OP Here,
My cousin is strictly a weekender camper. No long term/week at a time kind stuff.
His need is to have lights, water pump, recharge cell phone and a ceiling fan of some kind.
What he currently has is a battery tender with a 2 amp maximum output. If he makes the investment moving to a pair of GC's from Costco, then he'll want charging system that he can connect when he gets home from the weekend to recharge the batteries.
I thought I knew a thing or two about recharging, but as you've (collectively) pointed out, short of using a hydrometer, it's a **** shoot in terms of what is a fully charged battery.
personally, I've got my 1093 and I have two sets of gc's with a select-able cut off switch so I keep one bank feeding the house, and one bank can be charged, offline by the 1093.
The one thing I've not done is gone after the batteries with a hydrometer to check SOC.
Back to my cousin - so short of him spending a few hundred dollars for a megawatt or meanwell - the stanley will probably suffice.
My biggest concern is him overcharging the batteries and boiling them to death.
In a way, it's better to undercharge than to overcharge in this case.
Thanks for all the help!
josh
