Adding second battery

[crmillsjr]

Mine came with 2, but it is a bigger unit. They are wired in parallel. Thinking about adding 2 more as mine died pretty quickly during the snow storm here in Texas

[Hangar11]

Originally Posted by CBDBrv

We have a 2021 Jayco 29MV and would like to add a second house battery. There is room for one under the step and I'd connect the batteries in series. Does the new battery need to be the same type as the old one (which I believe is lead acid) or can the new one be an AGM or lithium, etc?

in series they would double the voltage??? not sure you want that.... ..... in parallel they double the available power but the volts stay the same....

[billcf7]

Lead acid and agm need to be replaced at the same time to get the most out of them. Lithium does not matter how old will not hinder performance of new battery addition

[fisduki]

I upgraded my 174BH to a pair of lead acid, but that only gave me about 75-80AH of usable power and weighed 84lbs. I am waiting on delivery of a lithium 100AH battery that only weighs 29lbs. So much less weight and more usable power. But our batteries are on our tongue, so weight is important to me.

While my TV has a payload of 7200lbs, the hitch weight is only 500lbs(720 if I add a WDH), so dropping 50 lbs off the tongue is huge for me.

[billcf7]

I don’t think you mean payload unless you have a 1 ton dually or greater. Remember lithium can only be charged above freezing. Lithium is a great choice

[jimmoore13]

Originally Posted by Isaacs

Assuming your current battery is 12V, if you connect another one in series you'll wind up with 24V--not good! If you want to upgrade, buy a pair of 6V golf cart batteries and hook them in series.

X2
Realize, however, that 6 volt golf cart batteries, while superior to 12 volt batteries, are usually a bit larger. Check your space for clearance...especially height.

You can install a fresh pair of 12 volt batteries that fit the space. They should be connected in parallel. It also makes sense to connect your rig to the positive terminal on one battery and the negative terminal on the other battery. This is still 12 volts, but it, in some small measure, ensures that you are drawing power from the pair.

While you're shopping, and if you have $1500 to $2000 to spend on this project, the best option by far is a pair of LiFePo4s. Battleborn appears to be the gold standard in these, but there are numerous other good brands that cost significantly less.

[pconroy]

Originally Posted by billcf7

I don’t think you mean payload unless you have a 1 ton dually or greater. Remember lithium can only be charged above freezing. Lithium is a great choice

The new Battle Borns have built in heaters as an option.
You use some battery charge to run the heaters to raise the temps enough to charge without damage.

[fisduki]

Originally Posted by billcf7

I don’t think you mean payload unless you have a 1 ton dually or greater. Remember lithium can only be charged above freezing. Lithium is a great choice

Correct, my towing capacity is 7200. Thanks for the correction. I can't seem to figure out how to edit my post to fix it either Th
is post has an edit button, but the previous one does not.

Also, I don't leave my battery in the TT between trips, it is on a Battery Tender in my garage.

[thenne1713]

If adding to vs replacing, existing MUST be 12vdc and so you CANNOT ADD ANOTHER IN SERIES, as that makes 24vdc... which will smoke things

[Johnynorthland]

Here’s my 2C, Good luck fitting 2 batteries under your step of it’s anything like mine! I have a 2019 Redhawk 25R, I looked far and wide trying to fit 2 new AGM’s. The solenoid is in the way, all the cables need to be re-routed etc.. it’s not as easy as you think. There is not enough height for 6Vot batteries and that battery bracket width has a 7.5” of clearance. The length is very tight but manageable. Your better off moving everything to frame mounts or stick in a compartment and re-rout your cables.

I purchased a power supply/solar generator with 3,034whs, and solar on my roof. I just plug my RV shore power right into it from an outlet I ran outside to the inside.

Also I replaced that el-cheap-O battery strap jayco used, with one that actually holds the batter in place! A loose battery can case the lead plates inside to break the polyurethane wafers that separate positive & negative plateau , furthermore the lead plates do not touch the bottom of the batter because there’s room for sediment that forms, and that sediment will also bounce around and touch the plates and can cause a short and all kind of issues!

Good luck!

[serge90]

You can add an AGM with a standard lead-acid battery, connected in parallel; AGM has the same charging characteristics as regular lead acid. But you can't mix with lithium. when connected in parallel, you don't have to worry about the size and capacity of a battery and you can connect any number of batteries, the more you connect, the more capacity you will have (and time) without any risk for your accessories and without changing the voltage (12 V).

[billcf7]

Originally Posted by serge90

You can add an AGM with a standard lead-acid battery, connected in parallel; AGM has the same charging characteristics as regular lead acid. But you can't mix with lithium. when connected in parallel, you don't have to worry about the size and capacity of a battery and you can connect any number of batteries, the more you connect, the more capacity you will have (and time) without any risk for your accessories and without changing the voltage (12 V).

Yes you can connect them in parallel but if you add the AGM to the regular lead acid the AGM will charge and dis charge to the level of the lead acid so you would be waisting your money buying AGM. When installing acid batteries they have to be replaced as a unit whether you install one or twenty-one. Below is an excellent video on batteries

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZ7HMRReZKY

[arobinson6]

Originally Posted by CBDBrv

We have a 2021 Jayco 29MV and would like to add a second house battery. There is room for one under the step and I'd connect the batteries in series. Does the new battery need to be the same type as the old one (which I believe is lead acid) or can the new one be an AGM or lithium, etc?

I put a matching and daisy chained them

[Weatherman1]

Yes, what Issacs said!
Parallel not series!
12volt + 12 volt parallel equals 12 volt but more amp hours
12 V + 12 V series = 24 volts!
However, 6V + 6 V in series = 12 V
you'll have to compare the amp-hour sums versus space to see which one works the best!

[GoGator]

I have space for a second battery and I dry camp a lot.

Is it as simple as removing the old LA battery and dropping in 2 new identical AGMs and wire them in parallel?

Do I need to change the charger, solenoid or any other of the original components?

[GoGator]

Originally Posted by GoGator

I have space for a second battery and I dry camp a lot.

Is it as simple as removing the old LA battery and dropping in 2 new identical AGMs and wire them in parallel?

Do I need to change the charger, solenoid or any other of the original components?

Some Photos

[billcf7]

Yes that simple. You may have to check the profile of your converter/charger for AGM. Check the manual. You can also find lithium for almost the price of AGM which will give twice the useable amp/hours

[Jayco 24B]

As long as they are in the same group (24) you are good. I just add another battery to my 24B. Original Harris battery was $214 plus shipping from the manufacturer. I went to local RV dealer and purchased one for $120 (not Harris).

[don_kleinschnitz]

https://www.jaycoowners.com/forums/f...tml#post904770

[Rueckert]

For what it is worth...I have a Greyhawk 26y...came with 1 deep cycle...I replaced it with same size Cabelas AGM...and added 2 more identical batteries in compartment next door with Batman? monitor? Love how long I keep charge...added a small inverter to a regular style outlet..awesome...love it. AGM are worth the extra