How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

Dumbdumbhead
Dumbdumbhead Solar Expert Posts: 28
Hi there, I have some more stupid questions. I was looking at this battery charger: Xantrex TrueCharge2 40Amp Battery Charger.

I was reading the installation manual for it and I understood 99% of it but I am confused about how to wire the AC-in wires. The manual says it has a 3 conductor pigtail L-N-G to wire into, that I understand but my confusion is caused by how to get these wires connected to the generator that will power it. Do I have to find a 3 conductor 3-prong ac cord and connect them via butt splice connectors?

The manual says the 3 conductor pigtail needs to be connected to an "AC mains source protected by correct size and type of branch rated
circuit breaker."

How do I connect the generator to this battery charger?

Installation manual:
http://www.xantrex.com/documents/Battery-Chargers/TRUECharge-2/TrueCharge2%20Install%20Guide%20%28975-0402-01-01_Rev-B%29.pdf

As always, much appreciated

Comments

  • icarus
    icarus Solar Expert Posts: 5,436 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    The easyest w to wired it, is wire a AC line cord to it, and plug it in to an out let. Black to L, white to N, and green to the ground lug. Or, hard wire it to an AC breaker, or directly to the genny. Hot to L, white to Neutral, , bare or green to t he ground.

    Hope this helps,

    Tony

    PS I should add that if you wire directly to e genny, you need to fuse the hot between the genny and the charger if the out p ut from the genny is not fused or breakered for the size of the charger wire. You should also fuse the wire from the charger to the battery with a fuse as big as the charger current (and use wire capable of 40+ amps.)
  • Dumbdumbhead
    Dumbdumbhead Solar Expert Posts: 28
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?
    icarus wrote: »
    The easyest w to wired it, is wire a AC line cord to it, and plug it in to an out let. Black to L, white to N, and green to the ground lug. Or, hard wire it to an AC breaker, or directly to the genny. Hot to L, white to Neutral, , bare or green to t he ground.

    Hope this helps,

    Tony

    PS I should add that if you wire directly to e genny, you need to fuse the hot between the genny and the charger if the out p ut from the genny is not fused or breakered for the size of the charger wire. You should also fuse the wire from the charger to the battery with a fuse as big as the charger current (and use wire capable of 40+ amps.)

    Thank you for the reply icarus, since the battery charger is rated for 40 amps would the wiring from the battery charger to the generator not have to be rated to 40 amps as well? If that is the case what size or gauge wire am I looking at? The run from battery charger to the genny will be less than 15 feet.
  • icarus
    icarus Solar Expert Posts: 5,436 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    No, the charger put out 40 amps at 12 vdc, the sme load, is only ~4 amps at 120 vac.

    Personally I have wired mine with a #12 line cord, plugged into w fused outlet.

    E 40 am DC side should be maybe #6 or #8. ( don't have a wire chart handy right now, but a google search of " what size wire do I need for 40 amps? I would go one size larger.

    T
  • Dumbdumbhead
    Dumbdumbhead Solar Expert Posts: 28
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?
    icarus wrote: »
    No, the charger put out 40 amps at 12 vdc, the sme load, is only ~4 amps at 120 vac.

    Personally I have wired mine with a #12 line cord, plugged into w fused outlet.

    E 40 am DC side should be maybe #6 or #8. ( don't have a wire chart handy right now, but a google search of " what size wire do I need for 40 amps? I would go one size larger.

    T

    Hi again, I did a search and it appears the answer is different depending on who you ask. One website stated that #8 or 8 AWG was okay to use on a 50 amp circuit so long as it had 3 conductors. Yet another said that #6 was required for a 50 amp circuit. Kinda confused. I agree though, I would always use the larger size if ever in doubt.

    But as far as the connection from the battery charger's pigtail #12 will be fine? I was thinking about using something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Ericson-Weather-Submersible-Rated-Electric/dp/B003O9DA8I/ref=lh_ni_t

    Would I still need to put a fuse on this? Isn't the green wire on the three prong plug considered a ground?
  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,431 admin
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    The charger is probably designed for a standard household 15 amp 120 VAC circuit... So, a 14 awg wire minimum would be fine.

    12 awg will be OK too--especially if you have a longer run (50-100' or so).

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
  • icarus
    icarus Solar Expert Posts: 5,436 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    To be clear, if you wire the TC 40 with a line cord, and plug it into a fused 120 vac outlet you would be fine with out a fuse. If you somehow hard wire it directly to a generator output that is un fused, (or fused substantially higher than ~ 15 amps then a fuse should be installed on the 120 vac side. The green is the 120 vac ground wire.

    Tony
  • SolarT
    SolarT Solar Expert Posts: 49
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    I have 2 TC4012 and had one wired like Icarus mentioned for on grid connection.

    I used the crimper for the AC wire connect. The painful part was to bend all the wires into the small compartment.

    DC I recycled a 20 yr old jumper #6 cable from Canadian Tire. Ended up with 4 paired segment. Bought a harbor freight hydraulic crimper and a bunch of copper lugs. End up with two clamp end pairs.

    For genset I would use 15A or 20A fuse or breaker setup.
  • Dumbdumbhead
    Dumbdumbhead Solar Expert Posts: 28
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    Thank you BB & icarus, great! then I was on the right track. I'm no electrical expert as you might have inferred. So here's how I planned to make the connection.

    Buy this pre-made 25' 12/3 SJO cable: http://www.filmtools.com/25st12sjoeco.html
    cutting off the female end of the cable of course and butt splicing the wires directly into the SC2's pigtail connection. I believe it has the standard 12 AWG wire with Line, Neutral, Ground wires Black (Hot) Neutral (White) and Green (Ground) respectively. I will use about 15-18 feet of it so I can cut it with the cable cutters if need be.

    I planned to fuse the cable nearest possible to the generator end i.e. right before the male NEMA 5-15 plug on the Black or (Hot) wire. I will use this in-line ATO fuse holder:
    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001CDHDI6/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&m=ATVPDKIKX0DER
    and put a 20 AMP Smart Glow Fuse in it. That way I can visually see if the fuse blows or not.

    I believe that the Green (Ground) wire should be grounded once I plug into the generator's 120v outlet correct? It has two such outlets. I am speaking of the Yamaha EF1000iS generator in this case. As a side note, I believe this generator has an external ground stud which allows you to ground the generator externally but I am hoping this will not be required.

    Thank you guys for your expert advice,

    Jeremy
  • icarus
    icarus Solar Expert Posts: 5,436 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    Save yourself a bunch of money, and go buy a line cord from your local hardware store. (3 wire), ~$5

    Before you fuse the line from the genny, see if the generator output is already fused. You may not then need to fuse the line cord. You still should fuse the charge positive at the battery,, like with one of these:

    http://bluesea.com/productline/overview/379

    tony
  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,431 admin
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    If you are using a 900 watt genset--dont' even bother with the extra 20 amp fuse--it will never blow (generator cannot output that amount of current). Plus, extra fuses tend to be one more thing to wire in that can fail

    For a protable setup--don't bother grounding the generator.

    Only ground the genset if this is a pernenent installation and/or you have lightning in the area, and/or are setting up something like stage with lots of amplifers, electric instruments, mikes and such,.

    From a simple point of view there is less shock hazard from a floating generator output than there is from a grounded generator output.

    A floating AC output--you can touch any single wire an not get a shock because there is no ground return.

    However, if this is wired into a permanent cabin or something--then grounding should be addressed... But it is not a simple subject and there are times that improper grounding can damage your equipment (grounding standards change with genset size--small gensets tend to have floating AC outputs, larger gensets tend to have ground referenced neutrals (like your home)--so in grounding, DETAILS MATTER.

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
  • Dumbdumbhead
    Dumbdumbhead Solar Expert Posts: 28
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    Okay, advice well taken. I will forget about the in-line fuse altogether as I do intend to use the generator as a portable.

    I am really thankful for having chanced upon this forum. Your advice has been excellent. I will see you again when I have some more pesky questions :D
  • icarus
    icarus Solar Expert Posts: 5,436 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    The Bluesea fuses mount on the battery post. You can stack them, so that you can fuse the charging circuits on one, and the loads on another. Makes a nice clean installation.

    It does not have a disconnect, but you could connect to them with a slip on lug. There would be no real reason to disconnect the charger from the battery in general.

    Tony
  • BB.
    BB. Super Moderators, Administrators Posts: 33,431 admin
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    And your "pay back" is to come back with your solution and how it works for you... Closing the loop is always appreciated here and helps us all learn a bit more. :D

    -Bill
    Near San Francisco California: 3.5kWatt Grid Tied Solar power system+small backup genset
  • Dumbdumbhead
    Dumbdumbhead Solar Expert Posts: 28
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?
    BB. wrote: »
    And you "pay back" is to come back with your solution and how it works for you... Closing the loop is always appreciated here and helps us all learn a bit more. :D

    -Bill

    I'm a strong believer in reciprocity, when a person receives from others it is incumbent upon them to return the gesture in kind. Maybe some day I will know enough about this stuff to help someone with their questions. Humility and kindness are what makes this life tolerable. I find it in little nooks and crannies like this forum and in my own life from time to time but it is not necessarily the norm. Maybe I am a little jaded but when you find kind people you need to let them know you are thankful because being kind is not always the easier of two paths. Anyway, I am thankful there are people like you and icarus and Mike around. It really cheers me up. Cheers guys.
  • icarus
    icarus Solar Expert Posts: 5,436 ✭✭✭✭
    Re: How to hardwire a DC battery charger?

    You will have to check with Bluesea re: lug sizes. Their web site does not say. Glad to help

    T.