Hello Jason,
People have been embracing solar lately. A panel 6'3" X
roughly 4' is good for 280 watts. 2 such panels are good for 48
volts, also good for 1/2 hp. Many places on the net offer .5
cents per watt. That coupled with imported controllers (2 of
them one for each side of the boat) could reduce battery drain
seriously.
If part of your upgrade is running all lines back to the cockpit
you will have no need to be on deck but to furl the sails and
drop anchor.
If you mount 4 such panels with a controller for each side you
could go in circles all day long and get power from two of
them consistently. The question to ask is comparable boats
power requirements at say 3kts. Remember that you will not
be racing to any finish lines under electric power unless you
have deep pockets.
For the record: I no longer am involved with a conversion. I am
off grid and continue following this group for information to
use in my sted. I now have a solar farm of 5 of the panels I
talked about for my house needs. I have enough 6 volt golf cart
batteries for a 48 volt system but am setup on a 24 volt system.
My 3 hydroponic grow beds, electric frig, and all other house
loads will run for 4 cloudy days on the battery bank, don't
expect anywhere close on electric propulsion. Unless you have
cruised, or your boat has, the go fast line still shows. When I
cruised my gofast line was raised 4". The boat was no longer in
the water as designed but handled a lot of weight. That is said
to let you know you can put a lot of lead in the bottom of
your boat, it will take it, you will just go slower. Slow is good.
Cruisers do that anyhow to save stress on the rigging for
longer life. You could go modern tech batteries for a little
more but charging will not be as cheap. The solar controller I
use can be used with Nicd, Nickel Iron, or lead acid, but not
LiOn of any form. I have seen dingy mounts hold 2 panels.
remember that each such panel is about 50 lbs. 2 such panels
are roughly the same as 1.5 lead acid batteries.
Hi and welcome to the electric boat group.
Kevin
On Tuesday, August 05, 2014 12:54:17 PM you wrote:
> Hello All... New to the Group.
> I have a 1976 Bristol 32 with a Yanmar 2QM20. Boat is about
11,000 pounds.
> The motor is nearing the end of its life and I have been saving
up for a
> re-power. I am a pretty mechanically skilled person want to
do some of the
> work but have limited time. I have always felt that electric
boats made so
> much sense on so many levels. I want to get in the boat and
sail. Not mess
> with the engine every weekend. I hate the smell, the noise,
and the
> constant repairs.
>
> We mostly do day sailing in the chesapeake bay and an
electric motor seems
> ideal for me 95% of the time but I want a setup that would
allow me to take
> longer rips when my kids get older.
>
>
> I am trying to put a budget together for an electric setup.
Here is what I
> had in mind and would love any input or suggestions you
could give.
>
> I would like a system that has a 3-5 hour range and have a
small Honda
> generator as a backup for longer trips. I am on a budget and
it seems that
> the AVG batteries are a good middle ground?
>
> I have looked at the kits from Elco (too expensive) and the
one from
> Electric yachts. If there are any more affordable setups,
please let me
> know!
Thanks!
> Jason
Posted by: Kevin Pemberton <pembertonkevin@gmail.com>
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