Stop in for a cup of coffee

In my office, there is a restroom. Water holding tank and a 12 volt demand pump. A time-x’d aircraft battery the size like a garden tractor battery. 6”x12” $20 dollar solar panel has kept it charged for years.
No doubt. My panel is 12x18. I think it’s a 20 watt panel. So nothing crazy. But what I’ve been reading is that most charge controllers, won’t charge a fully dead battery as they’re designed to get their own power to even begin to charge from the battery. I just confirmed that over the last couple days. Now I’m charging the battery back up via a trickle charger, once it hits 4 volts, I’m gonna hook the panel back up