I went to the boat yesterday, and found the batteries dead and almost dry, and the fuse blown on the Constavolt 30 amp two-bank charger. I had forgotten to switch the refrigerator over to shore power when we docked last week. Could this have caused the batteries to run dead and boil over? I refilled one bank of 2 batteries with distilled water - 1.5 gallons each - and disconnected everything from them but the charger leads. I also disconnected the other pair of leads from the charger to the other battery bank. I put in a new fuse - 6 amp - and turned the charger on. The needle pinned as far to the right beyond 30 amps as it could go, and the fuse blew. However, if I isolate the charger from both banks of batteries, it seems to be working normally, and I get 15+ amps from either pair of terminals. Why does it go berserk when connected to the batteries? I seem to recall that a portable automotive charger won't work on a "dead" battery. Is this the case with the Constavolt? What do I have to do to get a re-charge? Obviously I need to make some changes, but I'd like to get the existing set-up back to normal first, so would be much obliged for any assistance. Cheers, Garrett

e16@telus.net writes: >Why does it go berserk when connected to the batteries? I seem to >recall >that a portable automotive charger won't work on a "dead" battery. >Is this >the case with the Constavolt? What do I have to do to get a >re-charge? I have just replaced two Interstate deep cycle size 27 batteries because I too had them boil dry and nothing seemed to help - now if I had heard of Paul Browne's "Snake Oil" before, I might have tried it. Perhaps you would do the deed and then let us all know. George of Scaramouche