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Members are discussing whether it’s safe and effective to link house and chassis batteries for solar charging on a 2022 BT 5230 with 800 watts of rooftop solar. The original poster wants to use a key switch to connect all batteries, aiming to keep them charged during dry camping or long-term parking. Several RVers caution that if the house batteries are lithium and the chassis battery is lead-acid, a DC-to-DC charger is required to prevent damage, as a simple switch could force the wrong...
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Members are discussing whether it’s safe and effective to link house and chassis batteries for solar charging on a 2022 BT 5230 with 800 watts of rooftop solar. The original poster wants to use a key switch to connect all batteries, aiming to keep them charged during dry camping or long-term parking. Several RVers caution that if the house batteries are lithium and the chassis battery is lead-acid, a DC-to-DC charger is required to prevent damage, as a simple switch could force the wrong charging profile onto the lead-acid battery. However, since the setup in question uses AGM house batteries and a standard Ford chassis battery, members agree these are compatible and can be linked without special equipment.
A few members share practical tips, such as using a factory-installed circuit breaker to disconnect the chassis battery during storage, eliminating the need for an extra switch. The discussion also touches on the limitations of emergency start switches, which may not link the batteries as intended. The consensus is that with AGM and lead-acid batteries, linking for solar charging is generally safe, but adding a dedicated solar panel for the chassis battery is another viable option if concerns persist.
