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Question about vehicle alternator charging and series/parallel wiring tips needed!

KDP

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Joined
Nov 14, 2021
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Hi folks,
DIY'er here and fairly new to off-grid systems but learning! A quick brief:

I have a 2005 Class A that I just installed a Growatt 24V (3000W) AIO inverter. All is working great so far; nice unit. Still got to get the panels in but coming.
For batteries I have (2)12V 100ah Lithium LiFePO4's (with built in BMS) running in series (24V).

Q1: I have 2 more batteries coming, the same ones so I will be configuring in parallel and series to keep my 24V but double my amps to 200. I've seen some wiring diagrams but I'm just confirming what would be the recommended way to cable them up? ...more specifically, would you wire them as parallel then series or series then parallel to the inverter? Pictures would be awesome. :)

Q2: For the vehicle alternator side of things and charging from the workhorse chassis alternator.
I understand that there are DC-DC converters/chargers out there (Victron, Renogy etc.) so I guess my basic question is what would be the best way to charge the 4x 12V battery bank (that's producing 24V in ser/par)? I'm not sure the converter/charger I'll need and how it works exactly. I think I'm missing some basic electrical engineering knowledge here! :( Thanks in advance all and I appreciate all the feedback!
Cheers!
 
just curious. Why did you use a 24v inverter in a 12v RV When there are so many good 12v inverters available? Where does your 12v house get its power from now? Like the lights,refrigerator controller And furnace blower?
 
Hey, thanks for responding. I ended up getting a good deal on the 24V system so went with that.
Just to preface the original owner had a solar systems and old equipment installed but a bunch was taken out when I got it. The main house battery system didn't really work properly either to start with (battery connect/disconnect switch was toast) and it had other issues as well. The 12V works fine when connected shore power because of the 12V inverter.
So because everything runs off the DC-AC invertor; (which feeds off a 15 amp breaker on the main breaker panel), I just need to make sure the 110 system is powered. Basically weening off the "RV" systems ...
 
I would use a 12v to 24v dc-dc charger OR an inverter powering a 24v charger

The inverter option is cheaper but adds a lot of unsightly bulk

Some will argue that inverters shouldn't be started under load, but I haven't had one complain yet.
 
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