12V Watermaker ??

[Freedom fighter]

Fountaine Pajot are selling 12v water makers on their list, has anybody had any experience with these?

[robert sailor]

Not sure what brand your builder uses but Spectra watermakers are 12 volt and have an excellent reputation in the marine business.

[warren460]

I love my spectra. It's 120 volt, but it's rock solid.

[newhaul]

I love. My katadyne 35e over 20 years no problems according to the water logs.

[rabbi]

It depends on your needs and the overall setup.
If you have a genset that you frequently use for charging a 12v water maker may not be the ideal solution.
If you require a ton of water each day a 12v water maker may not be the ideal solution.

If you have plenty of solar and average water needs a 12v water maker may be ideal.

It's all depends...

I have a 12v water maker and would not really want anything else. And I had a huge 220v water maker in my previous boat and very much prefer a 12v setup.

[Freedom fighter]

Ive been told that if sailing faster than 8kts a 220v system cant get the large volume of water supply required to make the 130lph, but the 12v system will get the required volume as its so much less. Is this true??

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Freedom fighter

Ive been told that if sailing faster than 8kts a 220v system cant get the large volume of water supply required to make the 130lph, but the 12v system will get the required volume as its so much less. Is this true??

Voltage used to drive the system should not be relevant, but capacity could be. Voltage does not determine capacity, Spectra makes higher capacity 12V systems too.

How the intake is set up is likely the biggest determinate. A typical thru hull could have issues underway at bigger volumes. I mostly run my system at anchor, as I suspect most do. Underway at any speed in rough weather, you could suck air...air is not good for membranes.

A proper sea water chest would solve these problems, but not many modern boats have them.

[daletournier]

Underway I also have some problems with intake, this is with a 12v Katadyn 80e. Starts to suck some air, not sure about the solution. After 6 years I now intend to investigate..lol.

Sent from my GT-N7105T using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Freedom fighter]

I'm told Aquabase 12v / 60L Hr is the FPs new option, anybody had anything to do with these?

[tuskie]

Whether DC (12 volt ) or AC (110v or 240v), I'd recommend that you choose a high capacity model ie. 60 l/ hr or higher. These will allow you to make plenty of fresh water when clean seawater is available. Often at anchor in rivers, bays or harbours the quality of seawater varies according to the stage of the tide, so it's great to be able to make maximum use of the clean water on the high tide. This results in less filter clogging and strain on pumps, etc.
High capacity water makers have traditionally been AC or engine belt powered. These days an inverter backed by a decent house battery bank allow AC water makers to be used without a genset. We have a 140 l/hr AC motor powered Rainman installed and it runs easily on inverter or Genset. I prefer the simplicity, economy and serviceability of these units over the more complicated and expensive electronically automated watermakers.