tortiseshell

Alrighty... nice to see the campers getting some love these days! Here's my rig. A 2021 Cirrus 620 on a 2021 2500HD Duramax. No mods... works great for our needs except the height differential from the ground up to the tailgate (with camper on=36"). Or what I'm more concerned about the way down! Esp at night a mis-step could be a bummer. We have a swing away cargo carrier and bike rack we mount depending on the trip. Allows us to swing away the unit while attached to the truck and provide egress to the camper. Quite happy with the setup and rides very well with the 2500 HD. This is my first diesel and Im blown away at the low rpms going up a mtn pass or hill. Effortless, and the exhaust brake is really nice for those steep or long descents. We moved from a VW camper van (of 25 years) to this platform. Huge shift but we have a much larger footprint now and serious height. So paying attention to things I didn't really need to before. My jacks use a quick release system so we travel with them off and selectively take them with us depending on the trip. But overall very happy and the whole platform feels solid.

OK... finally got it and done. Sooooo happy and it came out great! Many thanks to my fantastic neighbor and friend who was instrumental throughout the project. On top of that he made a CAD drawing of my setup. Way better than my 6th grade science paper representation! So, sharing this in hopes it may help others. There is no way I could have done this without help from outside... Another JR and Sheath... thank you so much! Overall the whole system is terrific and super clean install. I greatly appreciate everything everyone has done to help navigate this rookie though my project. The best take way? I know this system inside and out since it was a DIY. I feel good about every wire placement, how it was done and how to think about troubleshooting if needed. So many thanks to everyone.

So just an update... I got the truck fully wired 95%.. Battery cable from under the hood to mid cargo bed with anderson connector done. Trigger wire from driver side fuse box to push button switch in dash installed. Switch wire runs from dash through firewall, thru hood release boot and joins battery wire to cargo bed. Rear driver side running light tapped into for camper marker lights. That wire is raced to meet the other looms to the cargo bed. So I have a total of two connections between truck and camper. Battery wire to charger. Double plug for switch to turn charger on/off and camper marker lights. I just need to add the double plug, loom it and fuse tap my connection for the switch. Overall it looks great and is super clean. Many thank you all of you and an amazing neighbor/friend. I didn't need to make a physical connection to the alternator. My HD was set up for adding accessories onto the battery. The fuse panel on the driver side provided a needed trigger wire signal for the charger. Adding a switch inline between the fuse panel and charger will let me turn it on/off from the cab. Next phase is the camper. Again... thanks so much all. I've learned a lot!

I so appreciate all your input, experience and advice... Thank you! So.... today got some good things accomplished, Not done yet. Today was prepping the truck with the help of an amazing neighbor and friend. Goal was to complete wiring with a switch for a trigger wire to the charger. Complete a wire run from rear truck running lights into the bed for camper marker lights. Run battery cables from engine to cargo bed. The three wire runs in the cargo bed will be connected to the camper. I have anderson connectors for the battery cable run to the camper. Will use weather tight smaller connectors for the trigger wire and marker lights. So a total of three connections in the cargo bed. The wires emerge out of the forward driver side of the bed through one of the removable caps on the sidewall. The switch was the tricky part but is done and tested. It looks great and I'll post pics when done. Truck running light to camper marker light connection is raced and just needs a connection. Tomorrow we run the battery cables and terminate all the truck wires with the appropriate connector. For the trigger wire switch, we were able to use an empty fuse slot that is hot on the driver side fuse panel. That wire exits the firewall via the hood release boot. It will race down with the battery wires to the cargo bed. The key to that is using the switch when I want the charger on or off. The switch is a simple lighted push button. So it's easy to determine if it is on or off. I like that I can manually trigger the charger on or off from the cab at will. After the truck comes the camper. Install lithium batts, wire in charger, tap into camper marker lights, make a pigtail connection that allows all three plugs to come together in the truck bed. Once done I won't need to use the camper 7 way trailer wire at all. My camper is small enough to close the tailgate, Viola'! So far good... just slow and methodical. I really appreciate your help, ideas and cheering me on. So thank you. More to come with pics hopefully soon. I learned so much today that i really admire the facets revealed in putting this together. Hopefully it will be a clean productive install. The joy in DIY is the fact of understanding what is going on and what to be aware of now and later. Thanks much! Oh... and yes... the VSR is a great idea... that may be an add on after I figure this out for a bit.

hey thxs another jr… i already got all my stuff and ready to install… so thinking im going to proceed with what i have… todays the day for round one… thank you for all your help… gonna see how this works out… will let you know

awesome jr.. thanks... chewing on it. wiring tomorrow on the truck side... the victron sounds like a smart way to go. hmmmm.... ugh....

Oh boy... now I'm getting more nervous...ugh... I very much appreciate sheath and another jr's insight... thank you so much! Just spent some time under the hood, fuse boxes and got the cabin fuse boxes open... yow! Wondering if I should use a Victron charger instead...ugh

Oh man... now I'm worried... perhaps I need to find a connection point other than the alternator for the trigger wire. Something that activates when the truck is on and shuts off when the truck is off. Wondering about some of the fuses that say not used... I can test to see if they light up while the truck is running and shut off when the truck is off. Sheath do you have a recommendation of where to tap into without creating electrical mayhem on the system? Renogy support is not helpful at all. My experience with them has not been impressive. Really appreciate the link... thank you... for a rookie, thats a lot to digest and decode... am hoping to do this this weekend... YOW!

I'm getting ready to add a DC to DC charger to my truck camper and need to tap into the truck alternator for a D+ (trigger) wire. My rig has a 220 amp alternator. Wondering if the alternator is 3 or 4 terminals? Any tips on which terminal to use on the alternator? (instructions say to use IGN for 3 terminal, use ON for 4 terminal. Thoughts? Yes... needs to be hot when the truck is on and off when the truck is not running. Are the terminals labeled easily? Are terminals toward the cab or front of the truck? Routing wire? The space looks tight. Any tricks to feed a wire (16awg) through the firewall into the cab (for a on/off switch) and back out again to the driver side cargo bed? Someone must of done this or similar... I'd really like to learn from you any tips, tricks, consideration, advise, don't do's... etc... Yup I'm a rookie but determined to do this... So thank you for any insights. I feel like I have a good handle on the big picture of my project. Due to the alternator tight space it leaves me wondering a bit so checking here to see what others have experienced. Thanks so much! Attached are two shots from the manual of what I am using - Renogy DC to DC 40 Amp Charger

I have a 2021 2500HD CC Duramax. It's incredible. For tires I put on BFG KO2 - 275/70/18. Rides great! Just had the 10k service completed... Love it! I love the tires as they handle everything I ask of them no matter the season or task.

Hey this is all super helpful! Thank you. Still mysterious for me and feel like I want to find a mentor (besides youtube) to help me tackle this. Would prefer to keep cost down and the more I do myself, the better I will understand what I have. Ultimately I want to increase my battery capacity. Big decision is lithium or agm... its a cost issue for me. Then a dc to dc charger that can handle different battery types should i change at some point. Would want the charger to isolate as well handle a portable solar panel. redarc makes some intriguing products. victron does as well. I don't see changing out what came with my camper, but I do see adding onto it. My battery space is pretty meager. Room for two 12 volt group 24, but will be tight. Currently i have one Group 21 agm in there. Also want to think about adding a 12v portable refer that would be kept in the back seat of the truck. Wondering how power and battery mgt will be taken care of for that. Open to all ideas. Thank you everyone!

Looking to hear from others who have done this. I have a slide in camper for my truck and want to improve the ability to charge the camper house battery while driving. I know it depends on the battery in the camper, LA/AGM/Lithium... but what product did you use, why and what was the install like? Several products out there are attractive, but I'm no mechanic or electrician. Looking to upgrade my current electrical capacity in the camper and need to start with a good charging system. What did you use and can a rookie like me do this? Thanks!

I Got BFG KO2 on mine... like em!

So... Stant has a locking diesel fuel cap for the 2020 silverado 2500hd Part # 10591D I'd like to know if that part # would work for a 2021 silverado 2500hd duramax. Still looking for a locking DEF cap as well. I know this might seem 80's but some of us need to have the fuel system secure. My rig is often left in areas where anyone could mess with it without ever being seen. I'll take the peace of mind before I invite an open door policy. Anyone found a solution for the 2021 duramax? Thanks!

i have a 2021 silverado 2500hd duramax... i use a 6” drop for a boat and mine came w a 2” adaptor... which i needed for my buddy’s boat