adding a second battery

[JSK76]

I'm thinking of adding a second deep cycle battery to my truck for powering my wheel house. I want it to charged with the trucks alternator and have some kind of diode to keep it from drawing power from my trucks primary battery.

I found some chargers that charge your boat trolling battery from your boats alternator but I want one from the trucks alternator because it sound like you need to tap into your tack and coil on your boat motor and I don't want to do that with my truck. I cant seem to find what I'm looking for, or do I even need something that elaborate?

[Bryce]

My company truck is set up this way. I could take a picture and post it next weekend. Doesn't look cheap or easy though.

[cold one sd]

Check into a battery isolator. When the truck is shut off the batteries are kept separate and when the truck is running both batteries are hooked together which charges the second battery. I don't know how this will work with a deep cycle, but the someone like a camper dealer should be able to tell you about that. I haven't bought one for years, but isolators used to be a pretty cheap cure for this problem. My company truck was set up this way so I could use my flashing beacons and still start my truck at the end of the day. I was also set up this way when I had a slide-in pickup camper.

[timjones]

Do a google search for Stay-n-charge. This might be what you need. I believe some of the newer trucks are already set up to do this without to much hassle.

[gurkster]

Go to an R/V store and let them know what you want. There are inverters that you install on your truck that then charges the R/V battery (aka Fish-House) while the truck is running but is isolated when the truck is not running.

[svonasek]

If you want something easy...You can find a continuous duty solenoid for around $20. Put that inline in the positive cable going from your truck battery to your deep cycle. Then you can use a switch to enable the solenoid. That way it would only charge when you want it to.

[Bryce]

This is what is installed in the work truck. Same reasoning as cold one sd. Not sure if the back seat inverting goes through this or the main battery.