12v to 24v converter

Hey TW,

I'm picking up some 24v military grade LED lights from a member on here. I want to know if anyone on here has a suggestions for a 12v to 24v converter?? I have searched on google and Amazon and found a few but I have no idea which one will be good.

If anyone has some experience with a converter, I would love to hear what you have to say.

If possible I would LOVE to stay away from getting 2 batteries...
...But, if that's what needs to be done, then I will go purchase another.

Please give me as much input as possible so I can make an educated decision on what will work better.

Thanks in advance TW!!!

 

We have a Prevost Bus Conversion that runs 24v for almost all system loads, it uses a Sure Power battery equalizer to run the 12v loads on the bus. One example is that all the marker lights on the bus are 24v, however the trailer we tow behind the bus has 12v lights, the battery equalizer steps down the voltage when powering the trailer lights.

From the quick search I've done, it looks like you need a DC to DC converter, which Sure Power makes, and this will act as a voltage doubler, steping up the 12v on the taco to a 24v output.

Have a look at this link....
http://www.ase-supply.com/v/vspfiles/downloadables/41222.pdf

I didn't do any price shopping, but the one I'm showing you is just under $400.

http://www.ase-supply.com/Sure_Power_41222_DC_to_DC_Converter_p/sp-41222.htm

 

Those look good man. I do believe I will need a dc to dc converter. I know your running an equalizer.

Do you have any experience on how the volt doubler works?

What are the affects on the battery?

Would you suggest doing a double battery setup or is this a safer option??

Thanks for the response man! It helped out a lot

 

Describe the lights...you might be able to modify the light circuit to run them on 12v.

 

Here is a link for the lights in getting

http://www.levineautoparts.com/ledheadlight1.html

Is I can convert them, that would be amazing!

But if I do that, how much would it affect the light output?

 

Unfortunatley I don't, but I am curious as to what route you end up going, in case I ever run into a similar situation.

I really can't see any, the converter would only run when you want to run your led lights, and from what I saw in the manual it uses a 12v trigger to turn the converter on, so this would also act as the switch for your lights.

I know I've seen a write up on one of the FJ forums about running dual batteries, it is proably worth a read if you haven't already. The part I'm not sure about is the fact that you'll have to isolate the 12v from the 24v when hooking the batteries together. I think then you'll get into needing a battery equalizer like I was talking about before.....http://www.ase-supply.com/Sure_Power_12010E00_Battery_Equalizer_p/sp-12010e00.htm


Hopefully someone on TW has actually done this before and can explain what they did to get 24v from 12.

 

Not to get backyardish, but you could buy a marine grade 24v battery charger and run it off an inverter. I didn't see a current draw on the link you gave, but I'm sure its low.

http://www.batterystuff.com/battery-chargers/24-volt/

 

You would need dc to dc convertor, AKA voltage doubler to run those lights on your tacoma. My only experience with them is from ZF commercial truck transmissions, and they were one of the common items to fail, and very pricy.

They are different from the battery equilizer mentioned earlier, that system uses a 24V alternator, two 12V batteries in series for the 24V system, and 12V is drawn off only one battery (between the two in series) for any accessory loads. Because of this difference in load, the equilizer is used to keep the charging voltages equal on both batteries regardless of the difference in load.

A dual battery setup alone would not really work as you would not be able to charge both batteries from your 12V alternator at the same time as they are connected in series to run your 24V lights.

I highly doubt the led's actually run on 24V, but you'd have to cut opuen the sealed units to modify, not something I'd be keen to do.

I see they are offered in 12V as well, is the deal you are getting enough to justify the hassle and expense of a voltage doubler?


Edit, the "equilizer" in the link above is actually a voltage doubler, and it should work for the lights. This is different from the battery equilizers I was referring to. The sure power 41222 looks identical to the ones I have had personal experience with, rebranded as a ZF/ meritor transmission part, at a much better price. Keep in mind when I said they are one of the common items to fail, this is on commercial trucks expected to run a million miles before overhaul, likely you wouldn't use your lights as much.

 

Can't tell from the images on that site. I'd pretty much need to take one apart...and for $400+ I doubt you want to do exploratory surgery.

It would not affect light output at all.

 

So from what your saying is that running two 12v batteries in series will not work due to my alternator, correct? I have no idea if this works or is a completely retarded statement but is there anyway to upgrade my alternator to be able to supply both 12v batteries if I go that route? Or is there any option that will make running 2 batteries in series work?

Seems like if I use a equalizer I still wouldn't get 24v with that setup..

And the deal I'm getting is pretty good so I think that getting a voltage doubler would definitely justify getting the lights. When I receive them, I am going to check how they work on a 12v. Figure I might a well see what happens..

Do you happen to have a link or any more information on the voltage doubler you are familiar with??

 

I would be interested in seeing if they could be converted actually. But this would most likely be the last option bc their is a large grey area of unknown certainties.. What's your experience with conversions like this??

Thanks for the replies guys!

 

If you like your truck electronics don't experiment. A DC to DC converter is the only way to go.

 

Do you recommend or have any input for a certain converter?

Point taken btw

 

The voltage doubler I'm familiar with looks identical to the Sure Power 41222, the application was a Meritor / ZF Freedomline automated transmission. The transmission was designed by ZF for the European market, where the trucks use 24V systems, and the voltage doubler was added by Meritor to adapt the unit to work with the 12V North American trucks. Really not much different than what you are trying to do.

As far as dual batteries alone, take a peice of paper and sketch out two 12V batteries in series. ( neg of one to positive on the other) the remaining terminals will supply your
24V. Now draw 12v wires from your alternator to each battery pos and neg. Your diagram will show a direct short circuit. This is why you can't charge a 24V system with a 12V alternator on it's own.

As far as modifying the alternator, the simple answer is no. The complicated answer is that there are such things as transformer alternators that take A/C voltage from the stator, use a transformer to produce 28VAC, and a second diode rectifier that converts to 28VDC to charge an additional series battery like you suggest, but you won't find one that bolts into a tacoma and modifying one yourself certainly wouldn't be the easiest, cheapest, or cleanest way of getting the job done.

No matter which way you go, be very carefull to avoid any damage the onboard electronics on the truck. 12V lights, converting the lights to 12V if possible, then using a voltage doubler would be the options I would condsider. Maybe contact trucklite and see if those will work just as well on 12V as they do on 24V.

 

alright so it sounds like i should just grab a decent DC to DC converter if I am not able to convert them to 12V.

Thank you for you input on everything! it certainly has helped me out a lot.

Rep coming your way buddy!

 

Reviving this old thread but did you get this sorted out? I am looking at some lights that require a 24 volt source and curious how to get that done to my 2013 Taco!

 

Not sure that guys is still around. How much power do your lights need? A dc-dc boost converter is still the way to go. Lots of them on Amazon, no idea which ones are good.

 

if you want to go down that rabbit hole, go to https://diysolarforum.com/ and start reading about converters. Lots of discussion by guys who know the stuff at least as well as some folks here know Tacos.

 

I used one to charge my Bluetti lithium battery faster. See here.

 

The lights I am looking at need 24v from the look of it.