In a message dated 08/06/2008 1:31:31 P.M. Central Standard Time,
LISTSERV@GERRY.VANAGON.COM writes:

The less  a battery is drained/discharged the longer it will last. Strictly
speaking,  flooded batteries are not designed for repeated deep discharges,
so when  used in this manner, they fail prematurely. Frank was acutely aware
of this  fact, so chose to buy from a place that had a great warranty
service, as  did I.

You  do know that there is a good way to extend the life of the standard
automotive  starting flooded cell battery ?  Koolatron and others sell a limiter
that will shut off the drain on a battery once it reaches critical levels
preset  by the manufacturer of the gadget.  I forget all the details of it but I
got mine from Kootatron and it was made for their fridges to keep owners from
wrecking the batteries in their vehicles.  See the Koolatron website for
details.

Cheers,

Frank  Condelli
Almonte, Ontario, Canada
'87 Westy & Lionel Trains (_Collection for sale_
(http://members.aol.com/Fkc43/trainsal.htm) )
_Frank Condelli &  Associates_ (http://members.aol.com/Fkc43/busindex.html)
- Vanagon/Vanagon Westfalia Service in the Ottawa Valley
_Vanagon Stainless Steel Exhaust  Systems_
(http://members.aol.com/Fkc43/exhaust.htm)
_BusFusion_ (http://members.aol.com/BusFusion/bfhome.htm)  a VW Camper
camping event, Almonte, ON, June 12 ~ 15,  2008