wiring help in new van

[joeyib]

so i just picked up a 1971 chevy g20 and he has two house batteries being charged from the starter battery. He has the wires running directly from the starter battery terminals to a relay switch that I can turn on and off from the dash and then to the house batteries. Is this correct? or should the house batteries be connected directly from the alternator to the house batteries? I can post a photo if needed

 

[MikeRuth]

It would be preferred to have the house batteries fed from the alternator to them, with the solenoid between, on the positive line. Ground should also be from Engine block to the batteries.

 

[joeyib]

is it hurting anything to have it hooked up the way he has it? or should I spend the time rewiring everything?

 

[highdesertranger]

not really hurting anything. on most systems there is no toggle switch the solenoid is wired to a run circuit so it automatically charges the house bank whenever the engine is running. wiring directly to the alternator is better but the battery is second best. highdesertranger

 

[joeyib]

ah so more of just an inconvenience for me to have to flip the switch when I'm driving and off when I'm parked. i will add solar to it as well for the periods of being parked maybe I will rewire it all at that time. He has dome some frankensteining im going to try and fix as well, He was also using a huge marine battery as his starter battery but i have since replaced it