House battery external posts - question

[Nimzero]

Hey gang! Attempting to replace my house battery with a renogy 200 amp hour 12 volt turns out it's a half an inch bigger than the cage provided by sportsmobile on my 2002 E350 extended. So my buddy's wrenching on it right now underneath and I decided to possibly install external power and ground posts so I can trickle charge or get access to the posts that are caught up in the basket that is a real son of a gun to get to. Any suggestions on refabricating the basket to make it easier to access the RV battery in future? Also has anyone installed secondary posts so you can charge or equalize your house battery I never did and now after three years my house battery is shot. I have a Blue Sky 2000e MPPT and 2x 100 watt panels on the roof with an original 1000w triplite compact inverter. My buddy's swearing in me right now. ALSO....Renogy 200ah is .5 inches wider than the battery cage! I'm an idiot for not measuring....

[Fork-N-Road]

I can't help with making the battery fit, but I added one of these Anderson connectors to the start batteries on my diesel (that are a pain in the butt to access):

https://www.batterycablesusa.com/2-gauge-anderson-cable

I bought the jumper cables that will plug into the connector, but would otherwise be able to charge/connect to the batteries without having to drop them.

[spazegun2213]

If you need those ports solely for trickle charging, they don't need to be that big. Remember that a battery tender or the like will only produce 0.5-2.0A. If you are looking to jump the battery from those terminals, or start a motor without a battery... thats different.

If I were you, I'd simply use an SAE quick disconnect somewhere tucked somewhere. Its super easy to route and are weather proof enough that I've never had one break on any of my cars/motos.

good luck!

[boywonder]

...confused why your present solar setup hasn't kept your battery charged....


Is the van parked indoors?


My van sits in the driveway (kinda north facing) but the house batteries stay charged continuously.

[daveb]

I agree that a small charger is the way to go for storage purposes and as mentioned only really need small connectors when using a low amp maintenance charger. I'm also guessing you do not have any AC outlets (a shore power AC electrical system) inside the van being you're wanting to mount the connectors outside the cab. Also something to mention, you really don't want to jump start your engine via the aux battery system. On most SMB builds, the wire that goes from the aux battery to the starting battery isn't rated for high amps. Way better to tie directly to the starting battery system if you want to jump start. If you don't need a jump start rated connection, I'd find a nice spot for a small charging connector to make it easy to access. I have a small water proof connector just below the tail light for this.

[Youngster]

I've used NOCO chargers on my AGM house battery with good success. The terminal connector and extension cord accessories are what make this so handy.
Zip tie everything down and secure the plug end to a convenient access point. Plug and play.

This adapter might be long enough to get you outside access:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...&psc=1&fpw=alm

If more reach is needed this will do the trick:
https://www.amazon.com/NOCO-GC004-10...omotive&sr=1-2

Despite what the amazon picture shows, there is an attached weatherproof rubber plug cover that is present to waterproof the plug-end when not in use.