me. Most people will be fine with an economical choice in batteries, but in the performance offroad and marine industry, they take a beating.

I wasn't aware Odyssey had a plant in Mexico... however, Optima does and they have had issues since they moved production there?

 

[4RunnerAquasport]

I wasn't aware Odyssey had a plant in Mexico... however, Optima does and they have had issues since they moved production there?

Yes Sir, I was mistaken. I was thinking Optima. SMH...

 

[Ripper238]

Installed ArcLight booster and set to standard boost. 14.3+ at start up and after 15min ride dropped down to ~13.6. Getting ~ .5V of extra power just like it suggests.

 

[HanginInUtah]

Another option: Full River and Full Throttle Batteries. Batteries - FT Series | Fullriver Battery
They are expensive, but definitely well made with quality stuff. I have started using them in our fleet for ambulances and fire trucks, and we're looking to use them in our reserve police vehicles to help prevent dead batteries.
I'm going to talk to them next week when they deliver some more to me about the maintenance, because as of right now we're not changing anything about how we keep them charged.
What I do know is that flooded cell batteries won't last on the shelf for more than a few months (or in a reserve vehicle) but these will maintain their charge for up to a year and a half. I'm at least sold on trying them out for our applications. It's only been about 6 months so far that we've been using them, so time will tell. But they appear to be what the Northstar's used to be in quality. Even the old days of Optima, before they moved their manufacturing and the quality tanked.

 

[Ripper238]

Reading over AGM charging voltage requirements the 14.3v let alone the 13.6v are not enough to charge an AGM battery?

I have an ODYSSEY 24F AGM so probably not a big deal but it seems the lower boost setting will do next to nothing and the over boost may push it too close to 15v.

I guess its better than what it was?

 

[4runnin4mylife]

Reading over AGM charging voltage requirements the 14.3v let alone the 13.6v are not enough to charge an AGM battery?

I have an ODYSSEY 24F AGM so probably not a big deal but it seems the lower boost setting will do next to nothing and the over boost may push it too close to 15v.

I guess its better than what it was?

Like a couple of us above have said above, just set it to the low voltage setting and forget it. You can bump it to the higher boost setting in the winter if you like and that should be fine. That way you are only having to flip the switch twice a year and not going back and forth constantly. I know more than 50 people who I overland/camp with that have used their voltage booster exactly as we have stated. If you want to be particular here are some charging voltages. On regular basis 12V deep cycle AGM batteries, float charge voltage is 13.5V~13.8V, cycle charging voltage is 14.4V~15.0V. Don’t overthink it. Lower boost in summer and higher boost in winter.

 

[Rack]

Which make and model AGM battery did you guys go with?

Panther,
I have a dual Battery system, The primary is a Odyssey 34R, which fits into stock battery tray, (No cabling mods needed just add the bottom spacer sold separately).
The secondary Battery is an Otima Marine dual purpose. Only because it fits into the shrock works battery tray. They can be connected Via a Blue sea ACR. But I haven't had the need to flip the switch. I charge both batteries with a CTEC 7002 charger set on snowflake. this keeps them topped off. I must also mention that my truck is not a Daily Driver and garage kept.

 

[Rack]

I wasn't aware Odyssey had a plant in Mexico... however, Optima does and they have had issues since they moved production there?

Over the years I have had no problem with the Optima Batteries, In my Boat they lasted Nine Plus years.
Recently I noticed some corrosion on the negative terminal of my aux Optima battery in my 4R. In the Optima brochure they state that Optima's are sealed and won't cause corrosion. I cleaned it up and a month later it was back. The battery was 5 years old so I replaced it with a new Optima.
I took a good look at the negative post and noticed it was cracked, the post are hollow. causing gas to leak out and cause the corrosion.
Then I remembered I had installed a quick connect for my charger to the post using Military battery clamps and evidently over tightened the compression bolt cracking the post. lesson learned.

 

[Saker]

Another option VoltageBoosterPRO

Looking for the newer versions, so I posted this link in case someone missed it.......

Voltage Booster for 20-22 T4R's to optimize your AGM battery

 

[97BlackAckCL]

I wasn't aware Odyssey had a plant in Mexico... however, Optima does and they have had issues since they moved production there?

I had 2 Optima Yellow Tops in a row that were absolute garbage after having working ones for over a decade that were bullet proof. Both came from the Mexico plant. I switched to Odyssey and never looked back

 

[rigtec]

Thanks for the feed back and information. So its safe to say the Arclight voltage booster is the way to go to keep the AGM batteries topped off. Has anyone had any issues with the arclight booster, overcharging the battery or would the fuse pop protect it from damaging the battery?

Hi Token_Indian,

The fuses will NEVER protect aganst High Voltages, but are designed to blow if High Amperages are sensed above 10%!! Extremely High Voltages will damage Compu Networks, lighting, appliances...etc, so we'v gotta watch for that!

~rig~ Cheers!

 

[Token_Indian]

Hi Token_Indian,

The fuses will NEVER protect aganst High Voltages, but are designed to blow if High Amperages are sensed above 10%!! Extremely High Voltages will damage Compu Networks, lighting, appliances...etc, so we'v gotta watch for that!

~rig~ Cheers!

Thanks Rig!

That is very interesting. Do you use an OBDlink to check voltage and make sure it is in optimal range or is there any regular maintance that you inspect?

I really want to get the AGM battery but Im just worried about upping the voltage and like you described "damaging the system, network, lights, etc."

 

[97BlackAckCL]

Thanks Rig!

That is very interesting. Do you use an OBDlink to check voltage and make sure it is in optimal range or is there any regular maintance that you inspect?

I really want to get the AGM battery but Im just worried about upping the voltage and like you described "damaging the system, network, lights, etc."

The voltage tweaks are very minor, just changing the charging voltage of the alternator. I monitor my system with my radio and have seen no harsh spikes or issues in over 2 years. I too was skeptical especially of the GM diode, but I've been impressed with the higher voltage gained with the Arc Light circuit and I only run it on the first boost setting not the full on voltage boost (it has 2 settings)

 

[Ripper238]

Thanks Rig!

That is very interesting. Do you use an OBDlink to check voltage and make sure it is in optimal range or is there any regular maintance that you inspect?

I really want to get the AGM battery but Im just worried about upping the voltage and like you described "damaging the system, network, lights, etc."

Rig was just answering you question about voltage and fuses and how fuses dont protect against votage but protect against amprage spikes.
Higher amprage would have to come from somwhereelse than the voltage booster to damage. The voltage booster only bumps by .5A - 1.0A which is nothing.

Arclight voltage booster is a good safe way to go to keep the AGM batteries topped off. Your other safe option is to get an AGM battory charger like the Noco Genius 2 Battery Maintainer. Its just anoying to do and doesint really work for my long term Overlanding.

I have been able to monitor my voltage through my head unit. Definitly works as advertised so far.

 

[Will_4R]

Would installing this in my 4Runner help charge the batteries in my travel trailer while driving? I have a dual AGM set up in the trailer that has a hard time charging up while driving, especially when under a load from the 12V fridge. The trailer has a three stage AGM charger in it (which is suppose to regulate the voltage), but for some reason it just isn't enough to do more than maintain their charge while driving. I also run an AGM in the 4Runner, so that's 3 batteries the alternator is trying to charge while driving. Maybe I just need a bigger alt?

 

[Ripper238]

Would installing this in my 4Runner help charge the batteries in my travel trailer while driving? I have a dual AGM set up in the trailer that has a hard time charging up while driving, especially when under a load from the 12V fridge. The trailer has a three stage AGM charger in it (which is suppose to regulate the voltage), but for some reason it just isn't enough to do more than maintain their charge while driving. I also run an AGM in the 4Runner, so that's 3 batteries the alternator is trying to charge while driving. Maybe I just need a bigger alt?

Sounds like you have multiple AGM batteries and already have a three stage AGM charger. A bigger/better alternator sounds more appropriate. The voltage booster is for a simple upgrade to an AGM.

 

[octanejunkie]

Hello,



I am in the process of updating my main battery for the Runner and have read from multiple threads about the lack of voltage that comes from the stock alternator when upgrading to an AGM battery. Apart from getting an actual voltage booster it seems that the GM diode is a good substitute.



I am inquiring on those who have gone the GM route if they have encountered any issues with over charging the AGM battery or by increasing the voltage coming from the alternator if it lessens the life of the alternator?



I am not doing anything too crazy offroad, mostly 2-3 night camping, and I have been getting by just fine with the regular 24f battery, but I can get a decent priced 24f AGM for the same price. I dont have a fridge just yet and the only draws to the battery are mostly lights. Im just thinking in the future if I get an AGM battery that it would put extra stress on the alternator or does the voltage booster just boost the regular alternator capacity without overworking it?



Either way Ill be getting a quality battery. Thanks.

I already switched to AGM and am upgrading to the CS144 alt this weekend. No reason to do the GM booster

Which make and model AGM battery did you guys go with?

Deka 9A34R

I plan on running two AGM batteries, start and house. Here's the thread I started after talking to Battleborn, Redarc, Blue Sea and a few others :

Charging and power storage project for my 99 4runner