What did you do TO your Gladiator today? [ADMIN WARNING: NO POLITICS, NO GUN TALK]

[capercrew02]

Nice! Why are you planning to run your camping fridge through an inverter? Most of the compressors are 12v so their far more efficient to run off the battery than through an inverter.

I installed my 600W pure sine wave inverter in the dead space behind the rear driver's side seat. It will be used to power my camp fridge, and to charge my laptop and camera equipment on trips.

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[JRobes]

Decided to plastidip the grille today. I was pretty bummed when I found out the sport doesn't come with the removable body-colored trim pieces around the sides of the grille, but a little tape job and plastidip got the look I was after. FYI, I used a 50/50 mix of denatured alcohol and water to clean the grille. I then used electrical tape to mask off the outer trim pieces instead of painters tape since it's easily stretched around the grooves of the grille, and then 5 coats of plastidip (peel the tape as soon as you're done with the last coat otherwise it won't tear clean if it's fully dry). Hopefully it holds up as long as some suggest, but if it doesn't it's only $10 lost.

 

[TheHops]

Nice! Why are you planning to run your camping fridge through an inverter? Most of the compressors are 12v so their far more efficient to run off the battery than through an inverter.

I'm assuming you mean as opposed to plugging directly in to the outlet(s) in the Jeep? If that's what you mean, it was kind of a "kill multiple birds with one stone," mixed with boredom type of decision:

-I had the parts and the time
-I didn't want to have to unnecessarily modify anything to support a fridge that only lives in the Jeep while camping
-I couldn't figure out a way to make the in-cab outlet constant hot
-I don't have the bed outlet (though I do actually plan on running an aftermarket panel back to the stock location in the future)

With this, I can keep my fridge and spare drone batteries running/charging and secured in the cab around the clock, surge protected, and I get the 3 extra in-cab outlets (including the extra USB port). As far as efficiency that's not really a *huge* concern, due to my endgame of dual batteries and a small solar setup. On a side note, if it doesn't end up working out, I can strip the whole thing out inside of 10 minutes with no indication that it was ever there, so there's that too.

 

[TheHops]

Installed Truck Covers USA roll cover w/Yakima rails/rack and HD cross bars (already had the rhino rack bike attachments kicking around)...

Great product so far, installed in about 3 hours, no tax or shipping from Dale's Superstore online, dealt directly with Kim at Truck covers for the rack setup.

Pretty neat looking setup. Do you happen to know what weight it's rated for?

 

[capercrew02]

I should have been more clear, any fridge you would reasonably want to use in the bed of your truck camping, should be primarily a 12v fridge. Many do also accept 110v, but the fridge itself is less efficient, and your also loosing efficiency with the inverter. I highly reccomend running a 12v fridge with some type of 12v connection. It will be better in your entire electrical system, and deals can be had if you don’t already have such a fridge. I picked up my 85qt wynter fridge/freezer for $250 5 years ago. It can go as low as -10 degrees Fahrenheit, or set at any other desired temp. I can run it for 4 days on a single 12v battery without ever running the battery dead, or worrying about needing to start the vehicle. That fridge now sits in my Offroad trailer, but I’ve still wired my gladiator to accept it should I need it in the bed at times. I added these 12 and 5v accessory plugs in the bed for this reason.

I'm assuming you mean as opposed to plugging directly in to the outlet(s) in the Jeep? If that's what you mean, it was kind of a "kill multiple birds with one stone," mixed with boredom type of decision:

-I had the parts and the time
-I didn't want to have to unnecessarily modify anything to support a fridge that only lives in the Jeep while camping
-I couldn't figure out a way to make the in-cab outlet constant hot
-I don't have the bed outlet (though I do actually plan on running an aftermarket panel back to the stock location in the future)

With this, I can keep my fridge and spare drone batteries running/charging and secured in the cab around the clock, surge protected, and I get the 3 extra in-cab outlets (including the extra USB port). As far as efficiency that's not really a *huge* concern, due to my endgame of dual batteries and a small solar setup. On a side note, if it doesn't end up working out, I can strip the whole thing out inside of 10 minutes with no indication that it was ever there, so there's that too.

 

[TheHops]

I should have been more clear, any fridge you would reasonably want to use in the bed of your truck camping, should be primarily a 12v fridge. Many do also accept 110v, but the fridge itself is less efficient, and your also loosing efficiency with the inverter. I highly reccomend running a 12v fridge with some type of 12v connection. It will be better in your entire electrical system, and deals can be had if you don’t already have such a fridge. I picked up my 85qt wynter fridge/freezer for $250 5 years ago. It can go as low as -10 degrees Fahrenheit, or set at any other desired temp. I can run it for 4 days on a single 12v battery without ever running the battery dead, or worrying about needing to start the vehicle. That fridge now sits in my Offroad trailer, but I’ve still wired my gladiator to accept it should I need it in the bed at times. I added these 12 and 5v accessory plugs in the bed for this reason.

Truth be told I'm not overly well-versed with electrical terminology. I more or less stick with what I know works, even though it may not be optimal. I ran a similar setup in a previous rig for about 4 years (same inverter with a less efficient fridge, with a single battery/no solar) and never had any issues, and was never left stranded. On several trips, I went days without starting the truck. Maybe I just lucked out. I appreciate the information though, and it never hurts to do a bit more research on my part, so that may be something I need to look in to. Yours is a nice looking setup but, regardless, at this point the bed isn't an option for me because my fridge is too tall to fit beneath a tonneau, and there are no camper shells on the market that fit my needs just yet.

When I was planning it out, the main motivation for the install in the first place was to utilize the pure sine wave inverter for some of my more delicate electronic equipment. Having it right next to the fridge and ready to plug in and run full time was icing on the cake. But again, as far as efficiency that's really not a major concern either way. The fridge draws in the range of .75 - 1.5 amps depending on load. Considering 90% conversion efficiency (per the inverter specs in my manual) I'd likely still be looking at a maximum draw of under 2 amps. With a planned 130 ah of battery, along with solar trickle charging (complete overkill compared to my last rig) I don't anticipate any issues.

It's always a work in progress though. I may find something that ends up both maximizing efficiency, and working even better for my needs!

 

[Brfertig [HACKED ACCOUNT]]

Put on the Mopar lift and fox shocks and added the badge.

 

[Mark Doiron]

I installed my 600W pure sine wave inverter in the dead space behind the rear driver's side seat. It will be used to power my camp fridge, and to charge my laptop and camera equipment on trips.

Could you please provide some detail on how you got the cables into the cab?

 

[DrJ]

It was kind of a "kill


Pretty neat looking setup. Do you happen to know what weight it's rated for?

Thanks, loving it so far!

Kim from truck covers sent me the yakima load ratings and is based solely on specs for the yakima skyline towers/HD bars themselves which is 600/220 static/dynamic respectively. However, I'm hesitant with these numbers because of the way the Yakima towers fit into the landing pads for connection to the rack rails (which is plastic). I would hesitate to take this on any extreme trails when I get the RTT attached. It does feel extremely solid but I'm sure lateral forces on a rough trail with a full load may lead to failure.

 

[JWest]

Finally figured out what to do with the Jeep crate. Added casters so I can move it around the garage. Added hydraulic lift for the lid. Store odds and ends inside. Use the lid as a work table. Works perfectly.

 

[whiteglad]

One safety comment for those working under or partially under the Jeep: Use a bigger base, heavy jack stand if possible, instead of raising the center bar a lot on a small stand. It is more stable. I have a number of double wheel rims, welded together at the lips for more height. That is even more stable. I also put wood blocks at the remaining tires to prevent rolling. Not trying to criticize, just to help.

 

[whiteglad]

That Jeep crate looks great. I suggest a couple oats of satin clear finish, so it will stay nice with use.

 

[JWest]

That Jeep crate looks great. I suggest a couple oats of satin clear finish, so it will stay nice with use.

Satin Clear - got it. Thx

 

[TheHops]

Could you please provide some detail on how you got the cables into the cab?

Search "Ares" for my build thread. I go in to a bit more detail there. My air compressor wiring is a bit more detailed, but it was essentially the same path just on the opposite side of the vehicle.

The gist though is that I ran the wires by way of the floor trim, up and out through the door jamb, through the cowl and in to the engine bay.

 

[LiftedLife]

One safety comment for those working under or partially under the Jeep: Use a bigger base, heavy jack stand if possible, instead of raising the center bar a lot on a small stand. It is more stable. I have a number of double wheel rims, welded together at the lips for more height. That is even more stable. I also put wood blocks at the remaining tires to prevent rolling. Not trying to criticize, just to help.

I have to second this one. You can buy more parts or even a vehicle but only get one set of legs,hands and most important ones life!

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