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Old 04-06-2015, 08:17 AM   #1
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Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

Been sifting through the awesome threads in this sector, great stuff albeit a lot of info to digest.

I'm getting ready to install a house battery system using the bluesea acr 7622. I have a 2003 7.3 with the frame rail, mounted auxiliary battery. I built a new battery cage that will fit up to three batteries, along the frame rail. My preferred location for my electronics, is just in front of the passenger side wheel well. I will be charging with solar and running arb fridge, house lights, inverter, fan, usb and 12v plugs. No plans for AC. My wet cell interstate starting batteries, and my exide agm house battery were purchased at the same time but have been used independently to this point. (1.5yr.)

1. It would seem easiest for me to wire the Bluesea from the auxiliary battery to the house battery. Would this be acceptable, or does it have to be wired to the starting battery?
2. Is it a bad idea to combine wet cell batteries and agm's?

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Old 04-06-2015, 11:18 AM   #2
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Re: Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

I'm confused. What is the Aux battery? Are you calling a second starting battery a Aux battery or does your van come equipped with a extra battery? If that is the case I would never bank the Aux battery with the house battery. Any time you bank batteries together where they sit connected w/o a way to separate them, the batteries should be the same size, type, age, and in similar condition to each other. This is just a rule of thumb to keep the life of the batteries at their prime.

The idea of the separator is to allow the alternator to charge both the starting and the house battery system and then to protect each system (house and starting) from each other if one drops below 12.8v. Separators are sometimes called charge relays as well. They allow the house system to be charged from the alternator when they sense a charge voltage. Most used by SMB are two-way so when another charge source is detected on the house side the separator will close and charge the starting battery system. So the standard wiring is to put the separator between the two systems. Normally the solar is routed to the house side of the separator because the house system has active load running while the engine isn't running.

Having all AGM batteries is nice but you don't have to use AGM starting batteries. I do feel that constant solar charging is hard on wet cell type starting batteries during hot weather. It all depends on how much solar charge is supplied. AGM's are just better suited for constant charging and was a reason I replaced both starting batteries with AGM's.
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Old 04-06-2015, 08:32 PM   #3
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Re: Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

Daveb, my understanding is that the second battery is a starting battery that is wired in concert with the battery under the hood in order to increase cranking amps for starting the diesel. These are both Interstate wet cell batteries, which I had replaced at the same time. I want to install the separator in order for the alternator to also charge my house battery when driving. In order to keep my length of wire as short as possible, I want to connect the separator between the second start battery and the house battery. The posts And diagrams I've looked at seem to have the separator wired to the primary battery under the hood. Is it kosher to wire the house battery to the second start battery?
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Old 04-07-2015, 06:50 AM   #4
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Re: Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

Yes. The starting batteries are joined as a single bank so connection to either will do what you want. Our van came to us that way and when we replaced the existing relay with the 7622 that is exactly how we did it. Everything has worked great and both coach and house banks have remained fully charged. We run all AGMs but our house battery is significantly larger than the coach batteries. Being two separate banks this is not an issue.

We are entirely 12V and we placed all of our primary electrical components in front of the passenger wheel well. Right now we are easily meeting our electrical needs with a single 4D AGM (198 AH). Our fridge stays on in the van, we are house sharing so it's what we use for our food. We have the 40qt Engel but the ARB should be about the same when it comes to power consumption, we needed a front opening lid which is why we went with Engel. We expect our loads to be heavier when we move into the van fulltime and as the outside temperature rises, our house battery has never been lower than 94% full in the morning. It sounds as though our needs are similar so feel free to hit us up anytime.

-John
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Old 04-08-2015, 09:36 PM   #5
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Re: Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

Perfect. Thanks John. Ive had my arb for almost two years and am super impressed with its low draw. Now that I'm re-arranging my floor plan I'm wishing I had a front loader fridge too! But should work pretty well to tuck my electrical stuff in a small cabinet and have my fridge right next to it. If you have any pics of your electrical set up in front of wheel well, it would be much appreciated. I will use same location.
My 130 watt panel keeps my 200ampere battery well charged with the fridge running 24/7 as long as I have ample sunlight. I camped in a shady area on my last trip and had to be more careful with using additional devices that require power.. It will be nice to have a backup option to easily charge the house battery, especially since I like to remove my roof racks and solar panel when commuting on a regular basis, to get better mpg. With the separator I should be able to keep my house battery topped off more effectively. Been reading about your build, nice work! I too hope to drive my van to Chile, but I'm several years away from that adventure....
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Old 04-09-2015, 06:56 AM   #6
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Re: Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

Anytime and thanks!

Two sources of charging is standard IMHO. I've read about overlanders loosing their solar panels to low hanging branches, wires etc... I've been working on an electrical write-up for our blog, been a bit lazy about creating the diagrams. Here's a picture of everything installed in the fridge platform before we added the top and fridge. Some might balk at it all being located at floor level, I can see it all from the jack-knife.


Left to Right:
One dual USB and one 12V outlet above CO/LP Alarm
Blue Sky Solar Boost 3000i MPPT Charge Controller
Tri Metric Battery System Monitor
Blue Sea Systems Automatic Charging Relay Switch
Blue Sea Systems 100A Fuse Block

We spaced them to allow for future expansion if other needs arise or someone invents the next big thing. We also recessed the front panel to give a bit of protection to the surface mounted components, really our toes.

We're planning on going as slow as we can (budget allowing) so maybe we'll be shipping back to Mexico when you are heading South. We might run into DesktoGlory that way depending on timelines.

-John
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Old 04-09-2015, 05:30 PM   #7
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Re: Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

For that lower panel, did you consider getting a piece of clear Plexi and attaching it to the front as protection, with a hinge to flip down/up to access the various controls?
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Old 04-10-2015, 06:18 AM   #8
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Re: Blue Sea ACR Wiring ?

I did but I hate plexiglass, don't really know why... just do. Where this is in the aisle it should not be an issue. The end of the couch is in front of the CO detector, I was worried about toes accidentally pushing buttons but that would require a contortionist.

-John
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Old 01-10-2017, 05:36 PM   #9
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Hi gang. I'm about to wire up the remote switch.

1) What gauge wire should it be from the 'house battery' to the #8 position on the switch ?

2) did you ground the ACR unit and remote to the negative terminal of the battery or chassis?

3) Where is the location of the 'Engine Start Switch' wire that you spliced into from the ACR unit ?

TIA
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Old 01-13-2017, 01:25 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ocsmb View Post
Hi gang. I'm about to wire up the remote switch.

1) What gauge wire should it be from the 'house battery' to the #8 position on the switch ?

2) did you ground the ACR unit and remote to the negative terminal of the battery or chassis?

3) Where is the location of the 'Engine Start Switch' wire that you spliced into from the ACR unit ?

TIA
Jacko, didn't the remote switch come with a harness? Anyway you can see the size of the control wires coming out of the 7622.
The PDF says use #16 AWG for all control wires.

When we replaced the Surepower, everything basically swapped out. The ignition wire was already there which let the Surepower know there was battery power. IIRC (and don't hold me to this) I used that wire to force the 7622 to open during a start. It causes the relay to operate more (every time you start the vehicle) but I want the house system to be separated when the engine is cranking over.

They did ground to the chassis ground strip which is located to the separator under the seat (EB-50).
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