On 08/20/05 05:06 pm Ed tossed the following ingredients into the
ever-growing pot of cybersoup:

But won't an unsealed (i.e., NOT "maintenance-free") battery lose water
by evaporation even if it's not overcharged? Otherwise why the need to
check the electrolyte level regularly?

Not meaning to get this tread off on a tangent, but the above comment
prompts me to point out that even "maintenance free" batteries AREN'T,
necessarily. On many occassions I have found it necessary to peel back the
paper cover on automotive maintenance free batteries, remove the exposed
cell caps, and add water, especially after a year or two operating in a hot
climate. I don't believe marine type batteries would be any different in
this regard.

Just to complicate matters, I eventually found the Web site for these
batteries (the only marking on it is "Stowaway Tournament"; I had bought
it at Sam's and assumed it was a "store brand," but it's made by -- and
acknowledged by -- Exide). Somewhere in the FAQ they say that they are
"maintenance free" but also "maintenance accessible." How's that for
confusion?

Perce