Fridge/freezer

[highdesertranger]

no, no you don't separate the strands and wrap them around anything. you need to put the proper terminals and crimp them on. highdesertranger

 

[DesertWillow]

Auto or marine wire is stranded, or made up of a bunch of smaller wires all together, and is flexible
Household wire is typically solid, and not flexible
in a mobile application, stranded is better

Well now this presents a problem.
Before I can take my 5er on the road for full time 12-volt living I have to connect this ARB 37qt puppy dog into a battery pack source.
Such being I have a power pack in my office and have been planning to add another battery and this time put put a couple of panels up on the roof with 30 amp charge controller. This should cut out the long distance to the front battery bank.
The connections are new and if I bring the items with me to the next RTR maybe someone out there can show me how to do this.

 

[DesertWillow]

no, no you don't separate the strands and wrap them around anything.  you need to put the proper terminals and crimp them on.  highdesertranger

Will need help with this one.

 

[DesertWillow]

Okay this is definitely not an electrical newbie thing.
I have been thinking about making a separate power bank for a while and since I am sitting in base camp this a good time to do it.
When I head out the gate here I will be boondocking totally.
I am not paying those park prices for hookup rental spaces.

 

[highdesertranger]

this shows pretty good way to do your wire ends(terminals). . highdesertranger

 

[ccbreder]

Check in with Maine Sail. This link will get you to all of his how-tos. Scroll down and find the ones on crimping connections. His other posts are interesting, also. http://www.marinehowto.com/
I do recommend these folks for properly crimped quality wire and cable. You do have to figure the measurements you need. http://www.genuinedealz.com/custom-cables/custom-battery-cable-assembly?size=55

 

[SternWake]

GDZ is awesome in terms of quality and the price for that quality, and the free shipping priority USPS gets my order from florida to California in less than 5 business days


Wire termination is very important, and properly crimped terminations require the proper tools and skill set to achieve a low resistance durable connection that will stay low resistance.
 The proper tools can be quite expensive and the lesser tools can yield a totally unacceptable result little better than wrapping copper wire stranding around a nut and covering with electrical tape

The idea of wrapping copper stranding around something is cringe worthy, and electrical tape is bound to fail leaving a sticky mess at some point.  Having + and - short out could blow the compressor controller, and a replacement costs nearly as much as the fridge itself.

Take this fridge extension cable seriously please.

 

[DesertWillow]

GDZ is awesome in terms of quality and the price for that quality, and the free shipping priority USPS gets my order from florida to California in less than 5 business days


Wire termination is very important, and properly crimped terminations require the proper tools and skill set to achieve a low resistance durable connection that will stay low resistance.
 The proper tools can be quite expensive and the lesser tools can yield a totally unacceptable result little better than wrapping copper wire stranding around a nut and covering with electrical tape

The idea of wrapping copper stranding around something is cringe worthy, and electrical tape is bound to fail leaving a sticky mess at some point.  Having + and - short out could blow the compressor controller, and a replacement costs nearly as much as the fridge itself.

Take this fridge extension cable seriously please.

SternWake

Yes, I don't want to lose this ARB, although the position I could set it in would be great for wiring into the front battery bank
This is why I am thinking of upgrading another battery bank I created for more power when on the road away from the plug in.
In that position I could pretty much set ARB next to the power station even when the slide is in. And for now, until I find someone more experienced, plug in using the 12-volt cord that came with it.

 

[blars]

Wire you buy at a home center will generally be stranded at #10 or larger. However, the strands tend to be large and not good for RVs. If one #14 is a problem, putting several in the same insulation does not solve it.

Welding wire is made of fine strands and is easy to bend. The insulation may not be rated for sunlight exposure.

 

[highdesertranger]

blars is right. using welding wire is only slightly better then household wire. you can get auto/marine wire just as good as welding wire with the correct insulation on it. do not use household or welding wire. if you stay full time 20 miles or less from the coast use marine wire, for all other mobile apps use the properly rated auto wire. highdesertranger

 

[ccbreder]

There is no reason not to use marine grade wire in your RV. The little we use does not make it overly expensive. The quality makes it the best choice. GenuineDealz makes perfect crimps. You can not go wrong with that choice. I just used a length of hose to determine the routing and the length I needed, sent a online order, had my cables the third day, delivered to my door. Very much a bargain.

 

[ArtW]

^^agreed, wile auto wire is sufficient if you stay away from the coast, there's nothing wrong with using marine wire, it's good stuff