You will hear the terms "SERIES" and "PARALLEL" in reference to wiring batteries.
THE SIMPLEST I can put it is to point out how batteries go into a MAG LIGHT...
MAG LIGHT flashlights are an example of series wiring. Each battery is one and a half volts. TWO batteries in line like that are THREE volts. (One and a half, plus one and a half). If there are three batteries - it's a 4.5 volt flashlight. Nice to know when replacing bulbs...
Five battery maglights are 7.5 volt bulbs.
THAT IS SERIES BATTERY 101 CLASS in a nutshell.
PARALLEL is different, and this is how:
Instead of voltage adding up, current does while the voltage remains the same.
You have seen Cold Cranking Amperes marked on a battery, yeah?
Add them up in parallel.
Now - if you only have two batteries to deal with, it's pretty simple. Suppose you have FOUR six volt batteries? What then?
Bluntly - a pair of each will be wired in series, and then the total output of the pair is wired in parallel with the other pair.
Wired wrong, you could get 24 volts at the original CCA of each battery. OR you could get six volts with enough amperes to power quartzite for about ten minutes.... (exageration)
Simplified: Two six volts in series equals a very large twelve volt battery.
Two sets of those added together in parallel IS STILL TWELVE VOLTS, but has enough current to fire up a Peterbuilt.
I don't know if I rehashed and restated that enough for you to clearly see it, so if you have questions just ask. I'll make a diagram if I have to.
~Wolfie
NOW ON TO THE PS:
When in hell did you last clean your positive terminal? I don't care about the negative (ground one), the positive is the trouble maker - especially in cold climates. And you have lots of terminals to clean if you have a multi-battery system.
I'VE GOT NEWS! WE SELL MORE BATTERIES BECAUSE PEOPLE SEEM TO THINK A NUCLEAR REACTOR with a one hundred year fuel rod is providing twelve volts to their RV...
It ain't so...
And you can save a lot of cash if you just do normal maintenance to the battery(s) you have just like you would for a car or truck.
Also - DO NOT!!!! - use car batteries in an RV. They're not the same, in this way: A car battery will discharge untill it is DONE AND OVER WITH.
DEEP CYCLE batteries will refuse to output beyond a certain point, in order to save the plates inside from damage.
You can discharge a DC until it won't put out, and charge it back up. You can't get away with that using a plain old car battery - it will short internally.
Do yourself a favor and surf online concerning different battery types. There is a ton of info out there, and you will save a lot of trouble and cash by knowing what you are dealing with to begin with.
Thanks Wolf, but I'm still curious on the best way. Should I take the positive from Battery A to the rig and jumped to Battery B, then neg to neg and Battery B neg to the rig? Clear as mud?? Also, I assume the bigger gauge for the jumper the better...4 gauge enough? Thanks again for the help...Brian
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'05 Harley F350 SD Blue
'99 Softail Custom Chopped
Last edited by bneafus; 06-19-2007 at 12:01 PM.
Reason: left out word
With the batteries connected in parallel, it really isn't going to make much difference if the rig is primarily connected to both terminals of one or one terminal of each - as long as the jumpers are heavy enough, and 4 ga. should be plenty. If someone is convinced there is an advantage to hooking onto one terminal of each, there is no harm in that.
With the batteries connected in parallel, it really isn't going to make much difference if the rig is primarily connected to both terminals of one or one terminal of each - as long as the jumpers are heavy enough, and 4 ga. should be plenty. If someone is convinced there is an advantage to hooking onto one terminal of each, there is no harm in that.
According to this, you are correct if there are only two batteries in the bank. As the number of batteries increases the importance of balancing the load also increases.
Bill
Thanks Wolf, but I'm still curious on the best way. Should I take the positive from Battery A to the rig and jumped to Battery B, then neg to neg and Battery B neg to the rig? Clear as mud?? Also, I assume the bigger gauge for the jumper the better...4 gauge enough? Thanks again for the help...Brian
Yes. (?)
- I think...
DRAT!
I can see that I need to draw a diagram, and it may not be tonight.
Okay (to begin with) point "A" and point "C" are the same electrical point. it makes no difference which you connect the positive to.
Point "B" and point "D" are also the same - you can hook to either battery. Both are the positive and negative ends.
Does this help any?
The resistance between them (on the connecting wires) is negligible, so you have a PAIR with a positive and negative side.
He thinking hooking A as Postive and D as Negative to the RV. This way your not pulling from A & B and balance the two batteries .
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05 F-250 CC SRW LB 4x4 6.0 Tow Command Lariat Remote Start All Stock 01 Alfa 40' Toyhouse for all the toys.
I'm doing my part to reduce our dependency on foreign oil and clean up the environment; my truck runs on 100% biodiesel made from soybean oil grown by U.S. farmers. What are you doing?
Last edited by firesoutmatt; 06-26-2007 at 06:50 PM.
He thinking hooking A as Postive and D as Negative to the RV. This way your not pulling from A & B and balance the two batteries .
It makes no difference. Electrically - if the contacts are clean - it is the same electrical place.
If the positives are the same, and the negatives are the same, pair them up however you want. A to D, A to B, C to B, C to D, the only consideration is what is positive and what is negative.
The problems come when the terminals are not quite clean and the wire to terminal joints get a little corrosion. This "corrosion" etc can happen fairly quickly. Then it is best to hook up at A & D.
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"Beam me up Scotty. There's no intelligent life down here..."
Since the corrosion will pretty much be on the positive post, whichever ground you choose to use really isn't going to make much difference - the ground will tend to be balanced.
Thermal runaway is possible with a lot of amps and a little dirt on a connection (if anything draws the full load).
This is where resistance causes heat, the heat causes carbon deposits, the carbon deposits cause resistance, and so it goes around. The end results are spectacular!
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Harley F350 SD Blue
Softail Custom Chopped
01 Alfa 40' Toyhouse for all the toys.
