Building a battery box

[Davie B]

After several years of hesitation, I pulled out the angle grinder today and cut the propane bottle rack off my tongue. I'm off to the hardware store for some diamond plate and the parts house for battery boxes and supplies.

[Donna D.]

Originally Posted by Davie B

... cut the propane bottle rack off my tongue.

Hope your tongue heals nicely. My bad.

Looking forward to pictures of the build too!!

[Davie B]

In process: the new bracket/shelf is installed. Tomorrow I'll mount the battery boxes.

[Davie B]

[Darwin Maring]

Put your battery in a BOAT Battery box on top the diamond plate so what seeps out will not eat up your good work.

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by Darwin Maring

Put your battery in a BOAT Battery box on top the diamond plate so what seeps out will not eat up your good work.

+1 Acid always finds its way under the battery.

[Davie B]

You mean like this? I still have bungee cords and wiring to finish but it's mostly done.

[Davie B]

And yes, the LiteHouse needs a bath.

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by Davie B

You mean like this? I still have bungee cords and wiring to finish but it's mostly done.

Looks good!

[Darwin Maring]

Davie, An outstanding job.

[Davie B]

So, like every job on an old trailer, this one got a bit more complicated. As I redid the battery wiring, I found a few mysteries and a new problem emerged. As I was getting ready to connect the new battery cable to the converter, I found a small device on the side of the old battery box. It sits between the battery and the converter. It's difficult to see but I've decided that it's either a diode or a circuit breaker. I'll try to attach a photo.

The other mystery is a green wire that heads toward the old battery box from the connector for the running lights. I'm guessing that it is a ground, but the precious owner said she had modified the towing circuit so that it charges the house batteries as it tows. Figuring that out will involve some quality time with a meter.

The problem is with the converter. I pushed the gfci test button and it (the gfci) fell apart. It's an old Carson 15 amp converter and has a terrrible buzz. My next camping trip will be dry (From a power and water standpoint.) my next powered campsite is on Memorial weekend so I'm not In a hurry for a fix.

Here are some pix. The big thing to the right of the terminal strip is a big fuse that sits between the negative side of the battery and everything else.

[Thomas G.]

Nice work. I'm not a fan of wire nuts in a mobile environment, though some tape them to keep them tight.

Good idea on the ground fuse.

[ScampBum]

I like the twin batteries...group 24 or 27?

[ScampBum]

12 volt wiring/110 converters can be a can of worms.Looks like you understand 12 volt.My 82 Scamp is a mess for wiring.I know 12 volt wiring also,so I may have to rip it all out and start from scratch.At least then I'll know what's up if I have problems.

[Davie B]

Those wire nuts are original to the trailer. I had to drill out the cover pop rivets to get inside it.

[ken h]

Do you still have room for a L.P. tank on the front or do you have different plans

Ken

[Davie B]

While theres a tiny kitchen in the LiteHouse, we prefer to usually cook outside. I don't like the idea of getting grease and food smells into the muppet fur walls. The original propane tank was a 2 1/2' gallon (?) and used the old connection system. I capped off the propane intake but carry a hose with a new connector and some yellow Teflon tape so that we have a way to make coffee inside during an extended rain.

[Thomas G.]

Originally Posted by Davie B

Those wire nuts are original to the trailer. I had to drill out the cover pop rivets to get inside it.

Interesting. It seems contrary to good practice.

[Davie B]

The more I dig into this trailer, the more I'm confused by the decisions made by the builder. The newspaper articles from the time talk about a long development cycle and consultations with rocket scientists before the trailer was built. But I've found lots of strangeness in the plumbing and wiring.