Battery setup for overlanding?'s

[Metalhead]

So I'm building out my Gladiator for overlanding. I have been researching till I'm blurry eyed. I do like the Genesis system but my Jeep is still under warranty and don't want to get that invasive right now plus the expense. I will have a winch, ARB single air compressor, and a small fridge/freezer. Possibly a few offroad lights. My subwoofer is currently the only thing on the main battery. Thinking of mounting a battery in the bed. I plan on powering the fridge while driving on the second battery but once set up at camp will use a portable power station like a jackery to power things at camp. Using the hole in the bed where the 115 volt outlet option would mount, I bought a plate that has a 12 volt lighter plug and 2 usb ports. The lighter plug will be for the fridge. Looking for a reasonably priced way to add the 2nd battery in the bed and be able to monitor and keep main and 2nd batteries charged with a solar option. Could I just have the winch on the main battery and everything else on the 2nd battery? Or is it better to put it all on the second battery? How big of a second battery do I need to run all this stuff?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

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[Neomonk21]

I briefly thought about doing something like this but I'm not ready to invest in it yet. I already have two Bluetti battery packs so I would go with their battery charger/tender here:
https://www.bluettipower.com/produc...ternator-solar-charger?variant=48103718289627

This can charge from the alternator or a solar panel. You could then add their Hub D1 accessory to power AC devices.

To figure out the size of the battery, you would have to add up what each device uses and figure out what all you want to run at once and for how long. That will tell you what size battery.

 

[Wat Dog]

I’ve also been thinking about this . I currently have a Jackery 1500 watt battery inverter and the onboard 400 watt factory inverter that I use to recharge the Jackery. The only change I’ll be making the next time I need a battery will be to swap to a LiPo which is sufficient for my camping needs with tha Jackery

 

[msiminoff]

Hey Preston,
Why not just run your fridge & accessories from a portable power station and skip adding a 2nd batt?

My JT is a dedicated overlanding rig; I have an portable power stattion (Ecoflow River 2 Pro) which is mounted in the storage cabinet in of my GFC (basically in the bed). It charges from the alternator when I'm driving and from a solar panel on the tent roof when I'm parked. All of my stuff (fridge, Starlink, phone chargers, etc) runs directly off of the power station...so there's no switching of anything when setting up camp.

I installed a panel like the one you described in the factory 115V outlet location. It comes in very handy and it is switched on/off (via a relay) by one of the JT's Aux switches .

The Ecoflow River 2 is rated at 768Wh (comparable to a ~60Ah 12V deep cycle batt) which is more than enough to keep everything running overnight. I'm sure Jackery and other mfr's offers similarly sized ones.

Yes, your winch/compressor/lights will need to be connected to the main battery.

Hope this helps,
-Mark

 

[Free2roam]

Well when I decided to go into solar
I went all in. 400 Watts of solar semi flexible renogy panels on top and two 100AH batteries ran in parallel. Kept the system at 12 volts but have 200 ah available and also if partially shaded on one panel the other panels still produce. I've even made power on overcast days. I have a fridge freezer, diesel heater and a water pump. Plus a dual USB port set up all on one panel from Blue Sea system. Marine grade.

 

[Scotty mac]

Hey Preston,
Why not just run your fridge & accessories from a portable power station and skip adding a 2nd batt?

My JT is a dedicated overlanding rig; I have an portable power stattion (Ecoflow River 2 Pro) which is mounted in the storage cabinet in of my GFC (basically in the bed). It charges from the alternator when I'm driving and from a solar panel on the tent roof when I'm parked. All of my stuff (fridge, Starlink, phone chargers, etc) runs directly off of the power station...so there's no switching of anything when setting up camp.

I installed a panel like the one you described in the factory 115V outlet location. It comes in very handy and it is switched on/off (via a relay) by one of the JT's Aux switches .

The Ecoflow River 2 is rated at 768Wh (comparable to a ~60Ah 12V deep cycle batt) which is more than enough to keep everything running overnight. I'm sure Jackery and other mfr's offers similarly sized ones.

Yes, your winch/compressor/lights will need to be connected to the main battery.

Hope this helps,
-Mark

Mark, I love your setup. What is that cabinet make that you have mounted in your bed. That'll work perfect with my cap. Also my inverter and fridge will slide in right under.. simple, clean exactly what I need. I pull a small trailer that I made with a rooftop tent on it and I put my kayaks on the roof and I'm out. Thanks for any help. Also, did you get your Eco at Sam's Club? I see that they sell them there now

 

[justbig]

I run a traditional dual battery system. I do not have any need for 115V so I have no need for a power station. I use a Renogy 40amp DCtoDC (recently upgraded from the 20amp), 100Ah LifePo4 battery(2-50's under seat delete), shunt for monitoring and a AuxBeam switch panel on my bed rack. I have multiple lights, power to the tent, power for diesel heater, power for water pump. I use the 30amp SAE connector for my fridge and diesel heater. I do not like using the cigarette style plugs.

 

[LoneWolfUSMC]

I havent swapped the system over to the Gladiator yet, but in my Silverado, I ran a APL55 fridge and Starlink on a Bluetti AC200L power station that was mounted in the bed. I did have 12V power routed to the bed, but the power station charged almost exclusively from a 200W solar panel on the cap. If it was cloudy for several days or if I was driving for hours at night, I would charge the power station from the vehicle 12V. I had just purchased a Bluetti Charger 2 that will handle the tasks automatically (switching between solar and alternator) but I had not installed it before I wrecked my truck. Hopefully I will have it all in the Gladiator in the next month.

The AC200L gives me a pretty large AC inverter, so I can run almost anything you would run at home. I also have a 30A outlet on it that I will often plug my travel trailer into when I want to use the microwave (almost everything else in that runs on 12V off-grid).

If you don’t want to hard-mount panels, you can also use the Charger 2 and deploy foldable panels when camped.

 

[LoneWolfUSMC]

To figure out the size of the battery, you would have to add up what each device uses and figure out what all you want to run at once and for how long. That will tell you what size battery.

You could do that if you treated it like a rechargeable appliance. However, if you are constantly recharging by alternator or solar, it gets a little more complex. My battery is actually just my reserve to get me through the night. The last setup, in the desert, was self-regenerating. By the time the sun was setting, all of my batteries were back to 100%. I could have run with a MUCH smaller battery station like a AC70 in the desert. However, I found that in the rainy season in the east, I had to have more reserve. Even though it is less efficient in the east, solar is definitely the way to go with these type of systems. Mounted solar if you are moving a lot or foldable panels if you camp a lot. I am even going to augment my mounted panel with an array of foldable panels so that I can get the best positioning when we are camped for days.

 

[dylanhack]

I have a Bluetti AC180 battery in the bed with a Bluetti Charger 2 system connected to the engine battery. I get up to 600w charging power while I'm driving, and I flip the breaker off on the Charger 2 when I'm not driving. super convenient and goes from 40% battery to 100% in about 20 min of driving. The Charger 2 also has solar input slots and fridge output slots. I did the front to back wiring myself, it was pretty easy.

 

[Neomonk21]

I have a Bluetti AC180 battery in the bed with a Bluetti Charger 2 system connected to the engine battery. I get up to 600w charging power while I'm driving, and I flip the breaker off on the Charger 2 when I'm not driving. super convenient and goes from 40% battery to 100% in about 20 min of driving. The Charger 2 also has solar input slots and fridge output slots. I did the front to back wiring myself, it was pretty easy.

I have the Bluetti AC180P and want to get the Charger 2 for my setup. I'm waiting to get a cap for my bed first so it's more secure and waterproof back there. My tonneau cover lets a little bit of water in and I don't want to risk getting it wet.

 

[msiminoff]

-What is that cabinet make that you have mounted in your bed?
-Did you get your Eco at Sam's Club? I see that they sell them there now?

My cabinet is a Turbo Cubby from GFC.
I picked up my River 2 at Costco... but right now it's on sale directly from EcoFlow for only $379.

 

[Bandit’s Lair]

My cabinet is a Turbo Cubby from GFC.
I picked up my River 2 at Costco... but right now it's on sale directly from EcoFlow for only $379.

I like those River 2’s. I have a couple floating around the house. Use em during power outages for phones and stuff to save a couple watts from the main solar system. They work well.

 

[ChrisB]

Well when I decided to go into solar
I went all in. 400 Watts of solar semi flexible renogy panels on top and two 100AH batteries ran in parallel. Kept the system at 12 volts but have 200 ah available and also if partially shaded on one panel the other panels still produce. I've even made power on overcast days. I have a fridge freezer, diesel heater and a water pump. Plus a dual USB port set up all on one panel from Blue Sea system. Marine grade.

I did almost the same
400 watt solar with 3 100Ah batteries
This runs fridge/freezer water pumps
2000w inverter
And canopy lights

 

[Glad Newbie]

I have a Bluetti AC180 battery in the bed with a Bluetti Charger 2 system connected to the engine battery. I get up to 600w charging power while I'm driving, and I flip the breaker off on the Charger 2 when I'm not driving. super convenient and goes from 40% battery to 100% in about 20 min of driving. The Charger 2 also has solar input slots and fridge output slots. I did the front to back wiring myself, it was pretty easy.

Any pics of this setup? I have the same power station and just ordered the charger 2. Trying to decide where/how I want to mount them.

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