Bandit -
No need to disconnect the battery. Whether you charge directly from the generator's battery-charge output, or fire up the entire TM and let the TM's converter charge the battery, you can keep the battery hooked up normally.
How long will it take to charge? I know it doesn't help much, but it depends on how far down the battery is. By the way, you shouldn't let a battery get really discharged, even the so-called "marine/deep cycle" batteries that come with the TM. But at an 8-amp charge rate, charging can take a number of hours. The typical battery is an Interstate SRM-24, which has a capacity of about 80 amp-hours. If it is 50% discharged, and you charge it at 8 amps, it will require at least 5 hours to come up to the top.
As for the big question - should I charge it directly from the generator or from the TM's built-in charger - there is no real agreement. On older TM's with a Magnetek/Powertek converter, the TM charger seems to provide a fairly low charge rate, so it will take a long time to charge. The new TM charger (from American Enterprises) is still kind of an unknown unit - no one has much experience with it. The only person with a good solution to the question is Bob Rederick. I'll let him tell you about it.
This is all discussed in the Electrical forum, and a lot of generator info has appeared in the Boondocking forum as well. I suggest you browse through all the threads having to do with generators.
Bill
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