Battery installation Delima !!

My cousin recently bought a Jayco offroad poptop. They have a battery inside underneath the seat.

If you have the battery in the tool box, you can charge from the car via the usual wiring harness when towing, but don't have to hook up all the time to use it. We carry a battery charger in the toolbox to charge up from genny or site power if available, as a backup.

Redbac, the question is; where will you use the most power. If your fridge is a compressor type, where is it?
If your power use stuff is in the Jayco, that's where I'd put the battery. Otherwise, if you go for a drive and leave the wife (or someone else) at camp, they have no power.

I have a deep cycle (AGM) in the Hilux and two in the CT, so I'm covered either way.

If you put it in the Jayco and charge from the vehicle, make sure you use heavy duty cable to reduce voltage drop.

I'm not familiar with the Outlander, but does it have space in the engine bay for a second battery? If not and it has to go in the vehicle, make sure it is an AGM or similar. You don't want to have a vented battery inside the vehicle.
Norm C

Hi Rebac,
If you have a look at the answers to your previous posts, you will see that what I suggested was to use a battery box and either if there is room in the toolbox on the A Frame put it in there or get a frame made to hold it. You could also put it securely in the side boot of the van. It could be charged from the car with a solenoid and some heavy cables. Would be reluctant to rely on the $120 genny that you have for charging. If you get a decent size battery and run the 3 way fridge on gas when camped, your lighting, especially if converted to LED will not use much and your DVD etc is 12 volts isn't it?

Regards

Mark

In my system I have two 75amh sealed batteries in a tool box mounted on the draw bar of the caravan. These are charged two ways. 1, via the car when moving. 2, via a smart charger when stopped and camped.
The cable from the car is 4awg via a solenoid activated by the ignition.
The batteries supply power to the caravan whether it is hitched to the car or not.
Another innovation that is in use is the three way fridge. This is powered from the two batteries when the vehicle is in motion and automatically turned off via a solenoid automatically when the ignition is turned off. I have used 8awg cable for this power. This circuit is independently fused from the rest of the system. This allows the fridge to run on 12v when on the move. Obviously I run it on gas when stationary or mains if I am in a caravan park but I never use genny to run it.