Do Two Power Wires Run to the Redarc In-Vehicle BCDC Battery Charger

Published 08/17/2022

Question:

Hi, Im looking for a dc-dc charger to charge a gel deep-cycle battery in my camper trailer being towed by a 3rd gen Tacoma truck with a tow package and 7-pin wiring harness. The dc-dc charger must accept power from 2 sources: solar on camper and alternator/battery on TV while driving. It seems like the Redarc BCDC dc-dc charger is the right hardware for this, however I am seeing conflicting recommendations on your site regarding whether or not I need to run additional wires to the truck for this system to work. I am seeing 2 possible needs for additional wiring: 1 a low-gauge e.g. 12 AWG wire to a 12v source thats on when truck is running to switch the Redarc on. 2 a thick e.g. 4 or 8 awg wire from the truck battery + terminal to the + receptor on the 7-way, to avoid voltage i.e. replace the factory wire with a thicker wire. In my understanding, wire #1 might be necessary for the Redarc BCDC to operate, while wire #2 just allows full-stage charging of the camper battery as opposed to just trickle charging i.e., just nice but not necessary. Is this correct? e.g. this video https://www.etrailer.com/tv-review-redarc-battery-charger-red96fr.aspx shows the installer running a low-gauge wire to a 10 amp fuse that is on when ignition is on, as a necessary step. However, this video is linked from a reply https://www.etrailer.com/question-536387.html that states no additional wires need to be run. This reply says I can just feed the Redarc with 12v from the 7-way harness https://www.etrailer.com/question-536387.html This reply says I need to bypass the factory circuitinch and run an 8 AWG wire from the TV battery to the 7-way harness. So for towing with a 2022 3rd gen Tacoma with a stock variable-voltage alternator, and charging a gel deep cycle battery with the Redarc, do I need to run additional wires or not?

asked by: Drew

Expert Reply:

I apologize for any confusion but you do need to run the additional wire you mentioned when installing the Redarc In-Vehicle BCDC Battery Charger part # RED96FR. The circuit that runs to the ignition is what turns the charger on when the vehicle is running and the heavier gauge wire is what allows the charger to put a higher amp charge on the battery.

expert reply by: Jameson C