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10-08-2006, 15:12
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#1
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Whangamata. New Zealand
Boat: H28
Posts: 210
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Poor Man's Watermaker ?
I have never paid much attention to watermakers as they are a bit outside my budget, but there is a man here in Tauranga (unfortunately away cruising the islands at the moment) who has built his own, apparently from a commercially produced membrane and a high pressure pump from a small waterblaster. I can't verify it, but his machine is reputed to make 30 litres/hour and cost him under NZD200.
Would anyone have any ideas?....does this sound too good to be true?
Regards, Joke & Chris
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10-08-2006, 15:52
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#2
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Registered User
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Galveston
Boat: C&C 27
Posts: 725
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I"ll cehck with a friend who just returned from Belize. He made one from parts he purchased at the local industrial supply. I"m not sure it was as efficient as a Spectra but ...
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10-08-2006, 16:57
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#3
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Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Qualicum Beach, Vancouver Island, BC
Boat: 1969 30 Mariner Sedan Cruiser
Posts: 760
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Seems to me, the Pardey's at some point used a pressure cooker to create fresh water from salt.
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10-08-2006, 20:11
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#4
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: cairns australia
Boat: now floating easy37
Posts: 636
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this is something that i would definitely be interested in as i am currently building my own fridge to get the cooling power versus insulation that i want, i have however been researching watermakers as well and they are very expensive 9-12000 for only about 20-40l per hour now as a fairly handy person i cannot see what would be so hard in the actual making of one of these witht the added benfit of knowing exactly how the thing worked
sean
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10-08-2006, 21:01
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#5
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Marine Service Provider
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Salish Sea
Boat: Tayana 37
Posts: 249
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rsn48
Seems to me, the Pardey's at some point used a pressure cooker to create fresh water from salt.
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Since you can use a pressure cooker as a still -- and some people still think that baking bread is a pressure cooker's main strength -- using it as a watermarker would be less involved.
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10-08-2006, 22:41
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#6
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Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Gabriola BC
Boat: Viking 33 Tanzer 8.5m Tanzer 22
Posts: 1,034
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Water maker
Louis Riel has built a water maker. He is in BC Canada and he descibes how to make it in his book about building a better boat. He has been on this list. It is easiest to find info on this from the origami site on Yahoo.
Michael
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11-08-2006, 05:45
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#7
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Registered User
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Raleigh, North Carolina
Boat: Privilege 37
Posts: 1,036
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The expensive parts are the high pressure pump (???? $400 and more ???) and the membrane ($200). Everything else can be had pretty reasonably.
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11-08-2006, 07:48
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#8
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Cruising NC, FL, Bahamas, TCI & VIs
Boat: 1964 Pearson Ariel 'Faith' / Pearson 424, sv Emerald Tide
Posts: 1,531
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Harbour freight salvage has a couple of pressure washers for less then $100, might be worth a look.
The trouble with the pressure washer based water maker (IMHO) is the amount of current it takes to run the motor. I guess if you had a big boat, you would have a genator that would be up to the task, but running a pressure washer off of an inverter would require a pretty big inverter.... and the associated cost, and space.
I see lots of adds for plans for pressure washer based water makers on E-Bay.
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11-08-2006, 08:28
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#9
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Channel Islands Harbor, CA
Boat: Columbia 43--Wa'a Nui
Posts: 53
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Ahoy you Salty Dogs and Cats...
Check out this site. http://www.svquintessence.com/watermakerintro It's great. I gives you all the info you need to build your own, including where to find the parts and $$ for each. Really cool. When I get to that "Watermaker" entry on my list of "wishes" I will certainly be making my own!!
Aloha, Mike
http://www.svquintessence.com/watermakerintro
__________________
The sail, the play of it's pulse so like our own lives: So thin and yet so full of life, so noiseless when it labors hardest, so noisy and impatient when least effective...
Henry David Thoreau
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12-08-2006, 19:51
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#11
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Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: cairns australia
Boat: now floating easy37
Posts: 636
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the site about making your own water was good however i dont have a large generator or big diesel motor does anyone know of any sites that deal with pumps small enough for dc motors
sean
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14-08-2006, 12:18
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#12
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Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Sunny Florida
Boat: Hunter 42
Posts: 12
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I am selling the plans on ebay for the watermaker I built for my boat. I saved a bundle and its reliable. Look for bob46777 under watermakers.
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14-08-2006, 13:09
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#13
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Registered User
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Winnipeg
Boat: None at this time
Posts: 8,462
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There was a thread on this subject on the SSCA forum that has some good information.
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14-08-2006, 13:14
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#14
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Cruising NC, FL, Bahamas, TCI & VIs
Boat: 1964 Pearson Ariel 'Faith' / Pearson 424, sv Emerald Tide
Posts: 1,531
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H2o for a small boat without a hottub, or washing machine
Sean,
Quote:
the site about making your own water was good however i dont have a large generator or big diesel motor does anyone know of any sites that deal with pumps small enough for dc motors
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?
There in lays the rub. The problem is that most of the watermakers on the market are geared twords the big boat market with lots of amps to spare. I have not found the watermaker you are refering to, but would love to figure something out. I would like something like a DC powered PUR -06 that would satisfy drinking / cooking needs for a small crew on a small boat without a hottub, or washing machine.
I pruchased a used PUR-80, with the thought of adapting it to a lower current DC motor that would make less water. The problem is that you need a given flow, at a given pressure and that just requires a lot of power. Easier to develop the required current at a higher voltage (like 115VAC then it is to get the amps in DC. Either way, the load is nearly the same.
I would like to figure out a low volume, effecient H2O maker, that would fit on a small crusing boat...... oh yea, and somehting I did not have to squeeze by hand for hours on end when I am thirsty...
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14-08-2006, 13:15
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#15
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Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Sunny Florida
Boat: Hunter 42
Posts: 12
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If you know how watermakers work you can build any size you want.
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