Hi Dan,
Based on the information that you've provided, your last question is the easiest to answer. The basic rule of thumb for electric motor size for sailing auxiliaries is 1kW per ton of displacement. So you should look for a 15kW (20hp) motor, this should provide enough power to get you out of tight spots when you need to and isn't so big that you'll be wasting your capacity. Your boat should be woefully underpowered with an 8hp diesel. I'm sure tht you can move the boat in benign conditions, heck, I could move your boat by towing it while doing breaststroke, but that isn't going to help if you've got any sort of breeze blowing while you're in a marina or trying to enter a harbor.
However, 15 tons sounds light for a 54' steel sailboat. I've seen a few that displace twice that.
For a boat your size, I would expect that a reliable electric drive including batteries (but no generator or solar panels) will cost at least $10,000, probably more. But if low cost is your highest priority, I would suggest looking for a used diesel engine, you might be able to buy one for the price of a 30kWh battery bank. That size bank should give your light 54' boat a usable range of about 10nm at full throttle (about 8kts) or 25nm at 6kts, 40nm at 5kts and 65nm at 4kts.
Fair winds,
Eric
Marina del Rey, CA
--- In electricboats@yahoogroups.com, "Dan" <daneltravieso@...> wrote:
>
> Hi there. I'm new to this group and new to the concept of electric propulsion - but what a great idea! I've just bought a 54' 15 ton steel v-hulled narrow boat with a noisy and smokey old Yanmar 8 hp diesel auxiliary yacht engine - it's badly mounted, blocking access to the engine room and the noise and vibration make the interior of the boat uninhabitable during cruising. So the sooner I get rid of that and replace it with a small silent electric motor the better.
> I want this boat to run primarily on solar panels but will have a back up generator for extended range and cloud (!)
> Any links/suggestions?
> The marine electric propulsion motors are prohibitively expensive. Where do you look for cheap or second hand options? (eg. golf carts etc)
> What size motor would I need for this weight and hull?
> I have many questions but I better stop there for now!
> Thanks, Dan.
>
No comments:
Post a Comment