Ditch the Diesel: Electric Sailboat Conversion Tips & Tricks | Step 367 

I spent my entire career in variable speed drives everything from DC, AC, Servos, Steppers and all from fractional to 750 Hp compressor horse power drive systems. I had my own business doing this and am recently retired. I never delt with anything in the marine industry as my focus was in industrial applications. And I have to say that your knowledge and expertise in what you talk about is spot on... I have been a follower for many years and your credo of "Never buy a couch". I wish I knew that some 40 years ago... That being said. I am very impressed. I live vicariously though the both of you and what you are doing. One thing I wish you would have mentioned but it's no big deal is that the larger motor would give you a little more on the regen side. I love your you tubes and always look forward to your episodes.. Take care, God Bless and think of us in your wake... Jim Aulgur and the boys... We will be sailing with you...

What a helpful and substantive speech. Others need a script and a teleprompter to present such a topic halfway fluently. It is a pleasure to listen to you!

Dan, consider installing two recycle lines into the water tank, regardless of "insulation". If Uma sails into cold weather again, recirculation water from the head or from the salon, into the tank, will help keep your water fluid. It's not a system that would need activation all the time, but it could save the tank and lines from the expansion factor in "cold as ice" climates. Greg 🇨🇦

We just finished the electric conversion of our Catalina 400. Your videos now and in the past really helped our decision making process. We went with Electric Yacht QT 30. Its a 30kW motor (liquid cooled) supported by 540 Amh lithium batteries. The cost kept me up at night for a while but wow, what a great ride. Quiet, smooth, no maintenance...its just awesome! We picked the much larger motor trying to future proof our system a bit...we should be able to take advantage of the battery tech improvement that you have mentioned. As you mentioned though, regen is a bit of the holy grail for us...our motor and current configuration doesn't regen for crap but we are working on it🙂 Forgot to mention...we kept our motor system and house system separate for the reasons that you have just mentioned. The simplicity of the separate systems has been nice and reduce the conversion pain. Thanks for your videos...they really inspire me. No, I won't be doing the Artic Ocean/Iceland runs but knowing the potential helps me set my own goals.

Omg! You two are my heros. Absolutely transforming the sailing industry by quietly going out and breaking established norms, and having fun while doing it. And bringing the world along for the ride! I have been watching the sailing forum discussions completely transform around electric sailboat thinking, and Uma keeps being name dropped. You two are making a name for yourself in history.

Hey Guys, My wife and I are in our 80's. Your bending of you r knees getting into Uma`s tight spaces is incredible. Been following you for several years. Really enjoy your adventure!!

learning about this process is INCREDIBLE. I'm still so glad you went the direction of fixing up Uma, and even more so that we're along for the ride!

I assume you are being sponsored by Oceanvolt. Reason i am saying this is their are other manufacturers with proven regen performance. We own a Windelo catamaran and have done two Atlantic crossings with no diesel used to recharge the batteries while taking hot showers every night. (Meaning no cut back on confort) Regarding your ratio of dividing by 4, ours is 2 so not sure about the 4. All the other stuff you talked about, we agree with.What is important about a genset in a hybrid system is to have a 48v genset (not common) so if your batteries trip say on temperature, the genset can drive the motor direct while bypassing the batteries. Water cooled motor and controller is important as you said to have a robust system.

I am a jet fighter mechanic on our airplanes we started from the nose or bow and every foot aft we noted the location of every component, Also according to the clock we noted the direction from the center of the craft to each component. The first number on a wire is the distance from the front and the second number is the direction from the center line, 9 0'clock or 3 o'clock. When you are at the circuit breaker. The two numbers tell you the destination of the wire. Any place the wire can easily be accessed The numbers can be seen. You don't need a wiring diagram. Numbers can be purchased that are like a wedding ban that goes over the wire when you are wiring a boat. Large grey electrical PVC with oval access at the top lets you add or remove wires for the future.

The fact that you entertained me for 39 minutes, and I know less than nothing about this subject, is a testament to your talent!!! I have connected an inverter to my truck battery to plug in a coffee maker and an air mattress pump. That's it, that's all I know about this. I can not sleep on the ground and have coffee in the woods!!! Love you guys!

I can’t wait for UMA rebuild. I started with you 2 back right before the Atlantic crossing an loved everything you have posted in your adventures.

Just when you think you have a naked interior.....then there is more. You both have a lot of patience with all the construction, deconstruction, filming, producing, and camping etc. it's truly quite a feat of accomplishment and determination....very impressive!

You have no idea how much you are helping me right now.. I have an older Allied seawind 35 that I am completely refitting. I was thinking about relocating the panel and after this, I will definitely do that. Thank you so much..

Very interested in how you got to your divide hp by 4 to get the kw you need to go different speeds. My boat originally had 2 x 10hp diesels which I've replaced with 2 x 6kw electrics. Unfortunately i never used it with the diesels, so it's hard to compare, but i seen to get around hull speed with 7kw combined on both motors. Interestingly i find that running two motors gives more efficiency than one motor with twice the power. Another bonus is that I'm on a small catamaran which means loads of space for solar. I've got 3200w on a 30 foot boat!

Thank you, that is really helpful, I've been considering an electric conversion on my Beneteau 305 for a while. Some of the real world comparisons were great food for thought, impressed how much you guys achieved with early technology. Best of luck with the rest of the project, love the Land Rover too 😀

Dan and Kika, did I miss the list of Battery Manufacturers that you trusted in the comments or description? I am super interested in which Manufacturers you trust. Thanks

Fundational! 😂 I’m glad you always point out - Uma’s a sailboat. She uses sails. That’s her primary function. Everything else is an additional convenience for safety and peace of mind. Good luck with the refit.

So, I was about 2 minutes into the motor discussion, which I have followed here for a few years, and trying to figure out what the heck Region had to do with electric motors, somehow thinking the European community had some additional specs that differentiated between NA, Pacific Rim and Europe. (also follow Basik, Wynns) Then Regeneration came to mind. Regen. Duh. And I am a technical guy.

I am not accusing you. But we live in the hangover of oil consumption, next will be battery consumption. I wish you good wind. OLA ​

Its a massive expense converting anything to Electric, in fact you could buy a very nice conventional boat for the price of just your electrical equipment costs alone. Nearly all sail boats are just that and the motors are auxiliary and nothing more and if used as such they do not represent a global warming disaster . My own boat is 60 years old and her engine, which is original, has just over 5000 hours total, that's not a massive carbon footprint. I cook with alcohol. Lithium is not an infinite resource and the the amount of ore extraction required to produce the quantity the planet needs is ridiculous and unsustainable. EV's are the Betamax of alternative means of propulsion. Internal combustion using hydrogen is more likely the way forward, and yes, full of deadly potential but so is propane and butane, and have we all seen clips of lithium battery fires? I'm a big fan of your channel and I love technology but all electric boats are bespoke, expensive and that's all they'll ever be.

Just did a quick calculation. Based on an average 24 hr speed of 6 knots you would travel 144 nm. Based on a 1/4 of a knot drag you are talking about .04% loss. If you average 5 knots you would have a .05% loss. That is minuscule. I think that proves your point.

Fantastic, decent & thorough explanation. Making this video probably the most valuable video for the tech guys or girls. As you mentioned that when the batteries die, that everything dies. Well on the big ships that have to comply with SOLAS regulations, GMDSS reg. (And much more reg.). It is always compulsory to have a 24V set for the VHF, MF/HF, Satcom, etc. So as you mentioned yourself, it is really something to keep in mind. Also, something I have not seen on Uma (or I missed it), please install an EPIRB outside free floating. If anything happens wherever in the world, the MRCC will know your distress and location these days under ten minutes. Thanks for your awesome videos, love your channel & Godspeed on your adventures.

Super interesting video! I've asked about a quote from Oceanvolt a couple times now, but the problem is, my brother who's the co owner of the boat wants to retain the possibility of motoring for 160 miles in two days... So if we go for that, some kind of hybrid system would be necessary. And then I started calculating the CO2 emissions of manufacturing motors and batteries and realized that if I keep the old diesel in good condition, I use it so little anyway that I can go for 80 years or something before the CO2 emissions from using the diesel would reach the level of the CO2 emissions for an electric conversion... It's a sailboat, after all. Already a hybrid system, with a backup diesel engine.

So interested in this subject! Hope you do another in-depth ep on this.

Great (and very educational) unmissable content. Take your time guys, have confidence in yourselves (we have) and do this right. You are (and have been) trail blazers for the electric boat revolution. God bless and thanks again 👍👏👏👏.

Hi guys - are you forgetting E-propulsion Pod motors? They have 1-6kw motors with super easy install, all very focused on regent as well with up to 1040 watts (at 10knlts, and 500 watts at 7 knots). Great video though :)

This is the kind of episode I was looking forward to with the resurrection of Uma. Oh and Kika's got impressive guns.

Fyi, kw and horsepower are directly comparable, 1kw is exactly 1.34 hp. Unfortunately, other factors, mostly marketing related, obscure the truth. 8kw is only a bit over 10hp, probably plenty for most purposes, but is it enough if your anchor drags in a gale? Continuous duty ratings, and how long will your batteries/fuel last would be my big concerns, on both sides. People have been outright lying on hp/wattage numbers for decades, hopefully the marine motors are telling more of the truth, but i have a hard time trusting numbers that aren't independently verified.

I love your sailing when you do sail, but I have to say, the technical analysis of when you rebuild your boat is by far my favourite. Your design skills combined with your technical knowledge is very inspiring. Looking forward to seeing how uma turns out this time round. ❤️

As usual a very good and very instructive video. However they are some statements that need to be clarified. 1) and foremost. I would like that we try to make sure we do not propagate falsehood... horse power and kW are both valid unit of power. They is no mystery about that... 1 hp = 745.699872 W no more no less... there is no magic there. So wether a manufacturer use one or the other has no bearing on the result. What makes the differences is WHERE this power is being measured. Whether it is an electrical motor or a ICE engine, the standard definition is that it should be the mechanical power available at the shaft of the motor. So electric or diesel will /should be able to provide the same power. Where you are very correct is that this is not always the case. Not because of the unit used but because of the commercial gimmick used by both parties... ICE rated power is always higher than true delivered power due to the inefficiencies of the gear boxes / clutch and other anciliaries. In the eletric world we also see a lot of people mis-stating the Electric power instead of the Mechanical power thus inflating the real value available. Bottom line unit does not matter as long as you understand what you are buying. 2) you stated that you can only use 8 out of the 15 kW available... i would assume that what you rate here is most likely the Electrical power not the Mechanical power produced by the motor shaft which is probably 5 to 8% less. The gear transmission probably adds another 3 to 5%... What is not clear is is if the limitation is a personal choice or a mechancal / Electrical... in the latter is it because your motor reach its maximum speed? If so then the propeller does not have enough pitch. You are very correct in the sense that the boat does not need more most of the time. And any increase in power will not yield any significant increase in speed. A 50ft lagoon will hapilly cruise at 6 knot with 40 kW of power in relatively calm water. But will need 250 kW to move at 10 knots. But I cringe when i here people staring you need less power when it is electric than when it is diesel. The power you need is the pwer the boat want... it does not matter whether it is electric or diesel. The fact remains that with ICE engine it is very dificult to know the true power being used. In the early days of the electric boats we have way to often seen boat totally under powered because of the basic assumption that "we do not need as much electic power".... You are very correct that the installed power need to be much larger than the needed power. A) because you have reserve when the weather is bad and you need to motor upwind. B) because as you stated in the long run the equipment will not overheat on long passages and will be more reliable.

Some people are never satisfied. You post a video on your camper; people complain that it's not a boat video. You post a boat video; people complain that it's not a sailing video. Aughh. Just keep on doing what you're doing and never forget that the first people to complain are usually the last people to offer to help. Already looking forward to the next adventure.

Seems like more virute signaling than substance. Sailboat auxillaries do not even move the needle when it comes to pollution and with the vast Pacific distances there is no way it is practical for me. Do you have any idea how these batteries are produced and the minerals mined by poverty stricken labor in very poor countries (Often child labor)? For a coastal sailor, I might get it, but long distance cruising, especially in the vast Pacific, does not seem very practical, especially when your life may be at stake if you do not have power in critical situations.

I didn't understand most of what you talked about but weirdly, I still enjoyed the video.

Rock Stars... don't ever change. Great info.... Thanks!

Thanks, great video. You guys inspired us to go all electric. We went with 2 Torqeedo motors, 20kw of batteries, and 2.2kw of solar charging. 7 months in and it’s working out wonderfully. We charge our 12v house with a 20a dc to dc from the motors 48v bank. Also, works great!

I’d love to chat with you guys over some sundowners about what I’ve done for my onboard energy storage. I built my own battery systems using EVE LF304K cells. A 16S 15kwh for the propulsion and a 4S 4kwh for the house loads. My thinking was to use the same cells in both so that should a cell go bad in my propulsion bank, i can scavenge from my house bank, and run house loads from a dc converter until replacements can be arranged. I normally charge at dock but I only have enough room about 200W of solar, which charges the 12v. The mppt controller can also send power to a dump load which is a 12-48 boost converter to send any excess solar to the 48v. I also have spare mppt that can use the 48v as a PV input and charge the 12v if needed. So energy can be sent wherever it’s needed. I think the energy management aspect is the most important in a conversion.

You both are just incredible. I have been watching your videos since you began posting. You have come a very long way and lots of energy to keep going.

I really like the videos travelling along thought processes and idea developments. The style you have, the sense for aesthetics, the mix of different content, the different projects - all that is so nice to watch and follow. Love you guys. Wish you the best!

Amazing episode! I don't have any boat or anything but I'm electronics engineer and watching how much knowledge you gained and the way you present it, is just great!💪 Just a small notice: You might be a bit too optimistic about lifecycle of a lithium batteries 😉

Solar + Wind its not enough power?

You guys are the best!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sticky Bilge Goo is the name of my new band....

I love how you're putting so much effort into the design of the remodel to correct issues. It's especially great that you take the time to explain it all. I really think boat manufacturers and the boating industry in general will benefit from your experiences.

Best video yet on conversion. As usual, top material from Sailing Uma. I really admire you two. Thanks!

Dan & Kika, I'm interested in shaft drive regen electric motor, do you have any recommendations? VOTE FOR DEMOCRACY AND FREEDOM. VOTE BLUE. 💙🇺🇸💙👍😇

Great video. Uma at its best. talking & explaining technology . I have never listened to each word on a video like this. This is one of the best uma video. thanks a lot. Good Job !

Since you're getting a new 48V battery bank why not just keep a couple of your best battleborns for the 12V bank. Losing all instruments and lights because you trip the BMS on the 48V bank makes it so much harder to resolve issues and potentially ask for help. You already have the battle borns so there's no cost in keeping a few.

great content!!! how do you think your electric motor system will do going through the Panama Canal? thanks so much!!!

Why not hook a super capacitor in the system for the house loads? It would filter all the peaks and it's made for that unlike the battery.

Yikes, having an Oceanvolt catamaran, this is our first year in the Mediterranean and I call sales speak on most of what your saying which makes me sad as people believe you... Oceanvolt had extremely limited support and has no global service. If you have a problem you are out of luck with a diesel you can get service anywhere. For a trade wind sailor it may make sense in Regen but for the Mediterranean Oceanvolt sucks....

I’ve watched you two for years now. But I had fallen off. I come back, and you’re tearing your boat apart. It’s interesting cause I felt like I was there watching so much of it go in, to see it come out was a bit sad. But also very exciting BECAUSE the thing I always loved about y’all as opposed to other “sailor shows” is you guys got in there and showed everyone what and most importantly, HOW you were doing everything. And I also just love how creative you guys were. It inspired me to get my first boat, an Oday 27, which I spent a year fixing up and learning the lines during Covid. I got her for $200 and she was half full of water and sold her for a tidy profit to a guy who, when I asked why he wanted to buy a boat, he said, “Have you ever seen Sailing Uma?” I’m getting ready for boat #2. And I’m super pumped to see what you two imaginative sailor/architects do with Uma next. ❤

Howdy Y'alls, I'm A Professional In Off Grid Solar Sales+ Installer For 30+ Years Now, I Would Highly Recommend Not Using Those Individual + Higher Costing RV Style Batteries! I've Been Installing Rack Style Lithiums For Years Now! They Come In A Few Great Brands, Butt I Luv The Regular EG4s 48v - 5.12kw Per Battery x 6 Pack Rack = 30.72kws... Simple To Wire, Less Wiring, Breakers + BMSs Are Already On Each 6 Batteries, Plus Are Independent Of Each Other In Pre Buss Bared Rack, Well Made Heavy Duty Metal Cabinet, Cost Today Is Only $8900 w/ Free Rack & Free Shipping Thru Signature Solar... I'm Also A Boat Captain, Own 10-Different 15' Up To 33' Right Now & As Long As These Were Installed In The Living Area - Above Waterlines, I Simply Don't Foresee Any Problems In Using These Rack Style Batteries At All & I'm In Process Right Now Of Converting - Electrifying All My 10-Boats, 2-Jet Skis + A Few Older Cars-Trucks... 😁😎

Outstanding, understand better the layering Uma has gone thru over the years. Looking forward to more vids on where the improvements are coming from and why!

I converted in 2014. 8hp YSB8 Yanmar became a 5.5kw ElectroProp system. Basically a typical Motenergy brushless motor (air cooled) with a Sevcon gen4 controller (110A continuous). I put together a 100ah pack of lithium iron phosphate cells for energy storage and a 1500W charger that the BMS could interrupt on over-voltage detection. It gave me basic range of about 10nm at 4kts. Wind and chop could cut that down pretty quick though. I also had a 2000w portable generator for range extension. That could run my charger at 23A as long as I had gas for it. Fast forward to 2022 and we decided to upsize the battery from 5 to 15kwh. Prices and energy density have certainly come down. My new 15kwh pack weighs only double what my 5kwh pack weighed. And is only about twice the volume. The new battery talks to my Victron stuff and can control the charging. I also opted to relocate the battery from behind the motor under the cockpit to a custom rack I built into the main saloon table. The new battery is 100kg, located above the keel bolts. The frame is built from 8020 aluminum extrusion. It’s designed to let me slide the battery modules in and remove them easily for the winter, since we get some very cold temperatures in the winter that could freeze the electrolyte and permanently damage the cells.

I just knew it would happen, your being attacked by your boats wiring, AAAAAAAAA, RUN.

Lead-acid batteries release hydrogen gas when being charged, so they may not be the most suitable to have in your living space, unless you like explosive situations. Good to see that you use Li-Ion batteries.

I've probably said this numerous times in early working videos, but I absolutely love and support your cleanliness and organization in your work environments. It makes a world of difference.

Great video! About the battery life. Lithium Ion batteries are rated for 300-500 cycles. BattleBorn and others are typically Lithium Iron Phosphate, which are rated for 3,000 - 5,000 cycles. Plus Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries don’t pose the fire risk that Lithium ion batteries have.

I got confused. The scientific conversion is 1 hp = 0.736 kW. Are there any practical factors that decide why it is sufficient to assume 1 hp -> 0.25 kW (that is what you say) to determine the power you need for an electrical motor in a boat? OK, you partly answer this question in your video, but I understand from you it may better divide by a factor of 2, so 1 hp -> 0.5 kW, to be on the safe side.

Yup! i'm all electric also, and have a lifepo4 100aH 12v buffer battery set at 13.2V (or roughly 70%) from the dc to dc converters, which is perfect for longevity, and, if my 48v house bank goes down i have 70aH @ 12v of battery time to figure my shit out. Works great, and is also helpful for those higher 12v loads (electric winch ect). Also, You're one of a select few that have consistently held my interest from the beginning. Love your works guys.

@23:30, where? Only mentioned brand name affiliated with, no alternatives. I got 10kWh hybrid inverter, 5kWh battery "with fire suppression", 3.5k, less than 1/4 what blue & born cost, without a youtube affiliation. Going full elec = no longer constrained by a marine engine, can go domestic/commercial products, that is "mostly" regulated. People who buy boat stuff at boat mark-up prices, are very naïve, lazy. or wealthy.

Dont forget to conect Alice to the System would be funny like Alice Full Power please Or Alice please Make 50% water 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

If you use a 48 VDC system to drive the motor, windlass and other major loads that you can buy in 48 VDC (AC or reefer?), you can use a DC to DC like you have been doing and float a 100 amp or 200 amp Lithium battery on the 12 VDC side to run the small loads so that you can run navigation, radio and other loads if the 48 VDC system goes down. That will keep you safe. If that 12 VDC battery is the same as the ones in the 48 VDC system, if a battery goes bad you have a spare you could swap in. Can you build the 48 Volt side so that if the battery goes down the Solar, and regen will still charge the 12 Volt side through the converter? Could you build the 48 Volt side with a combiner switch (off, port, stbd, both) where you are normally in both? You can do all of that. How expensive are you willing to go? Do you want that much complication?

why would the "house" bank need to be lead/acid technology, like AGM? It seems like the many benefits of LFP batteries would be better for the house bank, too.

Most LiFePO4 batteries, which are the recommended chemistry for boats, are rated for 3-5k cycles depending on quality

My answer is a 168F air cooled Chinese diesel. Electric is way too heavy and expensive. Salt water cooled is unreliable and messy. My emphasis is on very low consumption highway diesel for charging the house battery and small output for the propeller. Dry heat is a welcome by product. Electric installations have tiny range and exorbitant costs. Air cooled diesels are very cheap, come in many sizes, and are readily replaced. Very low fuel consumption means buy your reliable clean highway diesel and avoid foul foreign fuel. A sailboat is going to ride much lighter and better minus a few hundred pounds. Keep your one lead battery and a few solar panels. Tips: Mount your diesel on a heavy aluminum plate. Use a large 7 inch pulley for the alternator. Avoid the lowest idle speeds and RPM's over 2000 turns. Oil consumption will be very high during the first break in hours.

I see the benefit of a 48V big battery and a 12V small battery, too. And I would put all room lights on it, even use 12V-chargers for phones, laptops and so on. And only put the inverter on if you have big AC loads like coocking, power tools or washing machine (there are little ones for campers). The DC-DC-converter doesn't need to be big, and you can use two in parallel as backup. That way, you have so little engery loss, that a smaller battery will provide you longer. And at a 1C rate, for a 8 kW motor, you should at least have 8 kWh battery. And if you have only little losses, maybe this is even enough. The channel "Everlanders" has done a similar project on their overlander: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-UAZGX379dmc.htmlsi=Sotc8cFwoJXDd7Bl

Dendrite growth will kill your LiFePO4 before capacity loss if you charge to a high end Voltage. I only charge to 3.45V/cell, I know people stop charging at even lower end Voltages. Once you hit the knee, not many more amps go in as you push for a higher end Voltage. Trying to push the last few amps in at the top end of charging by pushing higher end Voltage is not battery healthy. I still see battery sellers saying to charge to 3.65V/cell. Great from a business perspective, not good for battery longevity.

48v DC isnt a dangerous current, itsnot going to electrocute you if you touch it....? Like at what amperage? High, low? Like if you cant release your grip / contact ? I dont think so....

It would be difficult for me to put that much electrical power in a saltwater environment. An electrical fire would be nearly impossible to put out in time to save your boat.

I think ABYC standards for electric propulsion require a separate battery bank for house and propulsion systems.

I am running both 48V and 12V; would highly recommend, if you want to know more and how to couple the two systems together send me a PM. Best of luck with your renovations!

1 horsepower is equal to 746 watts or 0.746 Kilowatt. Electric motors develop their turning-force "Torque" at low speed. so you can easily increase your propeller size by an 1-inch or 2. The propeller pitch angle can also be altered to apply more relative thrust per revolution. Electric motors definitely need cooling so go for liquid flow cooling model, either recycle oil as the cooling fluid with fully enclosed system or ensure you have a very good quality seawater cycling system " stainless steel tubing etc. and install a water intrusion detection system in case it leaks

Comments from the naval architect's peanut gallery: (1) Your watertight bulkhead has to be higher than the potential damaged waterline, not the intact waterline, in order to protect you from progressive flooding (a.k.a. the Titanic effect.) (2) Variable loads like the water tanks are best located near the center of buoyancy to reduce trim changes with load variation. Consider as part of your arrangement plan at least a ROM weight study to determine the impact of major weight component changes.

Heads up, you might want to put a disclaimer on your own ad. You showed the Disney+ service and could thereby be perceived to encourage violating the terms of conditions of the service. Disney+ doesn’t allow the use of VPN (at least not for the customers in the European market)

What about a redundant setup? Two fully functioning battery systems with switchover.

Please don't put a 12V AGM or something like that in the house power circuit. Lead Acid batteries are pretty unreliable and short lived unless you have the float voltage set exactly and that is rarely achieved. Most times the AGM being faulty will be the problem with your house cct or, if when it is relied on, it will last five minutes and quit. You would be better with another LIPO4 battery with monitoring charged by a 48V to 12V DC-DC charger if there is such a thing. At least then you will be able to check the state of charge of the house battery at all times with the same monitoring system as the rest of the system. Better just to have the 48V battery in seperate banks of 4 X 12V batteries that can be switched out. It is very rare for all 12 batteries to be all faulty or low charge. In a 48V series string it only takes one to take down the whole string then the rest of the bank is trying to charge the string that is down. Being able to switch out the faulty string, if that is the problem, would allow you to at least restore some power for the engine and electronics and get you out of trouble. BTW the flickering of lights can be probably solved by a couple of capacitors over the 12V runs.

Love you guys this episode has a ton of knowledge in just a short period of time thank you to sharing your experience about batteries and electric motors it was awesome to learn from you guys.

7:00 math is clear on this topic, if a sailboat needs 10kWh to propel itself to 6kts and if generates 500Wh on regen at that speed it will travel like being propelled by 10kWh which in this case is 5% of powerloss - which means nothing if wind is energy source. You will get more energy loss from dragging a fixed prop than regen...

Watching the cockpit locker portion, all I could think was “these funny fools deserve each other” and “damn this is such a fab couple”

Two comments. First of all, it's virtual private network not personal Second, the padlock on your browser does not indicate a secure session. It means that there is a certificate on the session. You still don't know who owns the session or the certificate.. Also, Chrome has now getting rid of the padlock and of another symbol because the padlock was confusing people that the session was secure

Awesome info and so entertaining. Kika miming “chalk me up” as she climbed out of the cabin was a classic bit and had me in stitches. Xoxo and best success going forward.

Holy shit i really think u should've bought a new boat u demo'd ur boat to nothing and when u build it back up ur still in the same OLD boat i jus dont see the point

Another fantastic episode! Thanks for all the detailed explanations! I was wracking my memory, thinking there was another efficient engine option for sailing that uses regen but also has many other options. I have watched every episode of Sailing Uma and I admire and love you both, I have also followed Leo Sampson as he has "rebuilt" Tally Ho completely. As he was deciding on what engine to install, I think his selection was brilliant. His parallel hybrid system (as you mentioned hybrid systems) will use diesel, and/or electric, and will take advantage of regen. If you are curious you can jump to about 29 minutes in with this episode: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-xohxmwPfctg.html He is not yet sailing it, so we will find out later how it meets or exceeds expectations. Keep up the amazing work!

The new thing in batteries is Lithium Iron. It’s heavier than lithium ion, and doesnt have the same discharge rate, however they are completely happy being both completely full as well as completely empty. The really big benefit is that they aren’t flammable. Just bought you folks should know. Also on the solar panels: look into bi-facial panels. Very cool and can produce up to 70% of the rated output on the back of the panel. They have a clear back sheet so they let some light through.

On going electric, I haven't really done a deep dive into it. But on the practical side, I'm not so sure how they actually compare to diesel when it comes to cost/utility/..? Yeah the upfront vs slow trickle was talked about. as well as the limited lifespan, but the electric motor will draw a lot more power on top of what you're currently using, which also impacts the battery lifespan. like, I might be missing some updates on them and current day electrical sailboat motors might be a lot less greedy, but in general electrical motors do use a ton of power, limiting the lifespan of the charge, increasing wear on the batteries and needing a lot more solar/wind to refill them. so a standard motorboat would be ridiculously handicapped with electrical as compared to diesel. meaning that a sailboat for people that barely use their engines is basically the only situation I'd see the benefits of going full electric (basically, you barely use the motors so you change fuel tank to batteries and have tons of extra electricity for the 'house part' of the boat, without really sacrificing anything). and another important aspect IMO is troubleshooting/repair, unless you're an electrical engineer it'll be an issue to try and fix an electric motor. so you either need a spare motor and a way to exchange them. or need outside help and buy a new motor/send it in for repairs which takes time and costs more than self-repair. whereas basic mechanic and maintenance skills tend to be enough to fix most small issues on a diesel engine. (like, the entry point for self repair/maintenance seems a lot higher for electrical engines) Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to bash on electrical motors, like I think it's a good idea in general. I'm just not sure whether we actually reached a point where they provide enough benefits to replace diesel engines. And I'm just trying to gather extra info on their current viability :P

Reduction of speed while "turning on Regen" is moot if the prop isn't a feathering prop. If it is, than yes, you should be experiencing roughly 20% increase in speed if it's "off". Otherwise it's still open in the water causing drag, regen or not.

Could be interesting to mention LiFePO4 vs e-car Li-ion: no risk of fire, much longer cycle number!

Sounds like you are sponsored by Oceanvolt. If you want to generate electricity on a sailboat, like I do, the best solution is to have a bit solar panel and a bit from using the electric motor as a generator and then a saildrive outboarder which you can run on petrol to top up your batteries if needed. Why? Redundancy. With a sailboat that has electric inboard motor and saildrive outboard you have three ways to drive your boat so two of them can fail without any reason for panic. I've had motors failing and sails breaking because I use an old boat so for me redundancy has become an important issue. On my old Albin Vega I use a Golder Motors 3 kW inboard and then the outboard just in case and it feels like the best solution for me.

Id love to put an electric engine in my steel boat. However, it scares me to have that level electricity on a steel boat. I know, it's dumb. After all, steel built submarines have electric motors. It comes down to the cost of isolating the system from the hull. Diesel is not difficult. Sure, overhauling a motor after 5000 hours is costly, but batteries make that cost look tame. If I was interested about living on a boat, for sure, it's electric, not diesel.

lol i did that 15 years ago , had projector ontop the golf cart along with a laptop windows pc w/ movies on it, and displayed on my neighbors camper side with no windows.. worked great solid white camper he had 5th wheel like mine , im going to boat not van. now.. i did that already wasnt that fun for me.. enjoy and stay safe out there....

Another RU-vid channel, Emily and Clarks Adventure, has some really good videos about having lead and lithium. Clark is an electrical engineer and created a bank management system that lets you safely combine lead and lithium. I like that he fully explains what it does and how it works, totally upfront and no BS. He doesn't make unsupported claims and really just explains what situations it is good for and doesn't give any hard sell. The exact situation you ran in to is one of the main reasons for it. Also if you do have a diesel engine with high output alternator or a gen set and you are charging your lithium and suddenly the BMS turns off the batteries you can blow out the diodes in your alternator. Also lately he's been disassembling cheap LiFePo4 and testing them and rating them.

Look at that..... !!! I don't think there is another boat even under 100 feet that has one. They haven't even started rebuilding yet and they already have a climbing wall installed @16:24

Will you reuse much of the wire you have removed or not? I imagine much of the wire might not match your color coding plans and the new requirements for distance and load, but I guess I am wondering if much of that old wire should be installed and used for another 30+ years if it does otherwise fit your plans.

Are you preparing for technology that you can't foresee...that hasn't been invented?

745.7 watts per horse power 32 hp x 745.7 =23.862 kilo-watts

I particularly like the way your videos are so professionally done. You could could teach video/film editing in Hollywood.

Love the screen concept as I have just used a 7 by 5 metre white tarpaulin as a temporary screen, for a 1915 vintage cinema that we are re-opening after a 40 year halt in operations, as we are on a tight budget until we can raise the necessary amount to get an expensive proper screen. We have already been able to source a second hand projector and have had a surround sound system donated, so all up we have spent less than $1000 so far. I have loved watching your videos for the past few years and look forward to many more.

Running wire in conduit is awesome! I always leave a string in each conduit in the event you need to run the odd wire in the future. Yeah yeah; you probably already know that LOL !

So i liveaboard a Pearson 40 and other then a flush deck our boats are very similar. When it comes time im really thinking about electric.