In my experience, most batteries fail in the heat of summer, due to evaporation of electrolyte but the effect may not be noticed until winter, where more cranking amps are needed. A weak battery will usually do ok until the temps drop.

I lived in AZ for 2 years in Gold canyon just east of Apache junction
And can attest to the desert heat killing seemingly good batteries.
We went to aj one night in my truck and I was driving down the road
and my truck cut completly off.I didn't know what had happened and thought something serious had happened to the truck. Anyway I called for a tow and when the truck arrived, the tow truck driver listened to what I told him and didn't even look at my truck,and told me it was my battery. He told me I could pay him to tow my truck or I could go to walmart and buy a battery. Needless to say I bought a battery, put it in the truck, cranked it up and never had another problem. I also had two
H-D's then an ironhead sporty and a rigid shovel,and I put batteries in those a couple times that I can remember. On another note AZ has some of the best riding in the country. I miss getting up in the morning and drinking coffee watching the sun come up on the superstition mountains
and riding up towards the salt river canyon past Globe or going up to payson. One day we'll get back there, My wife is an Az native and misses it badly,she can't even watch westerns because it makes her homesick.

Yes guys we are just coming up on the good riding weather. It's 98 today and the swamp cooler is working great. From now till next June you can ride to your hearts content.

Yeah I remember the first summer i was there I got up to go to work
and it was nice outside, so I decided to ride to work. It was ok going there but on the way home my god!!! it felt like someone was holding two heat guns to my eyes. I made it home and went and bought some goggles and rode to work the next day. When i got home that day my wife and kids started laughing at me, when ilooked in the mirror I looked like a racoon. After that I didn't ride in the hot summer months unless I had to. But the rest of the year I was jammin

DINO wrote:
Yeah I remember the first summer i was there I got up to go to work
and it was nice outside, so I decided to ride to work. It was ok going there but on the way home my god!!! it felt like someone was holding two heat guns to my eyes.
I understand completely. But I tough it out and ride everyday. You learn different tricks to be able to beat the heat. Like a jacket with pouches sewn inside that hold ice pack all the way around your body! You would be amazed at the difference.

A windshield probably helps too but back then I was too cool (or dumb) to use one. I used to love getting up in the valley and it being over 100
and the getting up in the mountains past Superior and having to stop and put the leathers on.

I know it doesn't draw much current guys,but you have a clock and trip odometers that draw all the time.Along with the heat and or running passing lights it will be harder on the battery. Just a thought

Hardone2get, I'll give ya this one, I stand corrected.
Lets go with poorly maintained batteries fail in heat. (Desert Conditions) But even well maintained battery's can fail in cold. That's why all the cold start hoo la. us Marines take care of our vehicles like our rifles, so we check our fluid level in our batteries.

My Grandpa rebuilt battery's as a side job and I helped him. He got old battery's and about 85% of them could be rebuilt for a few dollars and resold. Anyhow you have to maintain a battery. Almost no one does. And that is why the most improvements have been making them more maintenance free, such as Sealed, Gel and AGM. But even they need attention.

Read here and ignore what they say about COLD being hard on battery's.
http://autorepair.about.com/library/weekly/aa101604b.htm
Now, if you do all that, for all your battery's you can be like me, I get twice the life from my battery's in any condition, car, boat, MC, Any battery I can get into I can prolong.
For those of you desert heat guys, I can show AD concerning heat. Shame on Hardone2get U shoulda posted this.
http://www.interstatebatteries.com/cs_estore/content/product_info/battery_testing.asp

Here they talk about corrosion in summers heat concerning battery's.
http://www.automotive.com/auto-news/02/30572/index.html
If you have a proper charger you can stop that by desulfating the battery every 4 months.

Why battery's fail.
http://ecmweb.com/mag/electric_why_batteries_fail/ (Keep fluid in your battery to reduce corrosion)
http://www.mpoweruk.com/failure_modes.htm
Yes they mention heat, But again, you can minimize heat damage buy proper maintenance. I like a wet cell because you can dump the acid and install new acid and gain a lot. (Wash the sediments out of the bottom of each cell.)

Read this but be sure to read the end about murdering your battery (Pre mature death)
http://www.mpoweruk.com/life.htm

Well maintained Battery's do discharge more quickly in cold.
http://chemistry.about.com/od/howthingsworkfaqs/f/coldbattery.htm

And poorly maintained battery's can quickly fail in heat.
AH! Heat is Number one cause of battery failure, but keep in mind it's avoidable.
http://links.exide.com/faq/faq_light_truck.html#heat

Here:
http://www.battery-rechargeable-charger.com/vector-VEC1097A-car-battery-charger.html
Is a good charger that will test/charge and maintain your battery. VEC1092A

If I lived in the desert I suppose I would utilize one of these.
http://www.battery-rechargeable-charger.com/BLS-FAQ.htm

But mostly I would slap it on my Vector once a month and check the fluid level.
(The sealed battery's are not that sealed.) I would desulfate and while I had the battery disconnected i would brass brush every connection from battery to starter and re- install. You desert guys have your work cut out for ya!

With all the problems you list with heat I have determined i cannot afford to retire to AZ like I had been dreaming of since I left Yuma, But...... I hear Darkside tires do very well there May I interest you in the Darkside?
http://lifeisaroad.com/stories/2004/10/27/theDarkSide.html
One tire will replace 4 and with the savings you can buy lots of new battery's. and never have to do battery maintenance at all.

I'm still wondering if this guy figured out if his battery is dead or he has a short.

On one 105 degree day here in MS, I tried a trick I learned from a good friend. I soaked my T-shirt in the sink with cold water, rung out all of the excess, put it on under my mesh Fieldshear summer jacket & hit the road. The mesh jacket kept the water from evaporating too quickly while still allowing good airflow. I'll tell ya, I felt like I had air conditioning for about 30 miles, until my shirt dried out completely!

That's cheap compared to this.
http://www.labsafety.com/Body-Cooling-Jacket_24533499/
They make a lot of cooling vests this is just one, I new style came out recently, but I read so much MC stuff i can't remember where I saw the new one. MCCN? Anyhow I'll be if I would let the heat stop me from riding. I would install a windshield washer pump have it draw from a Iced Camelback Pack and have a squirt button on the handlebars and a misting outlet about at the risers, I'd hose myself down as the ice melted.