Ok, electrical demons seem to be at work here. Everything worked fine
when  using the primary battery. I installed a new Optima 750u deep
cycle battery per the FAQ instuctions - all went well till I spun (or
ripped) off the top negative terminal thinking it was threaded like the
side terminal sockets. Oh well, I needed it off anyway and the
manufacturer says you can blow a hole thru it with a rifle and it'll
still work fine. So I took the top positive terminal off also. 
 After installing it and checking voltages at the side terminals (12v),
the LED indicator lights show a second of green then a quick fade to
yellow then red. When there is any load (like the fridge) none of the
LED's light at all. I charged it for about an hour and the charger
indicated it was drawing 18 amps. I stopped cause the battery felt
pretty warm but it still acted dead or very low. When the alternator is
running, everythings fine.
Any ideas? I had 1 response when I first posted this a week or so ago
and I think I've pretty much voided the warranty by mutilating the top
battery posts. Are some batterys just lemons and I got one?
Thanks
Jay