If you are using the lead acid battery you do need to keep it charged up or you shorten its life. The reason for that is when the battery dischages the lead plates absorb the acid in the water. If you keep the battery discharged the acid would start to eat the plates causing the battery life to shorten.. When you charge up the battery the plates expale the acid back in the water so the plates last longer. That is a very short and more of a simplifed explantion. A good lead acid battery fully charged would have about 12.65V under no load. If it drops to below 12.25v you need to recharge it. I got a note where is states the battery charge at diffrent voltages. Need to find it if you guys want to know more about the state of charge before you go. It also works for gel battery like Optima. Gel battery takes a charge faster and it lasts longer. Sealed battery should not be charged fast or put under heavy loads as it cant vent like regular car battery. To prevent them from over heating and exploding they have an additive to slow down the rate of charge or discharge. Too many years dealing with car batteries...
Sasha
|