My decision to install a winch brought many related upgrades to my Jeep. Dual batteries, being the obvious choice, was one of them.
However, knowing that I would need something to hold the winch, I installed a new Tomken stubby front bumper and winch plate.
I've been wanting to replace my battery tray for quite a while since the original one was rusty and starting to corrode. But, I've always held off knowing that I eventually install a winch and *want* a dual battery tray. I tried to find a good stainless steel tray but, nothing really turned up.
I ended up purchasing a Tomken dual battery tray to hold a pair of batteries.
As with most upgrade projects, I started by removing the old battery tray. Since a couple of the bolts spun in place, I had to remove my heater housing in order to put a wrench on the other end of the bolt in the passenger compartment.
In the process of removing the heater housing, I noticed the puny blower motor. I felt that this would be a great time to upgrade it to a Blazer fan so I purchased one from the local parts store (see Blower Fan Upgrade).
The new one was considerably larger than the old one; therefore, I thought that the dual battery tray would hit it if I mounted the tray in the stock location. I marked a line on the firewall that represented the larger motor and sure enough, it would hit the battery tray.
I heard of a few people cutting a notch out of the battery tray to clear the motor; however, I didn't want to do that.
Rather, I decided that I would simply mount the tray an inch and a half higher than stock. I took a couple of measurements and it seemed like everything would fit under the hood so, I went ahead and drilled the mounting holes.
This presented one problem though. Dual battery trays for CJs have an extra tab that is supposed to be mounted to the inside of the passenger fender well. Now that I raised the mounting location, this tab no longer rested on the fender as it should.
I solved this problem by using a couple pieces of steel pipe as spacers and nestled them between the tray mounting tab and the fender.
Surrounded by a couple of fender washers, they provide a very sold mounting point to the inside of the fender.
With the tray properly mounted I moved on to the batteries.
Choosing the right battery was the next step. I talked with a number of people and everyone seemed to agree on one thing. That is, both batteries have to be of the same type and age.
Both batteries must be the same type so that they have similar charing characteristics and they must be the same age so that one doesn't bleed off the other thereby weakening it.
I decided to purchase Optima batteries since they have an incredible reputation in the 4x4 world as one of the best manufacturers. So, my only REAL choice was deciding to go with Optima Red Top or Yellow Top batteries.
The Yellow Tops are deep cycle batteries and are designed to be discharged and charged over and over again while the Red Top are considered normal starting batteries.
A starting battery can still handle a (dis)charging cycle; however, they do not bounce back as well deep cycles. Even so, knowing that my winch would only be used occasionly to pull myself out, I opted for a pair of Red Tops since I wanted the raw amperage that starting batteries can pack.
With the batteries in place, I turned my attention to wiring them together. I wanted three things: 1) be able to use both batteries together, 2) separate batteries with ignition off, and, 3) hold second battery in reserve.
I really didn't want to use a battery isolator since the internal diodes cause a voltage drop from the alternator and force it to work harder.
After some searching around, I decided to use a wiring kit available from Painless Wiring. It comes with a 250amp solenoid, in dash switch with indicators, and all necessary wiring. It allows three distinct modes of operation:
- Mode 1: Used for most conditions. In this position the system has twice the normal starting amperage automatically. Batteries are isolated with the ignition off, thus preventing the "dueling battery syndrome". A green dash light indicates this mode is active.
- Mode 2: Provided to lock out the auxiliary battery. In this mode the secondary battery can be held in reserve when heavy winching or extended cranking are expected.
- Mode 3: Used if the main battery won't start the vehicle. This mode allows a self jump-start from the auxiliary. A red dash light indicates this mode is active.
I have always understood that it is proper to hook up a winch directly to the auxiliary battery. However, it is worth noting that Painless Wiring recommends that winches be connected to the primary battery.
The idea is to hook the winch to the primary battery and use the winch with the control switch in Mode 2. This will allow that alternator to charge the battery while it is in use and hold the auxiliary battery in reserve if the primary is run dead.
This made excellent sense and I wired the winch as per their recommendations. I then wired the solenoid between the batteries using 1ga welding cable.
The dash controls were very easy to install. I decided that I wanted the control switch next to my voltmeter. So, I sketched a few lines on the dash and drilled 3 holes, one for the switch and two for the indicator lights.
The final installation is very neat and clean. The indicator lights a VERY bright and the switch in watertight. This is the first Painless Wiring kit that I've used and am very pleased with it.
I highly recommend that you consider using it if you decide to install a dual battery rig in your own Jeep.
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My decision to install a winch brought many related upgrades to my Jeep. Dual batteries, being the obvious choice, was one of them.
However, knowing that I would need something to hold the winch, I installed a new Tomken stubby front bumper and winch plate.
I've been wanting to replace my battery tray for quite a while since the original one was rusty and starting to corrode. But, I've always held off knowing that I eventually install a winch and *want* a dual battery tray. I tried to find a good stainless steel tray but, nothing really turned up.
I ended up purchasing a Tomken dual battery tray to hold a pair of batteries.
