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06-17-2022, 01:48 PM
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#1
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3 Rivet Member 
2017 25' Flying Cloud
Raleigh
, NC
Join Date: Jul 2017
Posts: 170
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2017 F150 & Lithium Upgrade
I just completed a lithium upgrade to our 25' RBQ. I have a lithium charger and solar on the roof.
1. Does the F150 have a diode or relay that prevents the lithium batteries from discharging into the truck when I turn the engine off and leave the camper connected.
2. Any harm in going down the road with the lithium system running (I have solar panels, charging the lithium batteries), or should I use pull the fuse for the charging portion of the trailer connector?
I know some are going to suggest adding a DC to DC charger, but I am really not keen on doing that at the moment, since our panels are more than enough to keep us charged up.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts/advice?
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06-17-2022, 02:02 PM
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#2
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Rivet Master 
2017 25' Flying Cloud
Longmont
, Colorado
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 833
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1). Your truck should have the smart trailer tow connector which will not enable the charge line unless the trailer is connected and vehicle is on and in gear. This is better than a diode or relay so you should be fine.
2). No need to pull the fuse but it will not do much charging unless the Lithium batteries are extremely low since they run higher voltage. This is one reason some go to DC-DC converter but you should be fine without if you don't need TV charging.
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06-17-2022, 02:07 PM
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#3
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3 Rivet Member 
2017 25' Flying Cloud
Raleigh
, NC
Join Date: Jul 2017
Posts: 170
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Thanks! I was not too concerned about the truck charging, since it is minimal and the panels are more than enough for our needs.
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06-18-2022, 05:47 AM
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#4
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2 Rivet Member 
1990 29' Excella
Carrollton
, Virginia
Join Date: Feb 2022
Posts: 27
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So when you are camping in a shady site how do you get the 14.4volts to charge the Lithium. My converter is 13V and my Ford is 13.2v. This will get you 75% SOC You actually get longer life it you SOC is less than 100% just less run time too.
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06-18-2022, 10:04 AM
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#5
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Rivet Master 
2017 25' Flying Cloud
Longmont
, Colorado
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 833
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I don't see anything wrong with your logic if you don't need full battery charge. The high voltage bulk state will charge faster though even if you don't want to fully charge. I have a portable panel with long cord and separate Victron controller for shady campsights.
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06-18-2022, 01:41 PM
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#6
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Rivet Master 
1988 32' Excella
Robbinsville
, New Jersey
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 3,647
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SHaley
So when you are camping in a shady site how do you get the 14.4volts to charge the Lithium. My converter is 13V and my Ford is 13.2v. This will get you 75% SOC You actually get longer life it you SOC is less than 100% just less run time too.
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You replace the converter with one that is lithium compatible. If yours is original from 1990 it is due to be replaced anyway.
Others have said if you do not occasionally fully charge the lithium batteries for trailers it will greatly shorten their life due to not equalizing the cells.
Note: Other types of lithium batteries don't work exactly the same and live longer with different charging practices.
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06-18-2022, 09:08 PM
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#7
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Half a Rivet Short
2017 30' Classic
2022 Interstate 24X
Carlisle
, Pennsylvania
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 16,746
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Hi
If you simply don't need the F150 to charge the batteries, pull the fuse / disconnect the wire. Cost is zero and it's the safe thing to do. Blowing up the controller on the truck due to some odd voltage issue simply isn't worth it ....
Bob
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06-19-2022, 06:40 AM
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#8
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2 Rivet Member 
1990 29' Excella
Carrollton
, Virginia
Join Date: Feb 2022
Posts: 27
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I thought that was where the DC/DC converter comes into play. Connect the converter and truck to the DC/DC converter and you have 14.3v I'm basing this on the specs of a Renogy DCC1212 charger. Getting ready to do the same conversion.
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06-19-2022, 09:45 AM
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#9
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Rivet Master 
2017 25' Flying Cloud
Longmont
, Colorado
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 833
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SHaley
Connect the converter and truck to the DC/DC converter and you have 14.3v.
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Correctish. You have 14.3V at the output of the DC/DC converter, not the battery. If you have a 20A converter and run 15ft of 10 gauge wire to the battery you have 30ft power and ground at .001ohm per ft which would result in 14.3 - (.001ohm/ft * 30ft * 20amps) = 13.7V at the battery. Wire gauge, length, and current determine what voltage you have at the battery.
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06-19-2022, 10:06 AM
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#10
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Rivet Master 
2021 30' Flying Cloud
2020 25' International
minneapolis
, Minnesota
Join Date: Jun 2020
Posts: 1,468
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[QUOTE=JoeHTP;2606516]I just completed a lithium upgrade to our 25' RBQ. I have a lithium charger and solar on the roof.
1. Does the F150 have a diode or relay that prevents the lithium batteries from discharging into the truck when I turn the engine off and leave the camper connected.
Not sure how long you intend on leaving it connected. I owned a 2016, 2019 & 2021 F150’s, I have left them connected for up to two days and never noticed a difference. Pretty sure Fords don’t draw power from the trailer.
2. Any harm in going down the road with the lithium system running (I have solar panels, charging the lithium batteries), or should I use pull the fuse for the charging portion of the trailer connector?
Not sure what you are asking. I have lithium and panels on the roof and haven’t turned the trailer off for 6 months, we need to keep the fridge cold. We tow every week or two, sometimes more.
I know some are going to suggest adding a DC to DC charger, but I am really not keen on doing that at the moment, since our panels are more than enough to keep us charged up.
I added an additional converter up front to plug into my new ProPower 20amp circuit. I never end up using it for charging while towing, the panels and stock truck charging is plenty. The added converter does work well in times while boondocking with no sun. You can charge off the generator without affecting the rest of the trailer. Running the microwave or toaster won’t stress the generator like it would if plugged in using the shore power cord.
__________________
- Stewart
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06-19-2022, 06:46 PM
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#11
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Rivet Master 
1988 32' Excella
Robbinsville
, New Jersey
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 3,647
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Quote:
Originally Posted by OrangeCrush
Correctish. You have 14.3V at the output of the DC/DC converter, not the battery. If you have a 20A converter and run 15ft of 10 gauge wire to the battery you have 30ft power and ground at .001ohm per ft which would result in 14.3 - (.001ohm/ft * 30ft * 20amps) = 13.7V at the battery. Wire gauge, length, and current determine what voltage you have at the battery.
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I haven't heard of anyone installing a DC/DC charger in the TV (probably for that reason). Normally the DC/DC charger is installed in/on the trailer near the batteries, for a lot of installs it would be around 3' run each way total 6'.
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06-19-2022, 07:05 PM
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#12
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Rivet Master 
1988 32' Excella
Robbinsville
, New Jersey
Join Date: May 2012
Posts: 3,647
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SHaley
I thought that was where the DC/DC converter comes into play. Connect the converter and truck to the DC/DC converter and you have 14.3v I'm basing this on the specs of a Renogy DCC1212 charger. Getting ready to do the same conversion.
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Most people just use the DC/DC charger between truck and batteries and get a lithium converter (or lithium inverter/charger) for charging from shore power/generator. I guess it might have a chance of working with a converter. I haven't heard of anyone trying it though. No idea if or how well it will work together with your converter.
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06-19-2022, 07:20 PM
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#13
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Site Team

1994 25' Excella
Waukesha
, Wisconsin
Join Date: Sep 2020
Posts: 6,369
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JoeHTP
...
I know some are going to suggest adding a DC to DC charger, but I am really not keen on doing that at the moment, since our panels are more than enough to keep us charged up.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts/advice?
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I added a DC-DC charger as a redundancy for a specific situation... Dry camping through a cool night (running heat) followed by a rainy/overcast travel day. We like to arrive with full batteries when using dry camping stops, and this type of scenario would mean that the solar isn't able to handle the charging duties while we drive.
__________________
Richard
11018
1994 Excella 25 'Gertie' Follow the build on Gertie!
1999 Suburban LS 2500 w/7.4L V8 'Bert'
1974 GMC 4108a - Custom Coach Land Cruiser 'The Bus' (Sold)
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06-19-2022, 07:26 PM
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#14
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Rivet Master 
2017 25' Flying Cloud
Longmont
, Colorado
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 833
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wazbro
I haven't heard of anyone installing a DC/DC charger in the TV (probably for that reason). Normally the DC/DC charger is installed in/on the trailer near the batteries, for a lot of installs it would be around 3' run each way total 6'.
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Of course. Just a gross example to explain voltage at battery is different than at the output of DC-DC converter and distance, current, and wire gauge are major considerations.
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06-22-2022, 10:27 AM
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#15
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Rivet Master 
2017 25' Flying Cloud
Longmont
, Colorado
Join Date: Jan 2017
Posts: 833
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BTW - this is not the case with Victron MPPT with VE Smart Networking and a Victron shunt or bluetooth voltage/temp sensor. With VE Smart Networking remote voltage sense is communicated to the controller so the voltage drop on the charge lines does not matter. Unfortunately Victron DC-DC converter does not support VE Smart Networking (shame Victron).
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07-25-2022, 09:54 AM
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#16
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Rivet Master 

2024 25' Trade Wind
Seattle
, Washington
Join Date: Mar 2022
Posts: 1,203
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Quote:
Originally Posted by s1000pre
I added an additional converter up front to plug into my new ProPower 20amp circuit. I never end up using it for charging while towing, the panels and stock truck charging is plenty. The added converter does work well in times while boondocking with no sun. You can charge off the generator without affecting the rest of the trailer. Running the microwave or toaster won’t stress the generator like it would if plugged in using the shore power cord.
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I am not 100% certain I understand what you are saying here, but I’ve never been able to charge my trailer from our 2kW ProPower (3.5L EcoBoost). It detects a ground fault everytime I plug in. I’ve even switched off all the 110 breakers except the converter. I know it only draws around 300W of power when plugged in and just charging the battery.
Have you been able to get ProPower to charge your trailer using an additional converter? I’d really love to be able to run the A/C off my ProPower in a pinch.
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