Resources for 2nd truck (or van) battery

[CatCaretaker]

What is your favorite go-to resource for information on getting a 2nd battery installed on a truck or van? Will some batteries store enough for say one of those ClimateRight AC/heat units, assuming conservative use? And, what possible problems could it cause for a truck or van? Will it wear out an alternator quicker and if so, how much faster? 

I'm in a well maintained '99 Ford F150 now. Not sure if I'm going to stick with it and get a topper or find an aged van. Or whether I'll be full timing or part timing just yet, but definitely the climate control will be the biggest power draw.

C

 

[John61CT]

What is your favorite go-to resource for information on getting a 2nd battery installed on a truck or van?

Searching the forums, reading back threads here, educating yourself on the topic, learning whose opinions to trust, then posting specific questions.

Will some batteries store enough for say one of those ClimateRight AC/heat units, assuming conservative use? And, what possible problems could it cause for a truck or van? Will it wear out an alternator quicker and if so, how much faster? 

No problem for an Alt, but that will not provide much power unless you're driving all day every day.

A/C run off batteries is **very** expensive and ambitious. Bottom line is, unless you have a **lot** of space for solar panels **and** only run A/C a short time per day, you will need to run a generator and huge charger many hours per day. Batteries just let you do some time-shifting.

This very topic has been discussed at length in several recent threads.

 

[user 15722]

What is your favorite go-to resource for information on getting a 2nd battery installed on a truck or van? Will some batteries store enough for say one of those ClimateRight AC/heat units, assuming conservative use? And, what possible problems could it cause for a truck or van? Will it wear out an alternator quicker and if so, how much faster? 

I'm in a well maintained '99 Ford F150 now. Not sure if I'm going to stick with it and get a topper or find an aged van. Or whether I'll be full timing or part timing just yet, but definitely the climate control will be the biggest power draw.

C

Looks like a dandy unit !  Please give us a full report when you try one !
Yes, load will consume an alternator quicker.
From the specs over at   https://climateright.com/climateright-5000-btu-a-c-heater-2.html#product_tabs_product-specs  it would take quite a bit of battery power to operate it and lots of motor run time to recharge it.  Calculations would show just how much time for use, and charge.

If you are comfortable with the F-150 and have confidence in it perhaps it would not be the best idea to get an aged van that would be unknown to you mechanically.

Yep, the conservative part kinda flies out the window when it gets too hot, or too cold !
Good luck, wheels

 

[akrvbob]

No way can you run an AC off of the alternator. You need at least 800 watts of solar and 6 golf cart batteries to run it off solar. For most people that is impractical for many reasons. A generator is by far your best bet to run AC. Propane is best for heat.

 

[GypRat]

This can be done but, like said in several previous posts, you won't be able to run an AC unit for a long time off a single battery. Your alternator will not provide enough energy to run an AC directly from it. 
Your best bet is to add a Honda EU-2000i generator (or similar) and run a small AC unit from it. The Honda is very economical and relatively quiet generator. Yamaha generators are nice too but they don't handle high starting loads as good as the Honda. I would look at either installing a cheap window AC or buying a more expensive portable AC unit. Do not buy a portable AC with a single hose that goes out the window. They are very inefficient and require lots of hot infiltrated air to run properly. Get a dual hose, portable AC. I like a CLIMAX brand for it's efficiency. You can also install a relatively small, hybrid, split AC unit that runs partially on solar power.
A roof mounted RV AC is another option. A 13.6 kBTU unit can run off a single Honda EU-2000 generator. It will require a "Soft start" controller installed in the air conditioner. LINK.
Hope this helps.