starter battery also used for occasional house needs?

[calden]

Greetings: Question about battery needs...


I have a Neptune 24' that is used for daysailing. I have an older Yamaha 4-stroke outboard that uses electric start.


Right now I have a West Marine Dual Purpose grp 24 battery, MCA 675. I use it almost exclusively for starting the engine. I will be putting in a bilge pump, and possibly a depth finder. I rarely if ever use nav lights or cabin lights or other accessories.


It's been three years now that I've had this setup and the battery is reading something like 13.6 v after not being used for a couple of weeks. THis is lower than it used to be. I would like a battery to last and be there for starting, and that's about it.



Would I be better off with a starter battery (for life span of battery) seeing as how that's what I almost exclusively use it for? Also, Starting batteries are a lot cheaper.



Also, I have a 5 or 10 watt solar panel that (hopefully) keeps the battery topped up. Also the engine charges the battery when running, but this being sailing, that's not a lot of charge time.


Any thoughts? Thanks in advance,


calden

[ltd]

13.6V actually seems a little high. A little degradation can be expected over time, even if you meant 12.6V that's not unexpected. You're probably fine to keep the same setup for a while. The main thing with outboard charging and small solar panel charging, is those are both situations in which a flooded cell battery works best (because there isn't "smart" regulation of the charging sources). Best you can do is top off the battery with distilled water every once in a while.
But yes, a start battery would do just fine for your purposes.