Hello from a Future Solar Boat Owner

[Peter-Jan]

Hi,

My name is Peter-Jan, I'm from Belgium and am 24 years old.

I've sailed a 470 in my youth and plan on getting the yachtmasters degree. This weekend I'll be doing the introduction course with friends on the North Sea, woohoo!

I recently got fascinated by solar boating after I researched living aboard a sailboat full time. In the next week or two I'll be launching a solar boating blog, the start of a learning experience that will hopefully result in me living aboard a solar boat in the near future!

Hope to meet you soon,

Peter-Jan.

[rebel heart]

Hey Peter;

Welcome aboard and I look forward to seeing what you come up with! Pretty much every innovation in sailing comes from one person who did it well, then everyone else copied them (wind vane steering, dorade boxes, etc). Be the guy to do it with solar!

[Peter-Jan]

Hi Rebel,

Thanks for the welcome.

Please note that I'm not an engineer. I just hope to learn more about solar boats by reading and writing about it.

Edit: So what I wanted to say is that I hope to find the guy who will make solar boating a reality

Regards,

Peter-Jan

[James S]

Welcome to the forum Peter-Jan

[Johnathon123]

Hi and welcome,

I saw a boat at the Sydney boat show called a greenline. It is a powerboat but it is marketed as a hybrid.

Might be of interest in your research.

Good luck

[ArmyChief]

TORQEEDO-POWERED CRAFT WINS ELECTRIC BOAT RACE

A Torqeedo-powered electric boat won the 9th annual Wye Island Challenge, an electric-only boat race held in St. Michaels, Maryland, on October 2. Captain Todd Sims, owner of EPower Marine in Boynton Beach, Florida, piloted his 23' Calypso Launch to victory with an average speed of 6.5 mph. The 24-mile course extended from the Miles River Yacht Club, across the Chesapeake Bay and around Wye Island. Winds averaged 15-20 mph, while 3' breakers stirred in the open water.
"The first leg of the course was straight into the wind and waves, but the Torqeedo Cruise 4.0 electric outboard pushed the boat through the weather like a tractor," said Captain Sims. "This kind of race demonstrates the viability of electric propulsion in real-world conditions. I couldn't be more pleased with the performance of the boat and motor."
"These are all off-the-shelf parts available to anyone. The Cruise 4.0 has this kind of power right out of the box," continued Captain Sims.
With thrust equivalent to a 9.9 hp gas outboard, the Cruise 4.0 R achieves an efficiency of more than 50%. It operates on a 48V lead-gel, AGM battery bank or two high-performance lithium manganese batteries from Torqeedo's Power series.
Founded in 2005, Torqeedo's high-tech outboards have won numerous awards. Environmentally-sound, they offer unrivalled strength and efficiency for superior range

A buddy I know Todd Sims near Tampa is a seller of torqueedo's. We've talked alot about an outboard project. The biggest hang-up for me is initial cost, ROI, and battery life.

Good Luck and welcome!

[Peter-Jan]

Hi,

Thanks for all the replies.

Got back from the sailing trip yesterday - we did a weekend Nieuwpoort - Dunkerque - Nieuwpoort and had great weather and wind (3 bft Saturday, 4-5 Sunday, always sunny).

I'll post the few pictures we took while underway when I get them.

Edit: The boat we got was a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 35. Was a nice boat imo.

PJ

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and welcome aboard!
Kind regards,

[Ben M-P]

Welcome, Best of luck with your solar boat. It sounds like a fascinating project.