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14129 asked

Need help with wire calculation regarding 120mm2


Hi all,

Im designing the electrical of my campervan, and im having trouble with the wire going from the busbar (positive and negative) to the battery. According to calculations the cable should be 120mm2. But that seems so bulky for me.. Could anyone help out? Thanks.

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wiringHelpschematics
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3 Answers
Mike Dorsett avatar image
Mike Dorsett answered ·

use 2 x 75mm^2 in parallel, or move to a higher voltage system. if you run your storage batteries in series, then a 24V 2kW inverter will need ~90A, and you can use thinner cables. you then need dc/dc converter for dc charging and the loads which will benefit from a regulated supply.

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14129 avatar image 14129 commented ·

I didn't think of this option yet.. :)

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seb71 avatar image seb71 14129 commented ·
In that case, go for 48V (if you did not purchased anything yet).
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kevgermany avatar image
kevgermany answered ·

Cable sizes seem very large. How did you get to 120mm?

Agree with the 24V suggestion. Did mine that way. Just added a basic Orion to handle the 12V DC loads.

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14129 avatar image 14129 commented ·
166 Amps from the multiplus, 25A from the solar charge controller, 20A DC-Dc charger and 32A from 12v appliances for a total of 242A.. over a length of 2 meters.. I see now that I can use 90mm2 from busbar to battery. but still bulky..
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Nev avatar image
Nev answered ·

Should be easy enough. Keep cable lengths to a minimum. Do you really need 1m each end of the shunt?

My 500A SmartShunt has terminals with 150mm² cable on both ends. One side leads to our combined house/starter 12V 300Ah LiFePO4 battery and is about 300mm long. The other is a similar length to the busbar and also to the starter motor (c3m) of the 3.9l TD engine. I have measured a peak current of 747A!

Often multiple starts daily for the last 7 years. No smoke yet.



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14129 avatar image 14129 commented ·
Probably I don't need 1 meter no. 747 peak current.. Damn haha.
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