The exterior of the 4WD was washed four times in an effort to remove all the red earth and it still isn't clean. Moreover I've yet to start on the interior!
Meanwhile the wiring in the camper trailer has been stripped out along with the original small power distribution board at the rear and the more comprehensive one I made which fitted in the side locker.
Small power board above the tailgate
I want to make the new electrical system modular which will allow me to remove the 120Ah lithium battery and DC to DC charger as a 'plug and play' module that can go directly into the 4WD should I decide to travel without the trailer.
Additionally, two new components have been purchased. A 1500W pure sine wave inverter with remote and a Junctek Battery Monitoring System. I plan on using the original location of the smaller power distribution board at the rear for the inverter remote switch, a 240V 3 pin outlet socket and the Junctek LCD display. I have some 2mm galvanised sheet from which I'll make the board.
The original small distribution board will be cut down in size and become the new board in the rear side locker.
Usually a lead-acid DC to DC charger can't be used to charge lithium batteries. This is due to the charger voltage being too high and it having an 'Equalization' phase which raised the voltage to 15.2V. At 15.2V the Lithium battery will be damaged.
However my existing Projecta IDC25 charger produces 14.4V when using the AGM mode and this mode doesn't have an equalization phase. Therefore the Projecta should recharge the lithium battery without damaging it.
As mention in an earlier post; I've mounted the charger on to of the battery to keep it modular.
The inverter has been mounted on an internal bulkhead with the Junctek 400A shunt an d controller module above.
The tailgate board now looks like this…..
With everything installed I tried turning on the inverter using the remote switch. Damned switch went ballistic with flashing lights and the inverter always being turned on when the switch was connected to it. I did some research on the inverter and discovered I have the latest model which is incompatible with the switch. Everything had to be pulled apart to remove the remote switch
With the new power distribution box completed I turned my attention to rewiring the trailer. That took several days as I slowly traced existing wiring and then re-routed it. After completing that it was time to configure the Junctek Battery Monitoring System.
The display is a little "busy" but I can see the voltage is 13.5V and the Amps are 0.70A. The Amps figure is displayed in Green when power is going into the battery and Blue when being taken out. The amount of power left in the battery is also shown along with other useful information. I like that the Junctek also has Bluetooth and a phone App.
I haven't tested it yet, but I am hoping I'll be able to Bluetooth connect from the 4WD to the trailer.
The power box is in the left rear corner of the trailer which leaves the right rear empty.
I decided to fit the 12V oven here. It's mounted on a hinged platform which created a small storage compartment underneath. I've used this area for spare parts such as filters, nuts & bolts, puncture repair kit, etc
All this has taken me a week.
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