50miles at 5Kts is definitely going to take some power. On my similar boat, I'd have to run close to 3KW (60Amp) to meet that. So 3KW over 9 hours or so...27KW? Roughly 540AH total. Batteries will only give you about 100 of that.
So you'd need to get 4/5 of your power from a generator (or really almost all since you'll want some backup in case the genny fails).
A 3KW Honda (rent it) will provide it, draining say 10AH from the batteries as well - 90 by the time you are done. With some wind to help you should have a bit left over.
But...you need 50amps of charging capacity. As Hamlet says...there'
It's doable...but you may be better off hanging an outboard on back for that particular trip. A small 9.9 + your electric helping should get you there no problem.
-Keith
--- In electricboats@
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> Hello to all. I bought a Catalina 30 3 years ago, (30 foot sloop sailboat, 10,500lbs). It's a 1986 model with a 21hp 3 cylinder diesel.
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> Ironically, I'm not having any problems right now. However, a diesel is noisy, smelly, requires constant maintenance of filter replacement, oil changes, fuel, etc… You guys know this, I'm preaching to the choir.
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> Electric propulsion is an attractive option for me; but I do have some concerns.
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> 1) I know electric propulsion will work for 90% of my sailing; 15 minutes out, an hour or three later, 15 minutes of motoring back to the dock.
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> 2) BUT, my concern is how this will work when I cruise up the canal from Elizabeth City North Carolina to Portsmouth Virginia, a 50 mile, 8 to 10 hour journey … can I do this with electric propulsion?? This trip cannot be done at a slow 3 knots or less to conserve amps; one must keep up 5 knots or so, to make the lock schedule, and to keep out of others way coming up behind you in the relatively narrow canal.
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> In other words, can one feed charging juice to the batteries with either solar, wind, and/or generator while still moving at 5 knots, without stopping to recharge, making it possible to make a 50 mile trip at full speed non-stop?
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> The title about being crazy … fellow members of my yacht club think I'm from Mars when I suggest converting to electric. This may simply be I'm a reader and keep up a bit more with current events than many others; although this topic isn't exactly current events since electric powered sailboats have been around for many years.
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> I also realize new lithium-ion battery technology may change the formula significantly in the near future … that's what I'm hoping for anyway.
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> BTW … anyone want to take a stab at what a 25 year old, 21hp 3 cylinder, model M25 Universal diesel in working condition, worth?. The exact hours unknown. It was showing 1,000 hours when purchased, but the hour meter wasn't working at that time.
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