Defective paint on my electric, Torqeedo Travel 1103 outboard, means I’m travelling to the dinghy dock using a borrowed 2 stroke outboard motor.
While I’m commuting, I have sudden thought.
Fossil fuel propulsion for sail boats and dinghy’s, should already be in the history books and combustion engines slowly collected for old time sake. I’ve actually traveled backwards in time as far as a healthy, comfortable easy life is concerned.
I now need a messy polluting fuel to run the motor. It’s very windy and choppy, as I pour the fuel in the tank a little fuel splashes into the sea, and I hate it. I know, but can only imagine how my pollution affects the sea life.
I’m motoring slowly with the wind behind me. All I can smell is 2 stroke fumes, so go flat out to beat the wind.
My peace and quiet have gone. It’s engine noise and fumes now.
No more free, clean invisible fuel made on my boat. I now have to travel to petrol stations and pay to fuel up.
My borrowed outboard combustion engine needs regular servicing and impeller changes on a regular basis.
I’ve worked on sailing monohulls and catamarans for years, most are diesel powered.
Sail power is so clean and efficient
Sail power is so clean and efficient. Diesel engines are nice when new but just so inefficient and deteriorate to filthy, alongside there engine bays in no time at all.
Engine bays are usually filthy and small, covered in oil, salt corrosion and fan belt ware.
Diesel engines need servicing at least every 250 hours, so you end up servicing yourself to save cash, or spend a fortune trusting someone to service it for you. If you don’t, you will get big money breakdowns.
If you’re cruising, the chances are eventually you will need to have your dirty oil based fuel cleaned because of fuel bug. Or you will be using a pre filter system to clean the fuel before you put fuel in your tank, and will need lots of filters to keep it working.
That won’t stop water accumulating in your tank, so then you have to recirculate through a filter system. The work just goes on!!!
Contaminated fuel can strike at the worst possible time.
Dirty fuel normally strikes just when you don’t need it. As your about to manoeuvre in heavy seas and your fuel mixes with the contamination in your tank and stalls the engine. If you can, it’s not nice sorting it out when your in a boat that feels like a tumble dryer. If you can’t, we’ll it’s not worth thinking about the consequences.
Do you ever ask yourself? What happens to all the waste oil and filters?
A good percentage of boat interiors smell just like there diesel engine bay.
Fossil fuel is so 1900’s.
Fossil fuel is so 1900’s and we’re still buying boats with combustion engines. ( I know, we have to wait for technology to catch up) The technology is already here!…
Using electric propulsion is clean, almost silent and vibration free.
You keep your clean engine bay.
You make your own renewable fuel for free, including regeneration.
My Lynch Marlin propulsion has a perfect track record after 6,000 miles of travel on my sailboat.
Service intervals on my Lynch Marlin are every 3,500 hours.
The information plate on my Lynch Marlin electric motor.
Service intervals are 3,500 hours, then you just check the brushes.
7,000 hours you change the brushes. Brushes are £140 on my boat ???
I’m using AGM so my range isn’t the best but I’ve always had what I need. If I had Lithium I would have more than enough for any situation.
Covering over 6,000 miles on Ocean Strider with her own renewable energy systems has been a fantastic experience. I’ve completed most possible variations of sailing trips. Which include the Bay of Biscay and the Atlantic.
I can move about or stay at anchor in the Caribbean, just living of free energy. Stored in my battery bank.
Electric propulsion on Ocean Strider has a perfect 100% record so far.
There is no going back for me. It’s win win all the way ?
