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Old 15-09-2016, 09:11   #1
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Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

Does anyone have any experience with these? or other hybrid's? I had to laugh at their claim that these are "maintenance free"... really?!? NOTHING on a boat is maintenance free. But, I do like the idea of a hybrid. Anyone have one on their boat?
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Old 15-09-2016, 12:30   #2
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

There's no filters to replace, no oil to change, no valves to adjust in electric motor. So it is maintenance free indeed. If something goes wrong - that's repair and replacement, not maintenance
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Old 15-09-2016, 13:58   #3
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

Well, the electric motor part of a hybrid drive might be "maintenance free", but what about the other half, the gen set that provides some/most of the energy? And all the electric gimcrackery that hooks everything up? Well, I guess that latter might be "maintenance free"... until some diode fails or suchlike.

I dunno, but so far the hybrid drive folks have not convinced me of the usefulness of the scheme in a cruising yacht. Works pretty well in an urban Prius, but that isn't how I use my boat!

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Old 15-09-2016, 17:22   #4
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

Jim,

You don't have any electronics at all on your boat? None of that gimcrackery at all?



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Old 15-09-2016, 17:40   #5
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

Scarlet,

What is it you want to know? A friend has had OceanVolt for a year and loves it, there are several cat builds going on now with the Sd15's and shaft drive in Oz. Our new cat will use OceanVolt. Some of the top multihull designers endorse them including Grainger, Stanton & Schionning.

Send me a PM and I'll give you the lowdown.


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Old 15-09-2016, 19:59   #6
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

I'd recommend getting a more info from Oceanvolt to see if the system works for you. I was surprised at the price and the results where not as good as I had hoped. The people at Oceanvolt were very helpful and not pushy, well worth talking to (via email), the system may suit your purpose better than it did mine.

The quote is a link to a web page that times out so I can't go back and get it for you but from my very poor memory it was about AU$45k plus fitting.

They are spec'd at more power at full power but a cruise speed of a little over half my current cruise with outboards and about 3 hours at cruise speed from the batteries.
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Old 15-09-2016, 20:54   #7
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

I looked at the same when considering the power options on my 1160 , by the time I added the beefed up 11 kva genset and both saildrive units was well over 60k and hard to justify the maintenance that would still exist with the saildrives legs and genset , let alone the cost.

That said , will still consider as a repower option down the line in 5 to 6 years when the outboards come due for replacement and hopefully more realistic pricing is on the board, ie more competition in this marine space.
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Old 15-09-2016, 21:06   #8
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

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Originally Posted by BigBeakie View Post
Jim,

You don't have any electronics at all on your boat? None of that gimcrackery at all?



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None that would prevent me from starting and using the engine, BB. And everything electric on the boat gets at least inspection if not servicing reasonably regularly, so it does not, to me, meet the "no maintenance" criteria.

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Old 15-09-2016, 22:07   #9
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

What do you hope to gain with a hybrid?

It's not like a car in stop-&-go traffic where a hybrid can create impressive increases in MPG by storing energy during idle and braking and using that energy during acceleration. Cruising boats usually get up to speed and stay there for hours (or sailing purists only run them for 10-15min to get in and out of port, so there is no significant savings to be had). Assuming the conventional diesel is properly sized, that means it's running at a very efficient rpm/torque range when at cruise sped. With the additional energy conversions with a hybrid you are at best going to come close to what a conventional drive can do.

If you are thinking to use the generator for house loads, it will typically be massively oversized and inefficient compared to a properly sized dedicated generator. (if you size it for house loads, it will be too small for propulsion loads)

Hybrid makes no sense on a boat.

Now if you are a purist sailor, just want something to get in and out of port and don't care about resale value, a pure electric boat is viable.
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Old 16-09-2016, 04:02   #10
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

All things being equal a hybrid cat may make sense. Electric motors weigh a lot less than iron diesels so trim can be optimized. One gen set can run both props and provide house power. The location is not critical. Only one diesel is required which reduces maintenance. Modern diesels are not as bad as some think in relation to running with variable loads.

So while certainly not maintenance free they aught to be "less maintenance" if designed and installed correctly.

Low sales volume will keep prices high for a long time.
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Old 16-09-2016, 13:34   #11
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

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Originally Posted by Andrew Grace View Post
I looked at the same when considering the power options on my 1160 , by the time I added the beefed up 11 kva genset and both saildrive units was well over 60k and hard to justify the maintenance that would still exist with the saildrives legs and genset , let alone the cost.

That said , will still consider as a repower option down the line in 5 to 6 years when the outboards come due for replacement and hopefully more realistic pricing is on the board, ie more competition in this marine space.
With even minimal maintenance your outboards should last much longer than that.

Mine are 6 years old now and running nicely.
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Old 16-09-2016, 14:42   #12
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

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Originally Posted by transmitterdan View Post
All things being equal a hybrid cat may make sense. Electric motors weigh a lot less than iron diesels so trim can be optimized. One gen set can run both props and provide house power. The location is not critical. Only one diesel is required which reduces maintenance. Modern diesels are not as bad as some think in relation to running with variable loads.

So while certainly not maintenance free they aught to be "less maintenance" if designed and installed correctly.

Low sales volume will keep prices high for a long time.
The size of the generator to power both electric drives will be double the size of the electric drives. Assuming the EP is sized correctly in the first place that means your one generator needs roughly double the output in kw as the propulsion motors you replaced. Sure you went from two 35kw motors to just one generator, but it needs to be a 70kw monster to keep up.

In this size range it's difficult to find a DC generator, so you need a generator drive motor that produces 70kw at 1600 (or 3,200rpm). Assuming you go with the low revving one that means the drive motor is probably rated at around 150kw.

So great, you went hybrid, but now have a massive generator that costs a fortune. And it's so large you really can't use it for house loads... So you install a second 7kw to run the AC.

It possible, but it's also rediculious.
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Old 16-09-2016, 16:21   #13
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

Even though it's same all over again, I don't mind to repeat my point of view, and actually my point of view slightly changes as more information and options taken in consideration.

First argument - "it can't run for long period of time so you still must start engines/generator". Let see. Everyone says sailing/motoring is just 5% of time, 95% - anchoring or short trips between islands/ports etc.
And then, out of these 5%, how much time in real life sailor spends motoring? I bet not much. Because middle size cat will consume at least 2 gallons of diesel per hour of motoring, bigger - double of that. That's 48 gallons per 24 hours plus associated noise! That's $150 per day! Will get very expensive very quickly. So unless one won the lottery, he will try to not start engines often. Plus - electricity (generator) still needed for water maker, AC (if any), dehumidifier(s), dive compressor, propane needed for cooking, engine started for all these short trips between the islands (as you know almost all the wear engine gets at startups, until oil pressure is developed) etc, etc.

Now my point of view of good hybrid system and it's behavior.
I think it should be parallel setup. Yes, boat will be heavier this way and it probably makes sense only on bigger cats (say, 45' plus, when extra weight not as critical).
Powerful solar setup - must have. Big Li-Po battery bank - must have. Wind generator - I'd say must have. Currently I'm developing system, allowing to mount 7-15 kW of solar array on almost any bigger (45' plus) cat. What it will give you? Unlimited power for everything on the boat even on rainy day, even with partially shaded panels which you can not completely avoid on sailboat (and I'm talking
well equipped boat - with AC, electric stove, big fridge and all other comfort things). And even then, there will be some power for electric propulsion (but most likely still enough for that 95% of time when no long run needed and considered that you've been anchored previous days, your battery bank is full). So virtually, 95% of time boat not using fossil fuel at all. Out of remaining 5%, most likely 4.9% you will be sailing, right? Remaining 0.1% AND emergency situations - that's where you will need your diesel engines (but I'd still rather have this kind of "backup").

Second argument - it's too complicated, it will break, blablabla. Let me guess - you guys, probably afraid to drive modern cars while on hard, because afraid of "very complicated injector engines, data bus control and other modern crap? While it's actually true regarding the car, solar/hybrid system on boat not THAT complicated. Anyone with good electrical knowledge can fix/modify it. But of course, it will scare these who can't repair electric winch or stopped working AC.

Third argument - it's expensive. Well, this is actually correct one. All of described above only makes sense when newer expensive cat purchased, and hybrid conversion, along with solar/wind setup and battery bank will be part of initial investment. But from my point of view - all solar/wind/battery upgrades would be absolutely required anyway, along with repairs and other refit, so cost of installing hybrid drive at that point won't make huge difference. Why would I need such powerful solar setup, 4-6 kW wind generators and huge battery bank? So I can enjoy unlimited AC, unlimited fresh water, unlimited cooking, dehumidifiers to keep things dry and free of rust, unlimited use of dive compressor etc. All of this without starting engine/genset. It's just different point of view, opposite to minimalistic - having minimum comfort, minimum weight (for fastest speed, I guess? But sailing is just 5% of time, remember?) And yes, I know how to fix that stuff when it will break (or if I don't, I will learn, it's that simple).
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Old 16-09-2016, 18:33   #14
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

How about a hybrid? A yamaha 4JH45 with Sail drive on one side and the Ocean Volt 15kw Sail Drive on the other side.

At 2300rpm the prop on the 4JH45 absorbs 20hp / 15kw. The ocean volt 15kw prop absorbs 15kw at 2200 rpm so pretty evenly matched at that rpm level. Depending on the size of your cat one engine / motor should be able to push it along at say 6kn. You could choose depending on the level of your batteries.

At 2300rpm the Yanmar is capable of 40hp / 30kw at the crank but the prop is absorbing half of that so fitting a 100amp 48v alternator to recharge your batteries would be no issue for the Yanmar. Of course you couldn't run the Yanmar at high rpm with this alternator working or you would overload the engine.

http://www.yanmarmarine.com/theme/ya...monRail-HR.pdf


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Old 16-09-2016, 19:15   #15
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Re: Oceanvolt Hybrid Motor

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Originally Posted by John Holbrook View Post
How about a hybrid? A yamaha 4JH45 with Sail drive on one side and the Ocean Volt 15kw Sail Drive on the other side.

At 2300rpm the prop on the 4JH45 absorbs 20hp / 15kw. The ocean volt 15kw prop absorbs 15kw at 2200 rpm so pretty evenly matched at that rpm level. Depending on the size of your cat one engine / motor should be able to push it along at say 6kn. You could choose depending on the level of your batteries.

At 2300rpm the Yanmar is capable of 40hp / 30kw at the crank but the prop is absorbing half of that so fitting a 100amp 48v alternator to recharge your batteries would be no issue for the Yanmar. Of course you couldn't run the Yanmar at high rpm with this alternator working or you would overload the engine.

http://www.yanmarmarine.com/theme/ya...monRail-HR.pdf


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I personally don't like idea of asymmetrical power, but it's just personal, I guess. That might be one of the less expensive solutions, for smaller boats
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