SCBill&Jane -
What you describe is not right, meaning it is not normal. Most likely (and easiest to deal with) is that Chap is right - a 2003 TM may have been built and originally sold in late 2002. At the time of sale, a battery was added, and that battery would have been built in 2002 or 2001. Either way, it is getting up there in age, and batteries don't last forever. First thing you should do is open the battery caps and make sure that water is covering the plates. But I bet you will find that it is OK in that department.
Charge up the battery, disconnect it, disconnect shore power, and close the TM, just as you describe. If the battery is significantly down a week later, it is a bad battery. The radio antenna (the little red light) draws very little power. And of course when you disconnect the battery, it won't draw any power.
And to answer your final question, a weak battery (such as I am guessing you have) might very well not hold you through a night of heating.
Oh, one final note. The little charge indicator in front of the kitchen sink is meaningless when shore power is connected. It will always say FULLY CHARGED, but that's because it is reading the voltage of the charger, not the battery. And it is almost as meaningless during the first hour or two after you stop charging the battery. This is something called "surface charge", the details of which don't really conern us in this thread. But after waiting a couple hours, the indicator should tell you what the state of charge is.
Let us know what happens.
Bill
|