Please help with power schematic

Hi all, I am a new here. I am planning a conversion on a 2014 144wb hi top crew van. The only big option it came with was the roof AC unit and aux battery.

I have learned a lot from just lurking here for years, so a big Thank You to all, but there are still many things I can't figure out, especially the electrical system. Please see my attached power schematic and tell me where I am deficient at. I'd appreciate any input you guys have.

One area I am struggling with right now is this: Is the Sprinter's alternator big enough for charging my house batteries? What kind/brand of battery should I use for the house battery bank? Is 4 6v battery enough? And if I go with 6 or 8 6v batteries, do I need to upgrade the alternator? I don't know what size the alternator is. How do I find that out. My dealer is no help. Space is very limited, as you all know, so I need to plan the size of the battery bank correctly. The battery bank and inverter will be below my sofa bed in the rear of the van next to the back door.

Thanks!

Ok, resized the picture. Here it is:

You want looking for deep cycle battery.

The deep cycle (or motive) type is designed to continuously provide power for long periods of time (for example in a trolling motor for a small boat, auxiliary power for a recreational vehicle, or traction power for a golf cart or other battery electric vehicle). They can also be used to store energy from a photovoltaic array or a small wind turbine. Deep-cycle batteries have fewer, thicker plates and are intended to have a greater depth of discharge on each cycle, but will not provide as high a current on heavy loads.

Re: Battery isolator in 2014 crew van

Thank you LA90043 for your quick and kind reply. We've chosen to go with the Trojan T105 6v golf cart battery (x4) for the house battery bank. Because they are fairly cheap and light weight.

Another question for anybody out there: Where is the battery isolator?

My 2014 crew van came with an AUX battery which is located in the engine compartment. And so there must be a battery isolator (or cutoff relay?) of some kind in order to protect the STARTER battery (which is located in the footwell near driver's seat). I need to connect my house battery bank to the van's alternator for battery charging while driving. But I am not sure where the existing oem battery isolator is. The van's owner's manual is not very clear. Thanks for any help.

Look under the drivers seat. Earlier models were installed there.

Remove the question mark on the Magnum ME-BMK battery shunt. Essential.

The isolation relay for the auxiliary battery is under the driver's seat.

Si,

Do you have vents designed for your non-agm batteries? Note that the ah rating pretty closely correlates with the weight. I'd be suspicious of deep cycle batteries that were lighter than the competition. How many ah's?

So CA might not require a furnace but perhaps a Fantastic Fan when ac not needed.

I put duplex ac and dc outlets in the four corners of the van but still wanted a power strip between the front seats.

What does the lab equipment draw?

I find a microwave useful running off my inverter. A convection oven would produce too much heat and consume too many watt-hrs for my taste.

Dan

Thanks Pfflyer and Graphite Dave!
I found the isolator in the manual on line. Haven't taken the seat off yet. I am not sure how to hook another battery to it yet. From the pictures, it looks like it only has room for 2 battery connections. We'll see after the seat comes out.
Thanks again.

d_bertko said:

Si,

Do you have vents designed for your non-agm batteries? Note that the ah rating pretty closely correlates with the weight. I'd be suspicious of deep cycle batteries that were lighter than the competition. How many ah's?

So CA might not require a furnace but perhaps a Fantastic Fan when ac not needed.

I put duplex ac and dc outlets in the four corners of the van but still wanted a power strip between the front seats.

What does the lab equipment draw?

I find a microwave useful running off my inverter. A convection oven would produce too much heat and consume too many watt-hrs for my taste.

Dan

Click to expand...

Excellent questions! Thanks Dan! It made me look at my battery box design and the whole entire plan again. And I found out that one should not have wet batteries in the same compartment with the passengers because they gas out. The house battery compartment will be beneath my sofa bed, and I was planning on getting the Trojan T105 6v golf cart batteries. But on second thought, I will go with the Trojan 6v AGM battery instead. The AGM batteries don't require venting and can be in the same compartment as the inverter. My inverter box will be vented to the floor. The AGM batteries will be safer because they are sealed. I can't stop the passengers from gassing out though, 'cause that's usually me or my dog .

Another second thought, I don't need a second roof Air conditioner either. The van already came with factory roof AC for the passenger compartment, so I will just idle the engine for a little bit and run the roof AC if gets too hot. I will get a roof vent FanTastic instead.

I am waiting on the wife on whether she wants a convection oven or not. She never use the oven at home. Maybe a microwave alone would be enough. Or none at all !?!

The biggest piece of lab equipment would run about 120v at 2amps and about 200 watts maximum. Not much. But the van will most likely be on shore or genny power when operating as a lab. Lab equipments can be really small now a day.

Thanks again for your inputs.
Si