Going from 2 alternators to 1 good idea?

[Aretoo]

I purchased my truck used about 2 months ago and I LOVE it. Currently has 61000 and runs great. I was playing under the hood the other day and was looking at the 2 alternators and that got me to thinking. Why not remove both of them and put an upgraded DC Power either 220amp or 260 amp.

I understand the cost to do that, my question is will it effect anything else? Can the truck be downgraded from 2 alternators to 1 without causing any problems. I do not plow with the truck. I tow a landscape trailer and am looking to purchase a 34ft 5th wheel in the near future. I don't run any extra stereo stuff but do have a DVD player with 2 screens in the seats for the kids.

I am wondering going from the 2 to the 1 will reduce the load on the engine at all? Not that it can not handle it but thought any load reduction can not be bad. I am also assuming the lower one of the 2 would be the one to remove since it is on the secondary belt. Any thoughts and opinions are welcome.

[Lilpooh]

I also have two alternator, IMO your not really putting any noticeable load on the motor with the second alternator. I would just leave it on there and upgrade your top (primary) alternator.


When my original top alternator failed, the secondary was there as a back up and didn't leave me stranded or out of commission. The PCM turned on the "battery light" in the dash, but my volts still showed 13v+ because the secondary had been commanded on by the PCM.

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/at...8&d=1288282883

[Aretoo]

Thanks for the reply. I was just never sure how much strain a alternator put on the engine, especially one that is not really needed.

If you get a chance can you shoot me a pic of your 2 alternator setup and how much clearance you have with the intercooler tube. It looks like the guy who owned the truck before my put the tube in a vice and flattened one side of the tube. The only reason i can think of it because it was hitting the lower alternator.

I would look at my buddies but none of there trucks have the dual setup. Thanks for the help

[ZMANN]

since they aren't truly redundant if one fails you still have issues

there was a thread and Dennis from strictly walked everyone through how to do it

you need to rewire something and it lets the PCM now it's a 1 alt truck again
,,good thing is you could sell the dual and get a nice single
with room to spare

[Lilpooh]

Originally Posted by ZMANN

since they aren't redundant if one fails you still have issues

Can you explain how this is so? I can only give my experience with what I've ran into. Thanks.

When my top alternator failed, the bottom alternator was able to keep the charging system working without issues (i.e.... Battery drain, FICM damage, running poorly).

On a dual alternator set up, the bottom alternator is controlled by the PCM. Its only "on" when the GP are activated and/or when the upper alternator can't keep up with volt/amp draw.

IMO, Having a "peace of mind" knowing that if the top alternator fails, the PCM will command the lower alternator to take up the slack.

[drunk on diesel]

just leave it be...

load is dictated by the current you're drawing. They just share that load. In theory, they should last twice as long as a single

[Lilpooh]

Originally Posted by Aretoo

Thanks for the reply. I was just never sure how much strain a alternator put on the engine, especially one that is not really needed.

If you get a chance can you shoot me a pic of your 2 alternator setup and how much clearance you have with the intercooler tube. It looks like the guy who owned the truck before my put the tube in a vice and flattened one side of the tube. The only reason i can think of it because it was hitting the lower alternator.

I would look at my buddies but none of there trucks have the dual setup. Thanks for the help

The "crushed" hot side IC pipe came that way from the factory on dual alternator set-ups. Allowed room for the lower alternator. Changing out to a "non-crushed" pipe has no HP gain.

[ZMANN]

Not really other than what I have read I had some PDF files but those were lost
,, also IIRC the burden alternator is changed from one to the other at different times from what I have read ,,

I know Dennis pulled his to gain room and also test his regulated returns on various setups .

If you had one go down and still had full voltage ,, that is good to know

[ZMANN]

here is the conversion dual to single pdf and a little description on the charging characteristics

https://www.fleet.ford.com/truckbbas/non-html/Q91.pdf

[Aretoo]

Thanks for the info. The IC tube is what got me looking at it in the first place. Was not sure if that was the previous owners "mod" or not since I had no reference truck. It was actually surprising to me that for all the guys i know with 6.0 none of them had the dual setup.

I was wondering if the "crushed tube" restricted the flow enough to hurt HP or anything.

Thanks again!