Reality check.
If green were really the goal, we should all be running diesels with biodiesel/oil from McD's fry machines (which there are maybe more of than boats). Won't work for cars (too many)- but for recreational boats? Very doable and we'd be solving a disposal problem to boot.
My "electric" boat really runs on nasty old coal. Not much I'll grant, but that's where 80% of the power comes from. I want regen for range, not because it's "green"...and LiPo's may make that desire moot.
If we were to do something called a "balanced scorecard", ranking different propulsion options using the following on a 1-10 scale
Noise Level
Smell
Reliability
Robustness
Safety
Range
Convenience
Weight
Pollution
Initial Cost
Total Cost
Power
I bet diesels would win hands down. Except for noise, smell, maybe convenience.
Probably noise, smell and convenience - and these are all aesthetic considerations.
The other driver is, I suspect, initial cost when faced with the task of re-powering a boat for $10K that is only worth..$12K?
So what I think we here should be doing is figuring out how electric boats can fulfill that promise - quiet, renewable, affordable, easy, reliable, and so on.
We have a long way to go. Meanwhile, install solar panels on your house, drive a hybrid, and use biodiesel in your boat* and you can smugly tip your hat to Al Gore next time you see him.
-Keith
*convincing marina fuel docs to switch to biodiesel should be a no brainer. Mark S. - maybe a good baby step?
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