Converter upgrade advice

Shadow257mks

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May 28, 2024
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waterbury
Converter upgrade fuse advice

Hello I have a Champion 3400 watt generator. It has a 30 amp plug.
I want to plug it into shore power to charge 3 100ah Lifepo4 batteries wired in parallel.
Going to upgrade the Power Converter to 100 amp and the wiring to the batteries to 2awg.
What size inline fuse will I need between converter and batteries?
Looking to power the 12v Fridge, lights, water pump, awning ect.
May add solar in the future.
Any advice? Thanks


2021 Shadow Cruiser 257MKS TT
 
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Well since you will never pull 100 amps from the batteries to the DC buss and rarely have 100 amps out of the converter, I would go with a 120 amp DC breaker:

71y2vZScsXL._SX522_.jpg
 
For simplicity I agree with the 120A ACE suggested. I suggest looking at your battery mfg. recommended charging current.

Do you have an inverter for your 120v side? If not consider going with a combo inverter/charger, most of which have adjustable charge current.
 
Here is a cheat sheet I use for lithium banks with a constant load. I use 400amp slows. Can't stand 12 volts systems anymore. Have burned up fuses running dual acs. This fall upgrading victron inverter to 48volts

Lot a fun to produce all your power!
 

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For simplicity I agree with the 120A ACE suggested. I suggest looking at your battery mfg. recommended charging current.

Do you have an inverter for your 120v side? If not consider going with a combo inverter/charger, most of which have adjustable charge current.

How hard is a Inverter charger to wire in, Right now there is only a converter?
 
How hard is a Inverter charger to wire in, Right now there is only a converter?

It essentially takes the place of your converter. Your batteries are wired to it. The larger ones (mine's 3k watts) have an integrated transfer switch (pass-through). The 120v input on mine comes from my existing transfer switch (shore/generator). The output is wired to the RV's 120v breaker panel. When shore power or generator is available, it just passes that power through. Otherwise (when ON) it uses the batteries/inverter for AC.

When generator/shore power are available, the charger is charging the batteries with any excess available amperage not being used by the RV.
 
It essentially takes the place of your converter. Your batteries are wired to it. The larger ones (mine's 3k watts) have an integrated transfer switch (pass-through). The 120v input on mine comes from my existing transfer switch (shore/generator). The output is wired to the RV's 120v breaker panel. When shore power or generator is available, it just passes that power through. Otherwise (when ON) it uses the batteries/inverter for AC.

When generator/shore power are available, the charger is charging the batteries with any excess available amperage not being used by the RV.[/QUOT

Wow they are not cheap, Im looking at an Aims Power 2500w, it has an auto transfer switch. Seems good for what I need?
The generator will be plugged into shore power, Im guessing I wont need a transfer switch?
What will I need for fuses ect? 1/0 wire?
A wiring diagram would be great.
Im obviously new at this and very capable of messing it up! :LOL:
I appreciate your input :thumb:
 
The travel trailer power cord will be plugged into the 30amp receptacle on the generator.

Inverter/Converter is a great idea :thumb:
Aims 2500w PICOGLF25W12V120AL looks sufficient.
Replacing the existing Converter seems fairly simple.
1/0 wire for the Batteries w/Smart Shunt and 120amp breaker.
2 Bus Bars. 12awg for everything else. 15amp breaker on the AC output.
Any thoughts?
 
Inverter/Converter is a great idea :thumb:
Aims 2500w PICOGLF25W12V120AL looks sufficient.
Replacing the existing Converter seems fairly simple.
1/0 wire for the Batteries w/Smart Shunt and 120amp breaker.
2 Bus Bars. 12awg for everything else. 15amp breaker on the AC output.
Any thoughts?
I have done this 2X so far- I would suggest:
3000W I/C unit- wired to 30A inlet and breaker panel. Easy to do- most have wiring diagrams. Almost all have sensor for incoming power, 30A or battery.
AWG 2/0 cable (AWG 1 is not big enough, esp. if you ever use 120V appliance or roof AC) Also for charging off 30A supply- needs to be 'fat' wire so it doesn't overheat.
12AWG romex from inverter to breaker panel, and 12AWG to any and all devices/ outlets.
250A breaker/fuse on B+ to I/C from battery
20A for roof AC unit- check manual to see what is recommended.

PM me for more- (dad is from Cornwall, CT)
 
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My inverter/charger is the 3k version of the Aims... just rebranded (typical of many/most Chinese products).

I second using 2/0 AWG cables.Then fuse all devices based on AWG of cable connecting them. Plenty of charts are available on the web.

It's MUCH easier and cost effective to go this way if you EVER have future plans for using AC power off-grid. Otherwise you'll need to replace an expensive converter and start from scratch. But... you could always simply run your generator. Decisions... decisions... :)
 
whats better 1 300ah or 3 100ah Lifepo4 batteries? or 4 100ah 2 200ah?

The higher Ah batteries typically (not always) require less space... so one 200Ah might be more space efficient than two 100Ah. Depending on brand, they also may be cheaper per Ah. Shop by how much power you need, then look at your space available... followed by total investment. You'll also need slightly more cabling for multiple batteries.

For instance, when I planned mine, 100Ah batteries were the best bang for the buck. I only have room for three.

If I were doing it today, I could fit two 200Ah (SOK batteries) in the same space... giving me 400Ah instead of only 300Ah.

It's all in the planning.
 

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