What do I do?

[awg228 10+ year member]

Title says it all. I think i have basically confused the hell out of myself. I have been reading post after post about extra batts caps Etc.

my problem is my lights dimming.

I have a 07 nissan sentra spec v with a stock 110A alt.

Atm system consist of

1- 400x1 kicker amp for sub

1- 450x2 kicker amp for fronts

1- 200x2 kicker amp for rear

have 2 gauge pos and neg runs to rear. I ran the neg run because i added a sounstream capsell 300 http://www.soundstream.com/capsell.htmand it says that is the best hookup for it. Which btw unit is garbage. after one day of use it is leaking something and my car battery was dead following morning i am guesing capsell drained main battery. plan on removing unit .

for big 3 i have 2 gauge batt neg to chassis and will be doing 2 gauge from chassis to motor.

I have been thinking of adding a kinetics batt in back and and isolator so i dont have worry about main battery dying on me ever. I am not sure what size to add and if that is even gonna fix the problem.

My friend said i should need a batt or a cap with what im running but said that i should add a 5 farad cap and to ditch the neg run to rear cause its better to run short grounds.

Could you guys please give me some input as to what you would do?

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[lincolntc690 10+ year member]

take the leaking cap, and throw it in the trash. keep the neg. run. try that first, if that doesnt help look up the big 3 and do that. if still not good enough add a battery

 

[awg228 10+ year member]

Can someone else give me some input please.

 

[loopkiller 10+ year member]

Title says it all. I think i have basically confused the hell out of myself. I have been reading post after post about extra batts caps Etc.
my problem is my lights dimming.

I have a 07 nissan sentra spec v with a stock 110A alt.

Atm system consist of

1- 400x1 kicker amp for sub

1- 450x2 kicker amp for fronts

1- 200x2 kicker amp for rear

have 2 gauge pos and neg runs to rear. I ran the neg run because i added a sounstream capsell 300 http://www.soundstream.com/capsell.htmand it says that is the best hookup for it. Which btw unit is garbage. after one day of use it is leaking something and my car battery was dead following morning i am guesing capsell drained main battery. plan on removing unit .

for big 3 i have 2 gauge batt neg to chassis and will be doing 2 gauge from chassis to motor.

I have been thinking of adding a kinetics batt in back and and isolator so i dont have worry about main battery dying on me ever. I am not sure what size to add and if that is even gonna fix the problem.

My friend said i should need a batt or a cap with what im running but said that i should add a 5 farad cap and to ditch the neg run to rear cause its better to run short grounds.

Could you guys please give me some input as to what you would do?

IMO you have done almost everything 100% correct, that was up until you mentioned the cap LOL. Simple fix, ditch the cap, keep the wire, replace your under hood battery with a Kinetik HC1400R. If you still have dimming, which you should not, then add another HC1400 in the rear. Just the one in front should give you a huge boost in power.

 

[GearGuy2001 10+ year member]

Read up on the Big 3, Ditch the capsell its junk, dont replace it with another cap (it will be junk)

Look at getting a rear battery

 

[awg228 10+ year member]

IMO you have done almost everything 100% correct, that was up until you mentioned the cap LOL. Simple fix, ditch the cap, keep the wire, replace your under hood battery with a Kinetik HC1400R. If you still have dimming, which you should not, then add another HC1400 in the rear. Just the one in front should give you a huge boost in power.

would it be better if i just added the kinetic to the rear and kept stock batt up front? wouldnt that be more power then just the new kinetic up front? or am i better with just the kinetic up front?

 

[dman4486 5,000+ posts]

would it be better if i just added the kinetic to the rear and kept stock batt up front? wouldnt that be more power then just the new kinetic up front? or am i better with just the kinetic up front?

how old is the battery up front?

 

[loopkiller 10+ year member]

would it be better if i just added the kinetic to the rear and kept stock batt up front? wouldnt that be more power then just the new kinetic up front? or am i better with just the kinetic up front?

Yes it would be better if it were in the rear closer to the amps. Here are your best choices IMO (from cheapest to most expensive):

1) Replace under hood battery with HC1400R

2) Add inline fuse and HC1200 in rear

3) Add battery isolator and HC1200 in rear

4) Add HC1400R under hood and HC1400 in rear

I would not recommend #2 at all. Since you would have dissimilar batteries, it is best to go with #3 instead and install the isolator.

 

[awg228 10+ year member]

2 more questions.

is it ok to use a circuit breaker instead of a fuse? i have a 150 amp breaker in atm

Also what size isolator. i saw 2 from stinger a 80amp and a 200 amp?

thanks for the help

 

[awg228 10+ year member]

how old is the battery up front?

batt up front is original it is just over a year old

 

[dman4486 5,000+ posts]

2 more questions.
is it ok to use a circuit breaker instead of a fuse? i have a 150 amp breaker in atm

Also what size isolator. i saw 2 from stinger a 80amp and a 200 amp?

thanks for the help

I would say no to the breaker idea....A quick breaker might be ok, but I wouldn't use one.

 

[dman4486 5,000+ posts]

batt up front is original it is just over a year old

my thought was higher internal resistance, but 1 year is typically not enough time for a battery to need replacing.

 

[Plutoman 10+ year member]

Mainly, get a second battery, and an isolator. That will fix all your problems already.

 

[awg228 10+ year member]

Mainly, get a second battery, and an isolator. That will fix all your problems already.

What size isolator 80a or 200a. those are the only 2 i saw from stinger.

 

[loopkiller 10+ year member]

2 more questions.
is it ok to use a circuit breaker instead of a fuse? i have a 150 amp breaker in atm

Also what size isolator. i saw 2 from stinger a 80amp and a 200 amp?

thanks for the help

The problem with circuit breakers are that each time they trip, they will begin to trip at a lower amount. Basically they degrade each time they pop. If it is rated for 200A and trips, next time it might trip at 198A, then 195A and so on. Fuses are used until they pop, then replaced. If you wire your stuff right, you won't have to replace a fuse unless something goes wrong. Unless the fuses are more expensive than the breakers, there is no reason not to use a fuse.

The isolator you choose should be at least rated to the maximum output of your alternator. So if you have a 200A alternator, you would need at least a 200A isolator.