I don't get what the hype is. Electric, diesel electric drives have been around for over a 100 years. I was thinking about it some time ago, but to fully get rid of a diesel engine, is something I still would not do.
I say get the ores out if you want silent propulsion - you can also get rid of your gym membership at the same time 
The young generation is embracing the technology of the future - smartly rendering the smelly, troublesome and more and more expensive diesel obsolete.
If humanity would be able to develop more efficient pv's and batteries it would be viable to go green for good.
No hype! The way they think!
Select to expand quotesirgallivant said..
The young generation is embracing the technology of the future - smartly rendering the smelly, troublesome and more and more expensive diesel obsolete.
If humanity would be able to develop more efficient pv's and batteries it would be viable to go green for good.
No hype! The way they think!
Who is to say that electric is the way of the future. People forget that every electic system (including our everyday gadgets) create microwaves, magnetic fields and such. To make a motor you need copper, magnets and plastic for insulation and like it or not to get and make all these you will have a certain enviromental impact. And batteries, the chemical process to make them not any safer or better for you than to run an oil well.
Yes diesel stinks, but it is naturally recurring. We do not have to manufacture it, it is made by nature, we just have to refine it a bit.
Yeah, it smells and smokes, but so does a million natural fires in the World. Should we all rush to stop those too?
What was the latest great idea of these young "save the planet types" that is an advanced technology? Nothing. There is no new invention, just using the same old old tech tweaked a bit.
If you really want to be green, get rid of the engine alltogether. Sail like they did sail 200 years ago, at the mercy of the wind and currents.
But no, wait that is no god. We are in a hurry, and what will happen if I spend a day away from my mobile or laptop? So it is a hype after all.
I am afraid, electricity is just as much natural if not more natural than crude oil or coal. Just think of lightning, static electricity etc etc...it's everywhere while you have to mine for the others.
It is simply our incapability - yet - to harness and store it much much more efficiently.
What other resources did you have in mind, Seebreasy73?
A mate's trying to convince me to let him do a hydrogen fuel cell for the boat.
I wont let him near my boat, while I'm a fan of technology that's a bit too far for me!
last time I checked my local fuel dock didn't have hydrogen that I could see.. maybe I need to look harder.
Select to expand quotesirgallivant said..
I am afraid, electricity is just as much natural if not more natural than crude oil or coal. Just think of lightning, static electricity etc etc...it's everywhere while you have to mine for the others.
It is simply our incapability - yet - to harness and store it much much more efficiently.
What other resources did you have in mind, Seebreasy73?
how about we agree that both are natural before we start arguing the case of the "egg and the chicken"?
electric is currently not efficient at an affordable price range. I have read about people converting to electric in the US but, some of them were using Tesla battery packs to great effect. This particular installation was about $25K in USD involving 2x used battery packs from the Tesla S.
From a full charge he could motor for some 30+ hours at 5 knots pushing a 33ft boat.
I think a sail boat is a sail boat because it needs nothing else but wind. You cannot get more natural than that. And as for secondary propulsion perhaps some ores? Get a big one use it as a paddle on a gondola attached to the stern?
The problem with electric boat motors is simply the re-charging. If you have a 400W solar array, that is less than one hp. OK if you only go on short trips every now and again, but here comes the buzz phrase of last week- "dispatchable power". Means power when YOU want or need it.
If it is not there when you need power to get off a lee shore, it is not worth a squirt of urea.
Yeah I don't think I'd go that way for a cruising boat just yet, but a coastal racing/day sailing yacht under 40ft I can see it's getting close to worth it, especially a boat kept in a pen with shore power to keep everything charged.
What about a diesel electric hybrid? Electric only for in & out of marinas and harbours & shorter runs with a small, efficient generator for backup. With a large solar array and, possibly, wind generator, I bet it would be surprising how rarely you ran the gennie. You'd be sitting at anchor charging up nicely.
We should also consider that batteries just keep getting smaller, cheaper & with better charge holding. Solar panels get cheaper and more efficient. We'll get there one day.
Cheers
Bristol
The railways have been onto diesel electric for years. It makes the diesel way more efficient when you can run it at the same rpm etc 24/7 and rely on variable speed drives to control the dispatching. A new word!
On sailing boats the engine is only there to help us when there is no wind or in tricky circumstances. We don't need lots of different motors unless we have a superyacht. So no advantage for us in diesel-electric, which has been around for a long time, and plenty of extra cost.
Select to expand quoteYara said..
On sailing boats the engine is only there to help us when there is no wind or in tricky circumstances. We don't need lots of different motors unless we have a superyacht. So no advantage for us in diesel-electric, which has been around for a long time, and plenty of extra cost.
Hi, plenty of extra cost if one is starting from scratch, however the yacht in question appears to be a very tidy boat with an electric motor in place so if one could buy at the right price because of the electric motor's lack of appeal, add a diesel genset appropriately sized you could end up with a very tidy deal. 
The expression "buying at the right price" is relative and it makes me feel like a whore!
I actually feel like a whore after selling my boat for the "right price". The right price for me, that is.
The chap who bought it, feels like he was lucky too to get a good boat at the "right price". The right price for him, that is.
Does this fact makes him a "whore" the same way made me one? Well...
Of course, l don't need comments on this submission as l know the answer.
Select to expand quotesirgallivant said..
The expression "buying at the right price" is relative and it makes me feel like a whore!
I actually feel like a whore after selling my boat for the "right price". The right price for me, that is.
The chap who bought it, feels like he was lucky too to get a good boat at the "right price". The right price for him, that is.
Does this fact makes him a "whore" the same way made me one? Well...
Of course, l don't need comments on this submission as l know the answer.
and that is the "whore" truth....
If both the seller and buyer are happy, it is a perfect win-win situation. Whores have nothing to do with it, except in their transactions both buyer and seller would hopefully also be happy with the deal. Only problem is the buyer can't get a survey before purchase.
