Just hooked up my subs and amp and i was just wondering how long it would take to reck my Alternator and if there was something i could do to prevent that from doing soo. I know you can use a cap just wondering is caps do very much let me know thanks!!

hey yea i would say get a yellow top battery and do the "BIG THREE"
here is how to do it
We’ll start out by explaining exactly why you’re doing this upgrade. As you should know, the bigger the power wire in your sound, video or lighting system, the better it will perform and you should experience less dimming and/or voltage drops. The Big 3 is..

1) Alternator Positive to Battery Positive (optional fuse)

2) Battery Negative to Chassis

3) Chassis to Engine Block


Replacing/adding larger wire to these three critical spots can reduce or rid your electrical system of dimming and voltage drops. Overall, giving your charging system a larger surface area to travel over, will stabilize power and relieve strain on the alternator and battery.

If you have little cash to spend on a High Output (HO) alternator at the moment.. and the thought of even buying a new/better battery is daunting to you, this is a cheap and quick solution for your voltage issues.

Each wire serves its own special purpose, so you need to upgrade/replace all three for maximum potential of this mod. The Alternator Positive to Battery Positive wire is pretty small on a stock electrical system, so quite obviously upgrading that particular wire will increase power flow from the alternator to the battery. In DC power systems, power flows negative to positive. So upgrading the main grounds is just as important as the main power wire is. And lastly, since the alternator is grounded to the engine block, you need a way to transfer that energy back into the system.

Items You Need

You’ll need a varying assortment of tools and supplies to successfully complete this job. Depending on how large your engine compartment is you’ll need between 5-10ft of wire. I recommend you use the absolute largest you can afford. 1/0awg is a very popular choice for completing this upgrade, although others have been known to use 4awg. Remember that anything over stock is still better, but while you’re under there... you might as well go big

You’ll also need several crimps sized for whatever wire you use. A normal amount would be 6. If you upgrade your stock battery terminal to something with set screws, you’ll need one less crimp.

If you decide to fuse the Alternator Positive to Battery Positive wire, you’ll need a fuse and fuse holder. Try to fuse for the maximum amperage of your wire.

Beginning the Project

1) Start out by disconnecting your Battery Negative. This will interrupt power through the whole system allowing you to safely work on the vehicle without danger to you or the cars more fragile electronic devices.

2) Sand down the potential grounding point for the new Chassis to Battery Negative point. This should be shiny metal when you’re done. You want as clean of a connection as possible. If you use the existing ground point you may not have to drill a new hole for a screw. Sand around it to ensure a good connection still. This connection must be tight and secure when you’re done.

4) Screw the new ground wire in place but DO NOT reconnect it to the Battery Negative yet. Lay it down on a piece of cloth or paper and wait to connect it till after you finish the other elements of the project.


5) It’s time to add onto the existing Alternator Positive wire. This can be a bit tricky due to a small plastic collar around the positive lead coming off of the alt. It really only allows you to use one ring terminal terminated wire on the alt. That is perfectly fine though. Break off a little of the plastic if the extra wire refuses to fit. There should be a rubber gasket over the existing wire that will protect it.

Again, make sure that the wire is hooked snug on the terminal and not exposed to the elements.

6) Take the other end of the Alternator Positive wire and if you so choose, run it through the fuse holder. If you’ve decided to not get a fuse holder, then run it straight to the battery positive.

7) Attach the wire along the way to something that won’t get too hot and that won’t vibrate too terribly. Go ahead and connect the wire to the positive battery terminal.

8) The last step is the Chassis to Engine Block wire. Remember to sand both points well, just like the when you did the Battery Negative to Chassis. All you need to do for this step is to find a non-essential bolt on the engine block to attach the wire to. Non-essentials are those that don’t hold a liquid in. For example… using the Oil Drain plug as an attachment point probably isn’t the smartest place.

9) Take the other end leading off of the engine block and sand a smooth place on the chassis. If you want to do more than one lead off of the block that would be fine as well. The more the merrier.

10) You’re just about done. Re-check all of the new and old connections you just fiddled with to ensure stability, safe connection and good contact. After you’ve made sure everything is safe, you may re-attach the Battery Negative wire to the negative terminal on the battery.

Congratulations! You’ve just completed the cheapest and easiest upgrade to your electrical system that there is. If this doesn’t take care of your questions, please post them in this thread and we’ll try to answer them for you..

stickied!!
good write-up!!

thanks
but is it not just re grounding the system you also upgrade the 12+ too.. doing this will make the charging system more efficent so doing this with or without a yellow top battery will help

i cap just make things worst in my opinion cus it is just a nother thing for the charging system to charge and all caps discharge in a snap but take 5 times that to recharge..

after doing this to my car i have NO dimming and the voltage drop is smaller

solid write up!

so

0 gauge to the alternator so i have 2 wires running to it?
than another 0 gauge to the chassey from the ground?
0 gauge to the chassie to block

and 0 for the stereo?

yea leave all the stock wires and just add the 0 ga wires and well as for the stereo you dont have to use 0 ga unless u need it.. but yea
from the alt to the + on the battery you want 0 ga wire
from engine block to frame/body 0 ga
and - of battery to frame/body 0 ga

give me a list of all the amps that you are gonna be running and the sizes and number of the fuses that are on the amps and i will you know what size wire to use

Originally Posted by splescort

thanks
but is it not just re grounding the system you also upgrade the 12+ too.. doing this will make the charging system more efficent so doing this with or without a yellow top battery will help

i cap just make things worst in my opinion cus it is just a nother thing for the charging system to charge and all caps discharge in a snap but take 5 times that to recharge..

after doing this to my car i have NO dimming and the voltage drop is smaller

Capacitors are meant to discharge and charge quickly. They are used in almost EVERY electrical device to smooth out voltage.

I've never used one of these large capacity automotive caps but from what I've learned as an electrical engineer a cap will only help keep your power smooth. From what I understand you should charge your automotive caps before installation so that you do not have huge amperage draw through your wires to your trunk (which you would if you just hooked it up in the trunk without a charge).

A cap will keep your 12V at 12V during those hard bass thumps. However, if your audio system is CONSTANTLY drawing high power a cap won't do anything.

I do suppose though that these large capacitors meant for high amperage output might behave differently than the ones I am used to though so anyone feel free to correct me.

But in regards to the extra grounding points, I can definitely see that helping out a lot. It also helps sensors get proper values and will therefor keep your car running better. I definitely plan on doing this to my car.

Double post and I can't seem to see the way to delete it :S Sorry.