Building an Unlimited Range Electric Boat 

Circumnavigation of the earth when?

You might want to do an IR camera crack check on those panels now. They're *able* to flex but not intended to flex while in operation and the cells themselves will still get damaged. A lightweight yet rigid mounting substrate would be advised, or at minimum a support grid underneath.

Winch was probably pulling the spud up out of the water, the huge metal spike that goes into the river bed to hold the barge in place while the crane works.

Catamaran or Trimaran would definitely be the ideal hull configuration and give you maximum style points too.

you can also flip the motors around and have them in a pull configuration. they also do this on large ships with azipods so the prop can take in clean water.

Nice video! Some bio-corrections (based on taking marine science like 40 years ago): The "sea slug" was actually a sea cucumber. And the anenome-like things are tube worms.

For your solar panels, I feel like you're either going to drop a main pin or a cotter pin into the water eventually. I think a "ratchet" system might have been better for controlling the position of the panels. Using pins looks tedious and it's an accident just waiting to happen.

surprised how practical this is, making the Tech Ingredients catamaran combined with solid sunpower rigid panels for a roof would make a hell of a boat!

I love how curious Daniel is about everything going on around him. What all the ships are probably doing, how much they cost, how they got there, who owns them, how they operate etc. he reminds me a lot of myself that’s why I enjoy watching his videos. Also a great teacher. Explains difficult things in a simple way. Don’t ever stop making these videos !!!

Definitely, a roof build would be awesome. Utilizing the sun at the same time being protected from the sun. 👍

man i like it how you take us all out with you for a ride on the boat, explaining and showing us around like a dad lol

Version 2 will have a solar roof, with solar outrigger/wings that fold up for easy access, and fold down to protect the cabin area from rain.

You're really good at keeping our attention. Very entertaining.

Might help you to add buoyancy to the "wings" like outriggers, or a tri-hull catamaran.

I absolutely love the dialogue and description narration of what you were seeing and where it was with details. Feels like you were hanging out with you both, makes for great content to listen and watch.

For this setup and maybe in the feature V2 version, there are two-sided solar panels, so with the water reflection or the roof reflection you could give a good amount of energy with even 1 panel ( Same size of one set that u have in the side). Additionally for the roof would be interesting to have a system that elevates the left or right side depending on the sun's attack angle

I love all of the cinematic shots with the drone and bridge I would really want to see more of that

I recently saw a huge cruise ship with propellers that pull instead of push and they said it's done for efficiency, makes sense to me. Might be something to try.

This project has come a long way and you've overcome a lot of challenges! Congrats on what seems like a successful trip despite the weather!

Your boat videos are honestly my favorite of your catalog. All great stuff but these really do it for me. The unlimited range solar electric boat sounds like a dream

The roof is sooooooo much better of an idea. Shade on the open lake is pretty important, especially for something that goes slow and will be cruising for hours. They also get in the way and are easy to damage when docking. They are also a paint to adjust. Also some panels loose all power if even a small area is shaded. It would be cool to do a solar house boat. My dad had an old Boston Whaler built in the 70s. It had a nice outboard motor and a driver spot in the middle on the right side. Having the flat bottom made it easy to beech.

You should totally go bigger and make a solar powered boat you could potentially live on for a while.

Came for the solar energy stayed for the awesome excursion around the dock! Keep up the great work.

Love these videos, they always inspire me. Thanks for sharing! 👍

i think you should try like floaters next to the boat to support the panels and they could also add a bit more wave protection and displacement to avoid expensive tipping

Excellent POC. You showed a catamaran as a better choice which I would NOT deny. A better choice again would be an outrigger trimaran with long and thin hulls for very low hydraulic drag. The outrigger struts could be furnished with very many panels, and potentially made to be fully or partially walked on. Good luck, I look forward to whatever you do.

I foresee a day when a sail could be made of PV viable materials. The best of both worlds.

Thanks for this. I’m trying to get to Seattle because it feels more like home than here. Seeing all the port activities renewed my interest to getting there and I was greatly encouraged.

With how much it gets pushed around in the wind it really feels like it might be worth figuring out a way of getting propulsion from the huge panel area you have. Not that it's a great hull design for it; but perhaps a self-aligning wingsail like Saildrone?

I cant believe it's already been a year since you built that boat. That was the first video of yours that I watched, and I remember thinking how crazy you were. My opinion hasn't changed but you have made that little boat into something awesome! :P

These types of videos you make are addicting, anything on the water especially practical ones like this (not small rc stuff) are amazing. I can’t get enough of this type of content.

Great concept. Imagine doing this commercially. Like you are on a lake vacation. And you rent an electric boat with solar panels shading your on the roof. You can chill, fish or even speed along the lake - with no emissions. Thats so cool. And it would not even be that expensive boat to build.

i think a mast would be a perfect way to be able to deploy the panels, and help support their weight. then you would struggle less, and can have a stronger support structure for the panels. and i might add, you should have some pontoons you can deploy on the ends of those wings. and also, it may be a good idea to have a permanent mount for the brackets. that way you wont loose your panels and benches in the worst case scenario of a flip over in bad sudden surf. i might also add, you could create a battery bank structure, such that they where both balanced, and fully secured. perhaps have them on the side walls to act as extra side benches, with a cover to lift up to access, and would seal the battery compartments from any water, period. lots of improvements possible, and i would love to see the evolution of those improvements, such that an end product could be made that could even be marketed. now, on that note, if you did eventually go to a roof solar cover, i would want to add stability mechanisms or blast and, pontoons to the sides. but i would also keep the transforming ability of folded panels, so then you could in theory have a single central panel on the roof, and a transforming flower like array built in, such that once deployed, the stationary roof panel is uncovered, and you increase the panel area immensely, without too much stability changes.

I'd like to imagine the blackberry guy looking out on the water from his yacht, seeing your boat towing along 6 kayakers, and saying to himself, "Yes. This is the technology I envisioned for the future."

Good you took the boat through fresh water to give it a clean. Great video.

I think the side mounted system is great! Better for trailering, basically twice the area compared to just a roof and it makes use of otherwise unused space. Very inspiring video.👍🏼

I love seeing where these adventures go; I wasn't sure what was going to happen when you did the boat restoration video all those months ago, but I'm always pleased to see when a new chapter comes out.

If you use flexible solar panel I bet you could use them as a sail, too ;) And save on weight. Even the rigid ones could work this way. Alternatively, could add a pontoon so that it has the pontoon in the water when its lowered, to take stress off the panel.

I love that you show us everything, including your failures and iterations to solve those problems.

Awesome! There is nothing better than that freedom. Concerns with survivability in bad weather, and with the UV damage against longevity. But I think you proved that riverine work may be quite functional. Double sided panels will allow you to upright both panels for whatever, while still giving good gain from reflection.

Amazing video

Glad that starfish survived the near miss with the anchor ;) great video as always.

Love these trips you take with the solar boat. Even tho I've lived in Seattle my whole life. Your trip around lake Washington or this trip up the duwamish seem like such fun adventures. Thanks for filming it all! I know that little park with a "boat launch" off airport way too. The video doesn't do how steep it really is justice 😂. Glad u made it out safely

Great video ! Can'y wait to see the v2 ;)

I have an idea I think you'd like if you ever do a roof. You could make a roof that is held up by 4 (or 3) robotically adjustable bars, that attach to the solar panel with ball joints. Then have those bars auto adjust via an array of light sensors (or anything, lots of solutions), to always have your panel pointed at the sun!

This is the kind of project I wanted to do at one point, unfortunately it's a bit pricey lll

Was waiting for this for a while, glad the video is finally here :D

Love the sightseeing around Seattle in these videos

Do you reckon you could make an automatic glider? It could fly forever

His absolute refusal to say 'geese' keeps me watching.

I love these videos. It's fun watching you learn, explore, work, and have fun.

14:56 That barges first stop is where I live. Cool to see it there!

🎉😂🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

I am from the Midwest where we have heards of cows and gaggles of Geese. Every time you say heard of gooses, l can't stop laughing 😂

i love the ish out of your videos, my dude. every single one is a treat. please continue!

We needed someone like you to actually go and do this kind of thing

I loved seeing all the marine wildlife from the sub’s camera!

Another awesome build.... time for a Lake Roosevelt test! Grand Coulee to the Canuck border would be a good test!

Mounting solar panel on those bench is so smart!!

The most underrated part of the video is the CNC “fender cushions”

What a great project. I've always heard flexible solar panels have a short life unless they are kept free from excessive vibration and flex. I just subscribed to the channel to see future updates and projects. Thanks for the adventure.

Incredible job! I have been dreaming about doing something like this out here in Florida. Definitely want to do a roof design so I can get out of the brutal sun. Now imagine this with rigid panels that can make 3x the power!

Thoroughly enjoying the solar boat adventures! Cheers man!

I love every video you upload. Thanks for everything, such an inspiration for all hobby types!

Bros --- quality time with quality dudes and quality wisdom --- and of course quality subscribers -- thank you for this wonderful video --- we keep learning from you cool dudes

Badass, im doing a similar project albeit snaller scale. Im just using a 10'2" plastic jon/bass boat with a 7' x 10' rectangular umbrella which ive tested at speed, in big waves, and high winds. The key is guide/support wires on all 4 corners which make it surprisingly stable. I just need to acquire some flexible light solar panels to mount on the top of the umbrella as im already powering it with a 700 watt trolling motor.

You’re a really clever fella, I’m impressed by every single one of your projects and tests. … so, I was very surprised when you used the (non) word ‘gooses’ 😂. Geese mate, the plural is geese 😁👍

This tech should be present in all life boats out there

That is a cool proof of concept. I've been wanting to build a solar-powered boat for the last two years but my wife won't let me (yet). My plan is to use cellular PVC sheets (screwed and plastic welded) with a roof. The idea is the swivel the solar panels to close the sides of the roof area. For example, in good weather, the sun-facing side would be down and the opposite side would be fully up so both are facing the sun. In poor weather, the sides could be brought down to protect the passengers. The panels on the roof and battery could be used. I think the panel on the roof alone would be fine, at a slower speed. It's important to have ballast below when there is more weight up higher. I would put a thick keel on it with the batteries sealed in there. Actually, I was thinking about Skelcap super capacitors, instead of batteries. Supercapacitors won't lose life over any number or recharges and they charge faster. At first, a battery will have more capacity but this decreases over time until the battery is eventually useless.

Large ships using the motor pod design run everything backwards to avoid that issue with the wake. One of Adam Savage's recent videos of him checking out underneath a new ship in drydock had a good explanation but it is basically to avoid the imbalance issue with the prop.

Auto angle optimizing solar panel mounts would be rad. Optical scheme for detecting direction of the sun with respect to the boat’s current heading. Use that information to control panel angle - elevation and maybe twist. Also include a sea state detection logic to put the panels at a safe angle when encountering waves. Future project. Using the panels as a dronopad was fun. Looking forward to the V2 boat! Should have a fixed roof and foldout panels too..

if you would have used bifacial solar panels, you could have harvested the reflection of the water surface... please try in new video :)

At 6:08 there is a wooden fishingboat with a norwegian flag! Neat! Your projects are nice to watch. Keep it up!!

This is very cool. I agree with your idea that a displacement hull would be a better choice. The locally made (North Bend) EPCarry pushes 10-14’ rowboats to roughly hull speed (4ish knots) on only 250W of power. The owner there also wrote a blog post a couple of years ago about playing with solar boats. Interesting takeaways there (besides the hull form) are his use of high aspect and long RC airplane props. The ultimate conversion would be on a Duffy 21, the electric rental boats on Lake Union. They were designed by local sailing legend Bob Perry and are very efficient through the water. The standard motor and lead acid batteries could be greatly improved with BLDC motors and LFP batteries. The roof would give you lots of room for the solar array. I look forward to seeing what comes next in this project. I’m a big sailor but also love EV boats. We have a 10’ Gig Harbor rowboat that is great with the EPCarry, but something longer and with solar would be a fun next step.

Looks like a fun time cruising around and looking at stuff. I think you could build a roof for the solar panels pretty quickly with a TIG welder (or maybe MIG with aluminum friendly wire?) That's a skill that would serve you well going forward. The precut parts would go together really easily, or you could make it out of tubing stock. With welding skills from that, you could make a life-size tank with the tank tech you've been working on.

I love it when I get to learn about a cool industry product or technical thing from a sponsor spot instead of just having the same trendy stuff that's in every RU-vid video. I'll make an exception for your Factor ads because having a quick meal available in the shop or out testing a project is much more interesting than just eating them at home 😂

I loved the industrial maritime tour. Excellent

A herd of gooses is called a "gaggle" of geese. It made me chuckle. Nice video and great idea of the boat.

On the solar panels, i think that putting another hinge point in the middle of the solar panel would be a good idea. Then you can have both panels oriented in the sun simply by twisting the panel closest to the sun so it faces it and having the other regular. jm2c

It would be interesting to see the difference in systems efficiency between these e-foil motors and electric trolling motors. I rigged up a similar system for dinghy propulsion several years back in Seattle with a 24V trolling motor and some lipo batteries. Worked pretty well, and they even have brushless trolling motors now as well. At least I knew the prop was close to optimal for the conditions. I didn't have color, but used the fixed panel on my sailboat to recharge them. Great series!

"We are at a superfund site" 2 minutes later "We just tasted the water"

Towing the kayaks was a great idea. Great demonstration. Oh, and "push boat" ..... look it up.

A solar roof would be much less flexible *and* provide cover from the rain! You could make the legs fold up and tuck under the solar panels so that the roof is 'flat packed' for transport. They could engage in one receiver each built into the hull when up.

Very relevant sponsorship!

Cool video! You need to have life jackets (PFD) for you and every passenger on your boat. Easy way to get an expensive ticket.

I've wanted to do this with a small party barge pontoon boat for a while now. Have a solar array on the roof with the batteries in / under the floor. I was thinking of using high thrust trolling motors at each corner of it as sort of makeshift azipods. It's one of the many "someday" projects bouncing around in my head.

Flipping love it, 3k views in the first 12 mins, you're a legend Daniel

Legend work as ever Daniel

Nice underwater footage!

super cool proof of concept

6:26 🤣 very cool build!

this idea is amazing, you guys should definitely make a v2!

Great choice with the Boston whaler !

Amazing project, mate. Keep rolling.

Having owned one of the Wintech Cats for rowing coaching I can confirm that they are very easily drive and would make a great platform for your project. Just a lot more expensive than a renovated Boston!

So inspiring!! ❤

2:24 is that a Subaru Ute in the background? Awesome!

we need guys like him

Excellent video. I really enjoyed the adventure. 😁

That was awesome nice job. Wheres the commercial start up lol!!!