Annie wrote:

Anyway, go on David: What do you get if you cross Frodo Baggins with the Duracell Bunny?

David wrote:

I can understand why a petrol genset is the easiest, quickest way to get going, but surely the long-term aim for a tri-fuel power source for electric propulsion must be shorepower, solar and wind (in no particular order)?

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Sorry, can't resist this any longer:

"What do you get if you cross Frodo Baggins with the Duracell Bunny?"

Well, shore power in Halifax NS, is hardly a 'green' option, seeing as how it's generated from coal!

Anyway, go on David: What do you get if you cross Frodo Baggins with the Duracell Bunny?

Anonymous wrote:

You want to get out in the morning, and will need plenty of power again. A petrol genset will disturb the overnight peace.

I went back to the Honda site again concerning noise. In particular, the EU2200i model. They claim a measured 48-57 dB noise level. Normal conversation rates about 60 dB.

You get into the anchorage near sundown, and it needs a considerable amount of power to do so (against the tide and/or wind, along a narrow un-sailable passage). You want to get out in the morning, and will need plenty of power again. A petrol genset will disturb the overnight peace. Then, wind is the only option available

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Well the most recent turbine I had, which burnt out at the end of January in Storm Brendan, would have contributed approxiamately zero amp-hours to the batteries overnight in such a scenario. Any anchorage worth anchoring in will hopefully not be blowing a steady force 6 or 7 which is needed for these little gennies to crank any useful power out. In fact, and it's a current best-selling model, it's controller actually uses more power than the turbine creates for most of the time. 

You do see them quite often on cruising boats but one wonders if the owners are delighted with them, most I've talked to are not. 

There are plenty of Airbreezes, etc, to be seen on long-term, long-distance, high-electricity-usage cruising boats. Myself, I prefer the total silence of solar panels, but if I were to go for electric propulsion, I can only see it as being safe and dependable if there were as many sources of generation as feasible. Hydrogeneration is certainly one of them in certain circumstances

I agree, many sources is good insurance. It might also be worth considering a bio-ethanol fuel cell like the Efoy... (might be opening a new can of worms discussing that though!)

Jan wrote:

David wrote:

I can understand why a petrol genset is the easiest, quickest way to get going, but surely the long-term aim for a tri-fuel power source for electric propulsion must be shorepower, solar and wind (in no particular order).

Is wind an option? I've used three "marine" wind turbines plus one I built myself over the last 20 years and I can't imagine having one on a small cruising boat. A cruising hydrogenerator such as the WattandSea thing looks like a better investment, even for coastal cruising.

Particularly in this scenario:

You get into the anchorage near sundown, and it needs a considerable amount of power to do so (against the tide and/or wind, along a narrow un-sailable passage). You want to get out in the morning, and will need plenty of power again. A petrol genset will disturb the overnight peace. Then, wind is the only option available.

There are plenty of Airbreezes, etc, to be seen on long-term, long-distance, high-electricity-usage cruising boats. Myself, I prefer the total silence of solar panels, but if I were to go for electric propulsion, I can only see it as being safe and dependable if there were as many sources of generation as feasible. Hydrogeneration is certainly one of them in certain circumstances.