Dual Battery Wiring

[pigrge]

So in setting up a dual battery setup on my 1992 Bayliner 1950 with a 4.3L Mercruiser. I thought I was right in my wiring but I have my doubts. I purchased a dual battery switch with a VSR attached from BEP Marine. I, have researched a MILLION posts to try and find a wiring diagram for this, but all I get is that common positive wire for the switch goes to the engine. I assumed, based on my limited knowledge, that this meant the solid 6 gage postive wire that was currently going to my starter was the wire that now was supposed to go to the common terminal of the switch. However after thinking it over, I'm thinking this should go to my isolated starting battery direct, and I should find out which wire comes from the alternator that provides a charge and connect that wire direct to the common terminal of the switch? Am I correct? If so, do you know which wire that is off the back of the alternator? I can only assume it is going to be red and pretty hefty?
The switch also suggests I put all of my house electronics on the common terminal of the switch? Based on a few posts I have already read, most wakeboard boats are wired with house electronics going direct to one battery and the started wired direct to the other battery. Is this pretty common, or am I reading that completely wrong? I was going to wire a bus bar direct to my house battery with probably 6 gage wire and attach my electronics to that. All of my stereo equipment, and whatever else I can find to isolate to that battery instead of wiring it direct to my alternator. Would this be the general consensus on how to do this? Thanks in advance, as always!

 

[Don S]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

I think what happened is you got the BEP 714 switch and VSR expecting it to do what the BEP 716H does.
The 714 only uses the VSR for charging, not seperating the engine and house systems. That is what the 716 does.

The only company I know of that has the kit and a single switch that separates the engine and house systems is the Bluesea 7650
I have installed several of the Blue Sea 7650 and it does exactly with one switch what you are trying to do.

 

[pigrge]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

Why can I not hook up the two systems direct to each battery? Maybe I am not understanding marine electronics too well, but it this possible?

 

[pigrge]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

I think I am over thinking this. I got scared by the package when it said that combining all house electronics could cause damage to sensitive electronics. I have an amp, a stereo headunit, and a bazooka base tube outside of the normal electronics that came standard on this boat. By hooking those direct to the switch, I am not going to damage the electronics right? I would assume by them using the word, sensitive, they are prolly talking about high dollar sonars and the like found on the big boy toys, right? Sonar and GPS and such...I assume.

 

[Don S]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

You DO NOT hook anything to the ignition switch but the engine and the engine instruments. All the accessories come off the fuse block that includes your nav lightes, bilge pumps, blowers etc.
The nice thing about the blue sea system, is when you turn the battery switch to on, everything works (the BEP716 you turn on 2 switches). if you park the boat and listen to the stereo till you kill the house battery, your engine start battery has not been touched. With the BEP 714 system that doesn't happen if you kill a battery, you killed both start and house because they both come off the common terminal.

 

[pigrge]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

Awww man, I completely see where you are coming from. Unfortunately, I just bought the 714. I understand now what you are talking about by isolating the two systems with the blue sea system. I guess hindsight is 20/20. Cant return the switch now.
I still don't understand why I cannot just hook up the stereo stuff direct to one battery instead of to the common terminal. Are the batterys actually hooked together via the switch? So even if I try and isolate the system to just one battery by just hooking it to the positive terminal of one of the batterys it will still pull the power from the other?

 

[Don S]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

Why don't you use your VSR, and just replace the switch like the one from Bluesea ?

http://www.google.com/products/cata...=X&ei=T0mTTduKGo66sQPe1v3BCw&ved=0CCwQ8gIwAg#

If you hook your house power up directly to the battery, you have no way to shut it off. Then, if you leave one of your stereo on, you have a dead battery.

 

[pigrge]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

Okay, bought the Blue Seas switch last night! Now I have another question, there doesnt appear to be a "common" terminal to the blue seas switch like on the BEP switch. Seeing as I have one cable coming from the starter, may I assume that this cable supplies the recharge amps to recharge BOTH batteries AS WELL AS supplies the load from my engine battery to start the motor? i.e. amps flow in both directions within this wire?
Another question, anyone know how the VSR works? It just has two wires that are direct connected to each battery, there is no supply voltage coming into the VSR that the VSR decides where to send. I'm can understand that these two wires monitor the voltage in both batteries, but how does it work when completely isolated from the switch that has the supply voltage coming to it?

 

[Don S]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

there doesnt appear to be a "common" terminal to the blue seas switch like on the BEP switch

There isn't a "Common" terminal, it just acts like there is one. The switch separates your start and house systems. The common makes them the same circuit,'

You will have to make sure that all the house systems are seperate from the engine system. NOTHING gets hooked to the ignition switch battery terminal except engine systems (gauges, etc). All the house systems, including your stereo, should be powered from a seperate wire coming from the battery switch to the fuse panel.

Here is a drawing of the Blue Sea battery switch hooked up to your BEP VSR.

.

 

[Hubboat]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

I came here to ask what gauge wire to use to wire dual batteries (22' Angler WA) and see this thread right on top!

Until reading the above (which I don't entirely understand), I figured this was the way to go... got this switch http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/show_product.do?pid=2464&BINGSHOP

Combine all neutrals, wire bilge pumps directly to the batteries (one for each battery), everything else on output of the battery switch, choose 1 battery to run stereo at tie-up, and choose the other to start engine when leaving. Once started put on both to charge both. In addition I am installing two solar panels on the t-top roof. I figured this would work fine. uzzled:

 

[pigrge]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

Got it! I have a fuse panel in which my ignition switch battery terminal is acutally wired into that I will isolate off of that fuse panel and run everything else off of it.
Now, the question of the night, I have a red and purple wire that is wired into my engine wiring harness. I assume the red and purple wire that goes to the helm, is the wire that goes through the main circuit breaker on the motor. If I am to isolate the "house system" should I disconnect this circuit breaker or just disconnect the lead, coming from the harness, and connect a lead coming from the battery switch? That SHOULD solve my dilema, am I right?

 

[pigrge]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

I acutally do believe I just figured it out. I'm going to leave my breaker wiring alone, and wire the red/purple wire that comes from the motor with a new "In Line" fuse that goes to my ignition switch. (Bypassing the fuse panel) I'm going to wire a NEW wire from my number two post on the switch to my fuse panel. I'm going to leave everything else the same on the motor, including the wiring to the starter, and put the 4 gage wire that goes to the starter to the number one post on my switch. I cannot believe how difficult it is to understand what seems to be a simple wiring setup! As for the VSR, I'm going to wire it direct to the switch as described above, instead of wiring it direct to the battery. It makes a little more sense to me that way!
As for you Hubboat, dont worry about what I'm trying to do in this thread, as it applies to your situation. I believe, and correct me if I'm wrong, but what you are trying to do is what I had, minus the VSR. I just wanted to isolate my house system away from my starting/motor system AND use a VSR so I never had to worry about switching things and wondering if my starting battery was full. Thats where the confusion set in for me. I think I have it figured out tho. I will post pics of when I am done.
NOW I have to figure out the output of my alternator! This should be fun!

 

[pigrge]

Re: Dual Battery Wiring

Okay, so here is my confusion! Everyone simply says, connect your engine to the switch, however.......I just found this article, and saw there is a wire going to the switch from the starter AND a wire going direct to a specific battery, coming from the alternator!! Which wire on the back of the alternator do I need to disconnect from the engine wiring harness and run over to the battery?? I believe it would be the orange one, but I also have a blue one and a red and purple (both smaller than the orange). I don't want to disconnect the orange wire at my starter if, for some reason, the starter needs that orange wire??? Should I just add another wire to head over to my battery??
More confused.......