On Mon, 20 Dec 2004 22:06:27 -0500, krj
wrote:



How often do you put fresh battries in your "crash box"?
krj

Once a year. I transfer the unused AA batteries from the box and they
get eaten quickly by the GPS and the mini-flashlight I have hanging in
the companionway. Or they go into the Grundig YachtBoy and die an
honourable death giving me the BBC World Service while I'm having late
night beverages in the cockpit.

The Cs go into my ship's clock and my kid's toys, and the big Ds go
into a boombox. I buy cheap alkalines at a surplus place and make sure
they have 1.6 volts DC before I put them in the crash box. If I use
the Zodiac a lot, I will run through the Ds as I have battery powered
nav lights in addition to this year's installation of a Harley AGM 12
volt battery to give me switchable running lights. Sometimes I like to
putt-putt in Lake Ontario under the stars and the Zodiac is better for
this than the sailboat. The running lights aren't legally required at
9,9 hp outboard size, but there's a lot of "party boat" traffic near
my club and it was an easy modification.

R.