Add bat?

[kalgatha1 10+ year member]

alright guys, so i have Kicker 1500.1 and a 450.4 amps powering my kenwood excelon component speakers and 15'' Fi BL. I also have a 160 amp alternator, but i know thats not enough power for what i got. my lights dim real bad when i turn it up to much, and sometimes it'll just shutoff altogether if its drawing to much power. so i need to know what my best bet to get it to quit or at least improve on doing that. should i add a batt and put it in the back? or should i try a capacitor (from what i've heard isn't what im lookin for), or is there something else i should do? I have done the "big 3" when i installed my alternator. looking for fairly cheap solutions. im goin to college this fall and need to save my moneys

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[darkhunter139 10+ year member]

Get a battery for the trunk definatly

 

[kalgatha1 10+ year member]

k now next question, what kind? kinetic? Optima? how big? how do i wire it?

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

Do you have a good battery up front? If not, try a new, better battery up front first. If the front is good, then yeah, get a second for the rear.

 

[kalgatha1 10+ year member]

i've got stock in front its been doin fine tho (for stock), i just want to be as cost efficeint as possible. if it'd fix the problem better for cheaper to add one to the back then ill do that, but if gettin a new one up front will be better for cheaper, ill do that. i just don't like the idea of havin a perfectly good battery sittin around. which is what would happen if i just got a new one up front.

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

My vote is still to try a front battery first. Worst case scenario, it doesn't help the problem, but you know that you have a brand new good battery up front. Then, you can tackle a rear battery and the wiring that goes along with it.

A new front battery just consists of the battery itself. I would assume that if you did the Big 3, you have terminals and such already. If you run a new front battery, just have to swap the old for new.

If you run a rear battery, you need wire, terminals, a way to secure it, etc. The most cost effective route would be to do the front first, IMO.

 

[kalgatha1 10+ year member]

ok, so what kind/size should i get for either one?

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

Kinetik, Optima, PowerMaster. Many good choices. As for size, get the largest that you can fit under your hood. Optima D34's and D31's are very popular. You just have to know what your dimensions are, and go from there. Here are some links:

Optima

Kinetik

PowerMaster

 

[kalgatha1 10+ year member]

alright thanx, what about if i was to put one in the trunk as well? would i use the biggest possible? or what

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

In my setup, I am running 2 Optima Yellow Top D34's. One up front, one in the trunk. Just as an example. It comes down to personal preference, and budget. $400-500 in batteries may not be what you are looking to spend.

 

[kalgatha1 10+ year member]

well i'd not like to spend that much, but i guess if i just wait awhile and save up my money i could i had to. so how do i wire the batt. in the back? do i connect it directly to the terminals on the front batt? or can i connect it straight to the alt. output and ground to chasssi?

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

Power from front battery to rear battery, with fuses after first and before second batteries. Just ground the rear battery in the trunk where you have your amps grounded.

If i am wrong here, someone chime in.

 

[kalgatha1 10+ year member]

how bigga fuses? 150amp? 200?

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

you can also run a ground from the front battery to the rear battery, and ground in the trunk.

 

[geowick07 10+ year member]

Fuse for the wire. If using 1/0, 200-250 amp.