Battery Charger ?

[Bergger]

Okay, I don't really know much about wiring stuff so I am wondering how or if this can be done. My Tacoma is set up with a 7 pin plug for our pop up camper that includes a charge line for the 12v battery in the camper. I am starting to do some more tent/truck camping, just got a new tent cot and built a platform for it that sits on the bed rails, and am taking along a deep cycle battery to power some extras, coffee pot etc.. Gotta have good coffee. Anyway I was wondering if there is a way to build a harness that would go from my 7 pin plug, utilize the charge line from the truck, and attach to the battery so it could be charged while driving? Any input on how or if this can be done would be appreciated. I'll be taking my daughter out camping up in South Park CO this weekend to test out the new tent set up. I'll post some pics when we get back.

thanks

[cruiseroutfit]

Sounds like a dual battery setup to me... you could pull the power off of the trailer harness... but it might be easier to run a new one from under the hood, and utilize a dual battery switch. Better yet, mount the battery under the hood too?

[Bergger]

I would like to use a portable battery in the bed for now and just pull off of the exisiting charge line. I'll just have to figure out how to build the harness.

[njtaco]

Check out page 38 of the PDF...

http://www.bargman.com/catalog.pdf

It calls for a 10 Ga wire for both the charge line and the ground. Make sure you have this on the truck side, too. Chances are you won't. Also check the circuit breaker size. This is not the best way to hook up a second battery, but it should work, as this is how the trailer plug is supposed to work to begin with. I have had fuses and/or circuit breakers trip when trying to charge a too-dead trailer battery. In other words, have a way to check the charge of the aux batttery as you use it.

As far as a harness is concerned, two wires, a plug, a fuse or circuit breaker, and two eyes on the end is pretty easy. Add a couple of fused recepticles, and you are in business.

Oh, be sure that battery is secure!

Good luck, and have fun camping this weekend!

[Bergger]

Thanks alot for that diagram! I don't know if I'll have time to make something up this week but I'll try to get it done before my next trip. I think it should work okay. The charge line to my camper battery works great. My nearly dead battery is always at 100% charge by the time I get home, whether it's a 1 hour drive or a 3+ hour drive.