Anyone have the Traxide Dual Bat kit?

[jwest]

.... I have the Engel fridge in my LR3 that I leave in the truck every day 24/7 set at about 37*....!

This sounds like you keep it running all year, not just when you go on a trip. If so, why? I would be concerned about wearing out small bits that would be hard to replace. My ARB 40L stays in the lr3 all the time but only runs on trips. I took out the center 2nd row seat and it sits right in the hole left behind and it tied down at the handle for safety.

It also makes a great arm rest when other people are riding in the back which is rare but retains some usefulness of such a large vehicle whereas my discoveries are 2 and 3 seaters.

FYI, you probably have it already, but If you don't have the travel wrap for it, I saw it made a difference in the efficiency when I put mine on.

 

[techboydino]

Just got this response from Traxide:

"Hi Dino, other than fitting our winch cable kit, which allows the auxiliary battery to be connected to the cranking battery, via thicker cable and a marine switch, while using and electric winch, a single jumper lead connected to the two batteries positive terminals is the only way to jump start with our standard kits.

The cut-out voltage for the D3/LR3 is 12.1 to 12.2 volts. We have been making these controllers for just over 20 years and in the normal settings, the cot-out voltage is 12v but Land Rover Australia requested a slightly higher voltage for the LR specific controllers.

We have tested these controllers on D3/LR3s with settings down to 11.5v and had no problem starting the vehicles.

All other types of dual battery controllers cut-out when the motor is turned off, or shortly there after. With our controllers, the controller does not cut-out until the common voltage of both batteries is down to 12v ( 12.2v for LRs ) thus utilising the available the cranking battery’s stored capacity to adding up to 50% additional stored capacity to the auxiliary battery.

This literally turns the 55 Ah battery into an 80 Ah battery.

Hope this helps you and please e-mail me any other questions you may have."

I dont think you can go wrong with this kit. I will be getting one shortly.

 

[drivesafe]

Hi folks and a Merry Christmas to you all and please forgive me for not visiting this forum for a while.

I make the SC40-LR dual battery controllers and while I’m not out to spam the site, I would like to clarify a few quires posted in this thread.

The SC40-LR controller has a constant current capacity of 45 amps and a start-up current rate of 100 amps, which is heaps big enough to handle a single auxiliary battery set charging requirements.

The circuit breaker I use is made by Cole Hersee, in the USA and if you check out their web site you will get additional info on how these circuit breakers work but basically, the 30 amp circuit breaker is designed to tolerate 135% of it’s marked value for up to 30 minutes which means that the circuit breaker will be handling up to around 40 amps for 30 minutes and much higher currents for shorter periods.

This means if you have taken your auxiliary battery down to a low state, the SC40-LR will safely handle the higher current to be able to recharge the battery as quick as the battery can be recharged.

NOTE, while the D3/LR3 has a large capacity alternator, it is the state of charge of the battery that governs the amount of current the battery will pull, no matter how large the alternator is and this is why we have our controller set up the way it is and it is ideally suited to the LR auxiliary battery requirements.

If you have taken the auxiliary battery down to a VERY low state, the circuit breaker will cut in and out till the battery SoC rises and this means not only is the system protected but so is your auxiliary battery.

As to the cut-out voltage level of the SC40-LR, we originally supplied these units for D3s, set with a cut-out voltage level of 12.0v ( our standard setting ).

LRA approached us and asked could we come up with an LR specific dual battery controller as there were a number of other brands on the market that were causing incompatibility problems with the high tech set up of the D3/LR3s.

We did so and set the cut-out to the requested level of 12.3v and after they tested our modified controllers, we then started providing them to Australian D3 owners.

Within a very short time, D3 owners in Europe and the Middle East were buying our kits and as a number of members on this site have indicated, we sell into the USA as well.

Over the 4 years we have been making the LR specific controllers, we have been progressively lowering the cut-out voltage level, based on the fact that the original units supplied to D3 owners ( before the LRA modified levels were supplied ) are set at 12.0v and NONE have ever had a problem.

As to cold starts, we have supplied these kits to countries like Norway, Finland and other Baltic states and NONE have ever reported a problem starting in cold periods, relating to anything to do with the their dual battery set up.

BTW, here is a link to a long thread on this site about this subject.

http://www.landroverworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=13204&highlight=sc40

 

[jwest]

But if you have used up the 2nd battery entirely, there is no additive benefit anymore. I see zero purpose in using ANY of the primary battery while parked/engine off so why allow it to be used in this kit?

When you have killed your 2nd battery, that might be a good time to run the engine for a while or set up the solar charging kit.

Now, what he might be saying in there is that the main battery cannot be used at all past a certain point, meaning whatever you are running off it will no longer run. That would be a good safety measure too.

 

[techboydino]

Now, what he might be saying in there is that the main battery cannot be used at all past a certain point, meaning whatever you are running off it will no longer run. That would be a good safety measure too.

I think that is the case. Main battery is protected.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Tim from Traxide asked me to post this:

Hi folks and a Merry Christmas to you all and please forgive me for not visiting this forum for a while.

I make the SC40-LR dual battery controllers and while I’m not out to spam the site, I would like to clarify a few quires posted in this thread.

The SC40-LR controller has a constant current capacity of 45 amps and a start-up current rate of 100 amps, which is heaps big enough to handle a single auxiliary battery set charging requirements.

The circuit breaker I use is made by Cole Hersee, in the USA and if you check out their web site you will get additional info on how these circuit breakers work but basically, the 30 amp circuit breaker is designed to tolerate 135% of it’s marked value for up to 30 minutes which means that the circuit breaker will be handling up to around 40 amps for 30 minutes and much higher currents for shorter periods.

This means if you have taken your auxiliary battery down to a low state, the SC40-LR will safely handle the higher current to be able to recharge the battery as quick as the battery can be recharged.

NOTE, while the D3/LR3 has a large capacity alternator, it is the state of charge of the battery that governs the amount of current the battery will pull, no matter how large the alternator is and this is why we have our controller set up the way it is and it is ideally suited to the LR auxiliary battery requirements.

If you have taken the auxiliary battery down to a VERY low state, the circuit breaker will cut in and out till the battery SoC rises and this means not only is the system protected but so is your auxiliary battery.

As to the cut-out voltage level of the SC40-LR, we originally supplied these units for D3s, set with a cut-out voltage level of 12.0v ( our standard setting ).

LRA approached us and asked could we come up with an LR specific dual battery controller as there were a number of other brands on the market that were causing incompatibility problems with the high tech set up of the D3/LR3s.

We did so and set the cut-out to the requested level of 12.3v and after they tested our modified controllers, we then started providing them to Australian D3 owners.

Within a very short time, D3 owners in Europe and the Middle East were buying our kits and as a number of members on this site have indicated, we sell into the USA as well.

Over the 4 years we have been making the LR specific controllers, we have been progressively lowering the cut-out voltage level, based on the fact that the original units supplied to D3 owners ( before the LRA modified levels were supplied ) are set at 12.0v and NONE have ever had a problem.

As to cold starts, we have supplied these kits to countries like Norway, Finland and other Baltic states and NONE have ever reported a problem starting in cold periods, relating to anything to do with the their dual battery set up.

BTW, here is a link to a long thread on this site about this subject.

http://www.landroverworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=13204&highlight=sc40

 

[craiglud]

If jumping off the other battery is required, you could always run a 4 gauge cable over with a screw type disconnect. common ground applies to a single cable across the firewall should do it. then just disconnect until next time.

I like this idea and it should be really easy to run that wire across the existing loom. Thanks, I will give this a go and then ditch the jumper cables!

 

[craiglud]

This sounds like you keep it running all year, not just when you go on a trip. If so, why? I would be concerned about wearing out small bits that would be hard to replace. My ARB 40L stays in the lr3 all the time but only runs on trips. I took out the center 2nd row seat and it sits right in the hole left behind and it tied down at the handle for safety.

It also makes a great arm rest when other people are riding in the back which is rare but retains some usefulness of such a large vehicle whereas my discoveries are 2 and 3 seaters.

FYI, you probably have it already, but If you don't have the travel wrap for it, I saw it made a difference in the efficiency when I put mine on.

I like the idea of removing the middles seat. I actually mounted the engle quick release bracket to the back of the seat so it mounts there most of the time whenever its out I just lift the seat up and you never see the bracket.
I used to turn it off more however we end up going somewhere just about every weekend and since its arizona heat its always nice to have an ice cold water handy! I am concerned about the wear however I like the convenience too much! I may look at taking that middle seat out though!

I also keep the jacket on all the time!

 

[techboydino]

I like this idea and it should be really easy to run that wire across the existing loom. Thanks, I will give this a go and then ditch the jumper cables!

Thats my plan once I order this kit. Waiting on the sump guard first.