I am in the process now of converting my generator (honeywell) to LP. I have a 30 hunter (12000 lbs. disp) that has 4 200 amp gels powering the puppy..... At first, my concern was being a new sailor, that I would power in and out.......I actuall use it very little (battery). I'm about one mile to open waters and moor it. I use the honeywell to charge the batteries and the time is long. BUTT.... I have been working on a new design for LP. Since I changed the stove for the same.....I figured why not use it for genset?? They are safer than all other fuel sources because the vapor is pulled in via vacuum. Check out websites that use motors powered by LP for off road...they are in a much difficult situation than ANY sailboat will ever encounter...........just remember.....use premium hoses, stainless steel the best, with a twist at the end for expansion, etc.. Use every safety device you can hook up And also.....you could use a 48 volt charger to directly hit the batteries.......just use a NON-COGGING alternator.....check out missori wind power .com for this and more commonsense info. PS: always read between the lines....yes you can cool a air cooled motor very safely under the "hood". You need airflow airflow airflow......safety interlocks on the blowers, or consider my new scheme.... a cooling jacket on the engine itself.....or my next trick.....cooling the oil. you just have to figure out and probably drill another hole ( a machine shop can cheaply) and have it run thru a cooler,,,radiator,,,,or thermal transfer unit. I dry docked my experiment this year and hopefully will have it ready by years end but in nj it will need to wait. One final note...I like your thinking and thats why I responded. Sometimes you have to start low....I did.....because there is so much conjecture out there it becomes confusing. Just remember this......simplicity. Start with a used engine, locate them at a used mower store, measure temp.....then add tricks......them mimick real world stuff like sun, temp humidy ...etc As a former scientist in the materials field, we did this kind of approach in every little thing using reactors that could blow and knock out a town. The real secret is to visit all the manufactures sites, harness thier concept.....and simplify Unless the sailboat manufactures redesign for solar....only tricks work. Forget regen......that will power your radio! We are and for the next 10 years at minimum will be sadly tied to fossil...in one way. The beaty is service of mechanics is easy...you can disconnect the gen, take it home, or buy a new one. No diesel mechanic shaking his head and throwing out a hugh price......that why I did it! And I never sailed a day in my life. I got the boat cheap, wanted to replace the motor, and couln't believe the price of the install....not the motor....the install. 5K for the whole package........6K for the install...wow! I hope someday to post all my pics and tricks on this site but sometimes I just wait because the conversation is disengenuous. I don't like overpriced oversold nonsense stuff.....remember read between the lines Rick
--- On Sun, 7/11/10, dennis wolfe <dwolfe@dropsheet.com> wrote:
From: dennis wolfe <dwolfe@dropsheet.com>
Subject: Re: [Electric Boats] repowering a sailboat - 30 ft Catalina
To: electricboats@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sunday, July 11, 2010, 1:03 PM
Rob, The 4-5kts for an hour is easy. The TS kit would have adequate power and (4) 12v 100ah batteries would give 4 kts for about 45 min. (8) 220ah 6v would give 4kts for 2 hrs. About 4.5 kts would be max for the TS kit (100 amps) Recharge with shore power. You might get away with <$4k and surely could do it for $5k. Besides the TS kit you need to fabricate a way to mount the motor and a toothed pulley set to drive the prop shaft. You also need a bearing to locate the inboard end of the prop shaft and take the prop thrust. You can see how I did it on the "power" page of my website. Saying you need 5kts more or less indefinitely makes this a vastly more complex project. The "indefinite" implies fossil fuel for sure. A diesel genset is big bucks, and maybe big noise; personally I think a regular diesel set up is more practical than a diesel serial hybrid. You could get the indefinite range with a 9.9 hp (ish) 4stk OB on a bracket. That's a lot less $$ than the diesel genset and probably quieter but ugly. Another option might be a EU series Honda generator. The 2000 weighs 50 lbs, costs about $800 and would put 17 amps into a 48v system so you could drive your boat with a bit more than one hp indefinitely. The Hondas are not marine related and mine drips a bit of gas when shaken around so would be a HUGE risk in an unventilated space. I've heard of people strapping them to a swim platform and they seem to last OK. One hp = 2.5 kts, calm wind, no current. Two (remember you need a charger capable of handling the 2x power) would give a little more than 3 kts. Honda sells a cable to hook two EU2000's together, they also make a larger size with electric starting, EU3000. I have no knowledge about CNG systems but it seems to me they have all the safety problems of gasoline plus difficult storage and spotty availability. A note about generators: the Honda EU series are much more expensive than 'regular' discount store units. IMHO, their low noise level is well worth the extra $$. I can't imagine sitting next to a poorly muffled lawn mower engine for hours on end. Denny Wolfe ----- Original Message ----- Sent: Monday, July 05, 2010 9:55 AM Subject: [Electric Boats] repowering a sailboat - 30 ft Catalina
Hi All -
New to the group here and had a project in mind with regard to potentially re-powering my Catalina 30 with an electric hybrid system (10,000 displacement) . I'm looking to create a system that can provide continuous power at 5 knots. Most of my power needs however would require 4-5 knots for 1 hour out and in my creek (round-trip) . The reasons I like electric is the flexibility and redundancy of systems. All the drive systems I looked at seem very reliable with the potential to include IC, solar, regenerative and shore-power for reserve. I'm considering a kit from Thunderstruck - it appears that a conversion kit for my boat would run ~ $2,5000. To get started on this - would all I need is this kit and the batteries? Would 8 Trojan golf batteries be sufficient with set-up (excluding an IC generator, solar panels, etc)? I realize this is a complicated question. I have shorepower so all I would need is the appropriate charger (~+$500).
I have a few questions on this:
- So for about $4-5k could you get a system up and running? (excluding generator and assuming lead-acid batteries))
- What are my options (with est costs) for an IC generator? Marine generators seem to start at $5k which would lead me to believe I should just repower with a replacement diesel direct drive and skip the entire electric idea altogether.
- Can I series a couple of Honda 2000 generators for continuous power? It may be tricky to run this on-board though - any ideas
here?
- What about CNG system, air-cooled.. ..may be tricky to engineering getting a system to work on-board but the cost-differential is huge. I can buy a 4.5kw CNG generator for under $500....with enough surplus power to run a couple large blowers, why not try to engineer a safe way to convert one of these systems? I could perhaps fit one in a aft - locker. Even if I need to replace one of these non-marine units every 4 years I'm way ahead. Possible or a pipe dream?
I appreciate the advice from the knowledgeable group here as I'm trying to make sesne of how a system might efficiently work on my boat. The generator part has me stumped....
I'm a handy-enough guy to do all the work myself and do not plan on any long-range cruises beyond a week.
- Rob
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