"Mark" wrote in news:1142325016.130679.130510
@j33g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Please recall I'm only the messenger; the message is from the Trojan
guy, who deals with thousands of commercial customers who work the hell
out of their batteries, and have sharp pencils concerning charge rates
and service life. In essence, he says maintain water levels, charge
them vigorously at least periodically, and try to hold the discharge
depth to 50% in normal service.

More straight info available at:
http://www.trojanbattery.com/Tech-Su...intenance.aspx



Remember that advise about NOT using the seller's surveyor report to buy
the boat?...(c;

Battery salesmen are certainly not concerned with lengthening battery
life, no more than GM is concerned with engine longevity telling me to
put 5W-30 in a Chevy V-8 in South Carolina or Evinrude telling me 100:1
TC-W3 won't wear out a 2-stroke engine any faster than 25:1 premixed gas.

About the proper temperature-compensated hydrometer.....I'm not going to
be measuring battery gravity in 10' swells, 90 miles offshore. I'm going
to measure it docked at the marina. I'm also not going to leave
electrolyte in the hydrometer after I'm done, so I won't have to worry
about breaking it and flooding the bilge with acid, either. I took two
little broom clips, designed to hold the broom on the wall in the pantry,
and mounted them to the back side of the battery box, to hold the glass
hydrometer in perfect safety when it's stored....not rolling around under
the engine banging against the shaft. It hasn't broken it and flooded
the bilge, yet....(c;