Dual Battery on 2014+?

[Mindflex]

Have seen a lot of good threads by antman and others regarding dual battery setups.

Curious has anyone found room under the hood for a 2nd battery in a 2014+ without any significant moving of equipment?

I have seen the thread behind the intake on the passenger side but that appears to be dangerous due to the thin sheet metal in the mounting area.



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[Jono.ful]

Had my group 31 optima blue top (60lbs) behind the air box for a year and a half now...

No issues whatsoever, no deflection, no cracks, nothing despite a fair bit of heavy wheeling

 

[Engineer]

Have seen a lot of good threads by antman and others regarding dual battery setups.

Curious has anyone found room under the hood for a 2nd battery in a 2014+ without any significant moving of equipment?

I have seen the thread behind the intake on the passenger side but that appears to be dangerous due to the thin sheet metal in the mounting area.



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Mainstream options,

*Larger batter in stock location
*2 smaller batteries in stock location
*Utilize stock location and location behind air intake near firewall
*Utilize stock location and passenger side location (will require moving the air pump)

There are threads where people have moved the smog (air) pump with relocation kits and mounted a battery and tray in that location.

I was sold on dual batteries until I got an small LI jump starter. After seeing it work I think a group 31 in the stock location will get me by with ease. All I really want is enough power to run the fridge for a couple days without having to worry about keeping the battery charged and a little more umphh for the winter would be nice as on cold days the OEM battery complained more then I liked.

 

[Engineer]

Had my group 31 optima blue top (60lbs) behind the air box for a year and a half now...

No issues whatsoever, no deflection, no cracks, nothing despite a fair bit of heavy wheeling

God put the plastic engine cover back on please! :rofl:

 

[Jono.ful]

God put the plastic engine cover back on please! :rofl:

I'm quite certain it's 100' deep in a land fill somewhere

 

[Jono.ful]

All I really want is enough power to run the fridge for a couple days without having to worry about keeping the battery charged and a little more umphh for the winter would be nice as on cold days the OEM battery complained more then I liked.

Did you look at the cca on your group 31? My big optima blue top has a lower cca than the stock Panasonic...

 

[Engineer]

Did you look at the cca on your group 31? My big optima blue top has a lower cca than the stock Panasonic...

Nope, haven't got that far. I assumed there may be some trade offs such as that but the "plan" was going to a deep cycle battery which my understanding are more forgiving of draining near empty etc then the OEM unit. If the CCA are less thats certainly a secondary concern to being able to run the fridge longer.

I do recall the 2 smaller batteries in the stock location made by kodiak was a decent bit less capacity then a group 31 from sears I was looking at.

Good to know

 

[Mindflex]

Had my group 31 optima blue top (60lbs) behind the air box for a year and a half now...

No issues whatsoever, no deflection, no cracks, nothing despite a fair bit of heavy wheeling

Glad that setup is working for you, looks nice.

Did you have to move/reroute the wires that are there? Did you mount it or simply rest it in ther?

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[Mindflex]

Mainstream options,

*Larger batter in stock location
*2 smaller batteries in stock location
*Utilize stock location and location behind air intake near firewall
*Utilize stock location and passenger side location (will require moving the air pump)

There are threads where people have moved the smog (air) pump with relocation kits and mounted a battery and tray in that location.

I was sold on dual batteries until I got an small LI jump starter. After seeing it work I think a group 31 in the stock location will get me by with ease. All I really want is enough power to run the fridge for a couple days without having to worry about keeping the battery charged and a little more umphh for the winter would be nice as on cold days the OEM battery complained more then I liked.

That is the direction I am thinking about going. Sounds like with this method you can run say a fridge for a night or more without running it all the way down and if you do you can just jump start it.

Is that accurate?

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[Jono.ful]

Glad that setup is working for you, looks nice.

Did you have to move/reroute the wires that are there? Did you mount it or simply rest it in ther?

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The wires are the harness which runs the the inverter on the TE. my solution was to fab a 1/4" steel plate and mount it to the fender using threaded rod bolted through the sheet metal, and large fender washers to help disperse the load. This solution allows you to leave the inverter wiring harness where it is. I then attached a battery cage (Pelfreybilt) to the plate to keep the battery secure.
I was concerned about the proximity of the battery to the exhaust manifold, but I can hold my hand in between the battery and exhaust with the engine at running temp so I figure it should be fine.

*edit* looking back at photos now, I did relocate the inverter harness and ground point to the fender wall

 

[Engineer]

That is the direction I am thinking about going. Sounds like with this method you can run say a fridge for a night or more without running it all the way down and if you do you can just jump start it.

Is that accurate?

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It has been a while since I looked at capacities and draw from the fridge but all the info needed is the forum. Essentially yes, I expect to be able to run the fridge for 2-3days with no issues and IF I need to jump the truck the LI jumper is in the glove box and will be kept charged every few months (manufacture says it will hold a charge for 6 but recommends checking 3-4....never hurts to be conservative)

The stock battery has worked fine for me most times however I have drained it 2x, both times less then ideal conditions, hot and I didn't pre cool the fridge contents. So while I know the OEM battery will do the job I believe its A) hard on the battery and B) not an ideal situation hence my desire to get a larger battery at some point, rather be conservative here.

If you are ever in the Twin Cities let me know

 

[JSparky]

That is the direction I am thinking about going. Sounds like with this method you can run say a fridge for a night or more without running it all the way down and if you do you can just jump start it.

Is that accurate?

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I ran a group 31 deep cycle in the factory location for over a year with an arb fridge hooked up. I like to run my fridge cold, set on the highest level of voltage protection, and in typical bay area conditions it would go for days (4+) without cutting out. Out in Tucson during the summer it lasted about 2 days before it shut down. Dual batteries are a necessity for certain applications, but for just running a fridge there's something to be said for keeping it simple... I'd be prone to just keep an emergency booster on standby if all I was doing was running a fridge.

 

[Jono.ful]

Dual batteries are a necessity for certain applications, but for just running a fridge there's something to be said for keeping it simple... I'd be prone to just keep an emergency booster on standby if all I was doing was running a fridge.

this +1.

I run duals because I have:
6x rock lights
40" dual row LED bar
20" single row LED bar
2x rigid dully D2
HID retrofit
aftermarket stereo and sub
500w inverter
compressor
plus a fridge

all in, my battery set up was easily $1500
-two new optima batteries
-3x marine grade fuse holders and fuses
-auxiliary fuse box
-30' 1/0 welding cable and terminal lugs
-split loom and heat shrink
-marine grade charge controller/relay
-battery cage
-misc hardware and wire
and probably 5 hours of install time, plus countless hours of research and running around to source parts. additionally, I'm an electrician and competent to do this kind of work.
do not do it unless you are sure you need it.

 

[Mindflex]

this +1.

I run duals because I have:
6x rock lights
40" dual row LED bar
20" single row LED bar
2x rigid dully D2
HID retrofit
aftermarket stereo and sub
500w inverter
compressor
plus a fridge

all in, my battery set up was easily $1500
-two new optima batteries
-3x marine grade fuse holders and fuses
-auxiliary fuse box
-30' 1/0 welding cable and terminal lugs
-split loom and heat shrink
-marine grade charge controller/relay
-battery cage
-misc hardware and wire
and probably 5 hours of install time, plus countless hours of research and running around to source parts. additionally, I'm an electrician and competent to do this kind of work.
do not do it unless you are sure you need it.

Very nice setup and agree it is overkill for my needs (frige and small accessories like cell and computer) .

Appreciate the pics!

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[Jono.ful]

happy to help