12 volt winch on a 200 amp 24/12 generator

[Dock Rocker]

I know this has been covered quite a few times in a round about way. I know people are running separate 12 volt systems for things like lights and radios.

I also know that people have posed the question about winches in particular. The problem is I haven't found anyone that has actually done it.

My thoughts are this. Set up a separate 12 volt battery under one of the rear seats. Bring a 12 volt line off of the generator to charge that battery system. I realize this will work fine for low amp draw items but I am not sure how it will work with something like a winch.
Has anyone done something like this?

I know 24 volt winches are not hard to come by but I have two nice 12.5k winches laying around the shop. It would be nice to utilize one of them if t will work.


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[gimpyrobb]

If you look at winch installs, most have multiple batteries as the amp draw is very high. Whatever the alt puts out will re-charge the batts after the high current draw. Doesn't matter if its 12v or 24. As long as you aren't winching a lot, you'll be fine.

 

[ryanruck]

I currently have a 12v Badlands winch on my truck with the dual voltage 200A alternator. It works but I haven't had to use it for any heavy winching yet.

You've definitely got a couple options to power your 12v winches.

The 12v side of the alternator is only 50A so adding extra batteries will help. Especially if you're able to use the military Hawker batteries which have a great reserve on them. I don't know how familiar you are with the dual voltage alternator but, in stock form, the 14v tap will go to the positive on your rear battery of the pair under your passenger seat. Instead of running it to a battery under the rear seat, I would run it to the battery compartment like it should be and then, if you want an additional battery, parallel that into that rear battery. Down the road I'm going to add the H1 underhood battery box to my truck and parallel those two into the rear battery.

You can also add a battery equalizer to help out the alternator's 50A. I've got a Vanner VanGuard 100A in my truck. I've got a 2nd I was going to install since they can be installed parallel to each other for a higher amp rating but, since space is at a premium I haven't found a good spot for it and I'll probably end up selling it. I'm thinking 150A 12v should be sufficient. One of those would give you 150A usable generated 12v power.

Something else to consider is that you can also run your 12v winch off the 24v power. You'll need to change out the relays for 24v ones. The upside is it will spin your winch a lot faster. The downside is it will heat up a lot more quickly and put more wear and tear on it. This is common in off road competitions where time is of the essence.

One last thing to consider besides power, is that your 12v winches also probably have a standard commercial 10" x 4.5" mounting bolt pattern. The factory HMMWV winch bumpers have a 9" x 4.5". The winch plates can be modified to accept a 10" x 4.5" no problem though.

Eventually I'd like to install some 24v winches (I've got a rear mount installed) but since Southern Metals is no longer dealing HMMWV parts, I've kind of put that wish further down the list unless I come across a couple at a good price. My 12v Badlands seems fine for now.