Adding a Second Battery? - Page 2 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

billrei · #16 03-21-2005, 09:34 AM

Yeah that's reason I have heard why batteries don't like to be connected in parrallel. One battery may pull the other battery down. That's why most battery banks are connected in series. Too bad they don't make super duty 6 volt batteries...

I recommend you move south....

#17 03-21-2005, 09:45 AM

is not that the bad baddery pulls down the good one, but that the bad baddery keeps the alternator overcharging too strongly and boils the fluid out of the good battery very rapidly. I discovered such problems back home in Minnesota about 40 years ago when I dropped a '64 1/2 260 Mustang V8 with cast iron Cruisomatic from a police car into my '40 Ford Pickup and tried to use two very narrow 12 volt batteries ('56 Ford style?), one on each side of the engine.

boneheaddoctor · #18 03-21-2005, 10:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fimum Fit

is not that the bad baddery pulls down the good one, but that the bad baddery keeps the alternator overcharging too strongly and boils the fluid out of the good battery very rapidly. I discovered such problems back home in Minnesota about 40 years ago when I dropped a '64 1/2 260 Mustang V8 with cast iron Cruisomatic from a police car into my '40 Ford Pickup and tried to use two very narrow 12 volt batteries ('56 Ford style?), one on each side of the engine.

The Good battery tries to bring the weak battery up to a parity (charge it)...which does pull it down....when its not running.

pawoSD · #19 03-21-2005, 10:21 AM

Yeah both batteries would be new if I went ahead with it, at the very least I'll carry a second one in the trunk to jump it like 80benz does. That way if it turns out being sufficient to do that then I won't bother with installing two. I'll probably only do an actual installation like that if it is really truly needed. My other alternative is to buy a bucket, with a lid, or a container with wheels, and just fill it with 5-10 gallons of hotwater and head on out to the car, pop the hood, and pour away....

Holding up my tradition of what I do around here when its that cold.

barry123400 · #20 03-21-2005, 10:36 AM

For what it's worth I have seen a couple of 617s converted to two batteries. the one battery affecting the other during charge could be dealt with electrically by isolation methods if required. In my humble opinion it's going to help but not totally overcome all the very low ambient temperatures where you are going. The two cars I saw had the extra batteries under their respective hoods. The four hour restart and warm up mentioned in earlier post would still apply on some days. Have always thought a 1000 watt generator mounted in trunk with exhaust plumbed out would have to be incorporated in any 617 that had to be used in a really cold climate where electricity was not available. They are small and pretty quiet plus the right current to drive the block heater. Only for those places where you cannot plug in. Of course that would mean having to go out and start the generator a couple of hours before departure or even longer if -30 that day. I think that size gas generator can be had for a reasonable price and consumes little fuel. Only thing I would want to be sure of is that the generator was capable of starting at that low a temperature before purchase. I know if that generator did not start when needed ones normal vocabulary might increase somewhat. Also aids in overcoming the engine not quite as good as new effect.

Hatterasguy · #21 03-21-2005, 10:53 AM

Buy a gas car.

I had no problem -2 this year without the block heater, she fired right off. My new battery cranked the engine over with plenty of speed.

If you want to run two batteries you will have to put them in the trunk. Then run some massive cables up front. It shouldn't be to hard, it will just cost a few bucks. Also buy two large marine batterys, something with a lot of reserve power.

But this is only the begining:
Get a rebuilt starter
adjust your valves
make sure your compression is very good
Mobil 1 5w-40 or 0w-40
Replace your glow plugs
Use a lot of anti gel

Get rides in friends gas cars.

83-240D · #22 03-21-2005, 11:04 AM

couldn't you use the 12v charger that is sold at places like sears and checker? these are charged and used if the battery is not strong enough to start the car. reading the box it says to charge it and put it in the trunk.

diesel don · #23 03-21-2005, 11:08 AM

I want to see the proof of cars that start at -10F. I want to see one of those cars sit for more than 24 hours and then start. I have 5, 617's that don't even sip oil in 3k (good compression) and all of them have their limits on a cold, 24-hour start up. Some limit out at 5 degrees and some near 14 degrees but they all have their limits.

I considered the dual battery hook up (like an RV with isolation) to drive the block heater (with timer), but it didn't appear to be able to kick out the juice.

So, with my daughters being away at college, we have this rule. If its under 10 degrees at night, you let the beast run all night.

It only happened four times this winter where we needed the car in running order early in the morning.

Idle..........its the benefit of running a diesel

Otherwise, I like the 4 hour rule.

dp

Hatterasguy · #24 03-21-2005, 11:14 AM

If I left my car running at SCSU it would either be stolen or the cops would give me a ticket.

diesel don · #25 03-21-2005, 11:19 AM

Bummer on getting a ticket for idling.

My brother is a long-haul trucker and they get tickets now out on the West Coast for idling. The other day an officer came up to him (in CA) and knocked on his window. The officer informed him that he was going to get a ticket. As he started to write the ticket, my brother's small poodle jumped up on the dash.

The officer noticed the dog and said, 'oh, I didn't know you had a dog in there. I guess you had to keep the cab cooled down for the pup' and preceeded to walk away.

So far, that stinkin dog has saved us 3 tickets. Two for idling and one for speeding.

Its ok to idle for a dog but don't you dare idle for your own comfort

aklim · #26 03-21-2005, 11:35 AM

I could have installed a cord into my car but decided against it. The car already has a block heater there. Remove the cap and install the cord if you want. Winters are not that harsh here anymore. You know, my diesel contributes to the global warming and all that crap from some whacko evironmentalist. Wait, redundency there. shoulda stopped at either whacko or environmentalist. Anyways, the way we figured it, the car sits in a garage and never has to sit outside. It is always above freezing in the garage. Even if we had the cord installed, if the wife parks it at a parking ramp, they have no electrical outlets. No help. Besides, I have batteries in the garage. In fact, I even have a battery out of my wrecked C280 that anyone here can have for the low, low price of "YOU PICK IT UP" and a bottle of Coke, not crapsi, Classic Coke.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/mercedes-benz-used-parts-sale-wanted/118475-battery-99-c280-almost-free.html#post845668

#27 03-21-2005, 11:45 AM

specifically for car engine heaters, block, tank, or whatever, and they're popular even with the gasburner drivers, because the heater and defroster then perform instantly. I think they have them at Bemidji State College, for instance. Years ago already it was 25 cents per hour, though. Some apartment complexes in Minneapolis/St. Paul also having things that look like decorative hitching posts from the horse and buggy days, but are really mounted outlets, each wired into the appropriate apartment's electric meter.

Tirebiter · #28 03-21-2005, 12:18 PM

I'm not sure that this will solve your specific cold start power dilemma but I do know that this method works for installing twin batteries.

Use an isolator to automatically select the battery that needs charging. Use a battery selector switch also. This way you can select bat #1, bat #2, or both. It even has a switch position to cut off both batteries.

I use this rig on my truck since it often sits for months without being driven or started. The alarm and clock will eventually drain the #1 battery flat enough that it won't start the engine. Simply select bat#2 and it starts right up.

pawoSD · #29 03-21-2005, 02:59 PM

I am going to send off an e-mail or maybe ask them the next time I call if there'd be a place I could park that has an outlet within reasonable distance, and if I could use it to power a block heater, especially since it'd only be for the 3-4 hours prior to having to use the car, I'd have no problem with going out there and plugging it in ahead of time, everywhere on campus can be walked to in less than 5 minutes, so thats no problem. Aside from that, I'd probably put an extra battery in anyways, for piece of mind. I'd also be switching to a lighter oil and I'd have my valves and such adjusted. I don't think I'd have much problem if I equipped myself like that. I was wondering though, is there more than one coolant plug on the engine where one could install a second block heater? So I could have two of them....doubling the speed/heat capacity...... I have been looking at small generators, and this is also a very likely path I'd take, A good Coleman Powermate 1000 or 1500 watt generator costs not much more than a battery would, so I am highly considering that instead, one of those could power everything from a charger to a block heater to a heated battery blanket, making startups very easy. Piping the exhaust out of the trunk wouldn't be too hard either.

billrei · #30 03-21-2005, 03:11 PM

Just buy one of those outlets that screws into a lamp socket. That way you can borrow some power at night from an outside light...

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