Living on an ALL ELECTRIC sailboat for 3 years | Beau and Brandy Sailing 

Hey ALL! Thanks so much for watching! We hope this was informative for you, we put some links in the description of the video of the things we covered. If you have questions, drop them here or tune into the live next Sunday (link is in the description too) Also, be sure to subscribe and hit the bell for notifications!! xoxo, B+B

Use black wire ties; white nylon breaks down in UV, quickly! As you know...

When I build our own Sea Clipper 41 ft trimaran, I'm planning to have a very large hard dodger to mount many hard solar panels, and also collect rain water.

you should check out sail life, he just installed 4 of the big solar panels, using a slide out for two of them. when they go sailing two would slide underneath the middle two

As a Pearson 35 owner (1977) going through an electric conversion, this video was PERFECT. I want to thank you for the frank assessment of what you don't like and what you would change. 90% of my approach has been validated, and you've caused me to rethink the other 10%. Beau, you might want to look at the Electric Yacht EQ 20. It is two 10kw motors on the shaft. That gives redundancy should one fail, plenty extra power that you say you wanted, and two motors working at less power do not generate nearly as much heat on the motor (though the total BTU is the same, it is over a larger area - two motors - so the motors aren't stressed). You keep the simplicity of air cooled. There are other things I'm doing differently, but 'nuff said. This video was GREAT... perfect for me.

The hardtop is a good idea for more solar, but you could also mount panels along the side rails....(See "Sophisticated Lady"- Capt. Rick Moore.)

This was one of the most informative videos about EV sailboats I've ever seen posted! Not for general concept but for the real world! Excellent content.

I really like your articulated mounts. For more solar in morning & night, but also for shade on deck if you want at those times too.. Way bigger panels than I thought !! I'm always opposite of "the crowd" .. lol

I woke up in a cold sweat screaming worrying about your next video, as they usually come out on sundays ! I love this show !

Hi guys!! Thanks for the shout out. Glad everything is holding up well for you. And congrats on 40k!!

I had no idea your set up was so capable. I assumed from your low key delivery that your power system was barely adequate but this video really shows that you have a very high quality system! Impressive. Cheers from Juneau Alaska, Greg Chaney

One of the best sailing videos ever. Human, humble, raw, and honest. Bravo! And yeah, I want that waffle maker.

You really have impressed me, with how you explain the setup, put solar on a cabin (in ohio) and to tackle a boat that's next level

You guys are amazing, great informative video!

Y’all are awesome! Love ur channel!!! Thanks for sharing!

Awesome video and great information, Thanks a million Y'all. Be safe out there.

very Interesting guys. certainly works for you, and , no fuel required. Big Money Saver. Thanks Beau and Brandy, the ECO Friendly sailors.

NIce presentation!! You guys are easy to listen to and always informative.

Thanks for the great closed captions!

Amazing video guys!!

Fantastic job! Outstanding info.

Wow guys! Way bigger, & impressive system than I thought! I was way off on my guessing, as usual...lol But I also forgot all about your electric motor. Your "home brewed" battery system is really impressive. Probably exactly what I would have wanted to do back a few years ago instead of the sinopolys or prismatics. On a boat or in a house, with a goat, or with a mouse. (Sorry, couldn't stop myself) Great system for that time with what was available at the price points back then. Seriously impressive that you got deep enough into battery systems with the chemistries, the BMSs, all the knowledge you need to set stuff up right so you don't deplete the lifetimes, etc with everything else you had going on at the time & all the other things you must have been learning ( not including the sailing lol). True adventurous hearts there!! 👍

Great Video, thank you for sharing your life on the water! Love ya both like a Brother and Sister! Stay safe!

Terrific video guys, I was waiting on something like this from you, and the outtakes were very funny ... Stay Safe & Fair Winds !!

Very useful, thanks a lot!

I love the new shirts. I missed you guys. Loved the bloops!! Can't wait to see you again sunday. Much ❤ too you both. ❤

Great information we've been clamoring to know. I love your approach to energy and the food looked delicious! Hope you guys are well, see you next Sunday live.

Quite Impressive! So resourceful on the solar and electric fit. Well done.

Great job!

Love these videos! They are so amazing. Stay safe everyone 💕💕

Great information! Including the chaffle recipe. Way cool, the time marks!!!

This episode was a good one guys. Well done. “You want It?”…..LOL……yum yum, that breakfast sandwich looked delicious. Your story is a great success story and how to be modest and grateful for the life you’ve created aboard your small yacht. Keep safe this season.

Great episode an I so love you guys so much!! Cuz I learn so much an love to see what beautiful place your going an just enjoy you guys so very much ✌🏻💗😊❣️

Thank you for doing this, you guys!!

very great video, thanks a lot for sharing.

appreciate the cons as well as the pros on the electric setup. keep it up and safe travels!

Love your show. Great to see the p35 and thank you for all your experience

The electric boat concept is a very cool idea that is finally coming of age. One thing that you may want to look at is a way to easily electrically isolate your inverter. I used two battery switches for the input power on mine. I did not do this until having to replace the second one due to nearby lightning strikes. Neither actually hit the boat but both took out the controller cards in the inverters. I am in Florida which has more than it's fair share of lightning storms but I now isolate everything possible. Thanks for taking us along with you and showing us how you do things. It is a great resource.

Great video on building an electric sailboat on a budget! Awesome keto waffles.

Thank you very good information video, 100% for having electric motor and induction stove! Solar way to go, looking forward to your future electric upgrades.

Nice job of really putting it all together for those of us in the process of building our own systems. I have a small sailboat I built that only has an electric trolling motor for getting in and out of ports. Indeed it does force you to become a better sailor. Often I find myself stubbornly resisting the urge to use it as though my sailing skills might be questioned...keep up the great work.

That breakfast looks amazing! Gonna have to try that.

Super informative video but I must say.....those chaffles! 🤩 Can't wait to try them! Much love you two!

Go with propane easy to get and safe to use. Heating for cooking uses a lot of power.

Impressive!! Electric motor is the way to go. Your friends on Una, have managed to cross the Atlantic and even sailed to Norway with shorter daylight hours and rough seas using only sail and electric motor. I am convinced it can be done. I think as solar power with regeneration on the motor you can achieve this. Great video guys Love your channel. Stay safe and looking forward to seeing you soon 👍👍👍

I've been waiting for this video for awhile and I was so excited to watch it :) And the new "merch"...oh yeah I had to buy that "Saoirse Blueprint" Tee since it looks just like the Brass Ring....lol.

Just purchased a tank top from ya. Truly love you guys big hugs

🤯but thx for all that helpful info. U guys rock!!!

There seems to be changes as one tries new things. Live and learn right? Stay well and happy thank you for the video. ⛵

Thanks for sharing the installation. I would use flexible mono crystalline panels. They weigh 1/4 of solid panels and also have convex lenses which gather the sunlight 120 degrees. Meaning you don't need to tilt the panels to chase the sun, allowing small wind turbine installation.

The zoom you heard was a lot of what you said going over my head 😳. Thanks guys.

Love your new logo and merchandise! Helpful information, too. Thank you for sharing. I am not an English teacher, but in your Sailing definition tee... isn't sailing a verb? You've got noun on your tee. Love you guys!!

Very interesting thanks guys

Cool beans... I too use Midnight & Magnum equipment. Now I was running an off grid ranch in Northern California (Mendocino) and liked that I could just jump up to Seattle whenever needed, but for you guys, thats a bit of a haul... only needed to once to rebuild the inverter.. I also had them design a complete large J-Box that "ALL" circuits ran into and were fused. Not sure what your doing as I didn't see one in your system. Trust me, its a god send. I love that at anytime I can just refer all situations through that box. My controller fits right on the door. Everything is positive side fused its so clean and neat. They worked with me my desires and space. My batteries are AGM. and weight a ton as that was not an issue. But I loved them. This was before lithium research was that big. I also ran 10 panels... You can read your manual to get your vampire draw, but I never turned my stuff off. The recvory was less an hour the next day, I was fine. The inverter goes into sleep mode anyway. Good job not going below the 70% on the batteries...

Just got to see your channel and I’ll love it

Great videos

That is a great video. I’m definite getting a small waffle maker.

Electric drive 🙄, let's get down to brass tacks! Where do you stow all the extension cord? Seriously, a great video and definitely worth waiting for. I would appreciate a little more information on how you currently monitor your power collection and usage. Also, why did you choose the brands of charge controller and inverter? I haven't seen them before on boats or land. Keep up the great videos and above all STAY SAFE! ⛵❤️😷

Enjoyed the video. Great hearing your thoughts after 3 years. Haven't pulled the trigger on electric & solar. I did salvage a nice big fiberglass hard top. Maybe it would hold enough solar to power AC.😁 As for my 36' Westerly, I'm wondering if the 6 ft draft of my would be a pain with all the shallows in the Caribbean... Running aground is not fun!

Just stocked up on a couple shirts, mug & sticker. Will get the architect shirt too when navy is back in stock for XL.

Great ideas.......

Watched your video and it made me thick of our own off grid system. We store most of our energy not in batteries, although we do have them, but in food storage. One large freezer, one small and a large refrigerator. Granted we are not on a sailboat yet. We have 1860 watts of solar, 24 volt system thru a Flexmax 80 to a Samlex 4000 watt inverter. The most we ever produced is 6kwh. Most of the time we produce 3kwh. Our well has a separate system.

You can also connect a power switch remotely inline with the inverter.

Very informative 👍

Hi Guys, Enjoyed the video, really informative. Fascinated by your use of an electric stove and the "instapot". I am off to research that now. You do seem to have a never ending battle with corrion. which must be a pain in the ***.

You guys are pretty amazing.

congratulations on your 40k subscribers :) well deserved :)

My collection started with 75 volt panel so I can't wire them in series. I opted not to ever try wind gen after hearing the quiet one OMG.... I have been in more quite fights. I am currently looking in salvage yards for a chevy volt also. Seems most batteries are damaged missing or sold. So with those 3 search problem my start station is temporary lead. I went I the ARMY National Guard at 17 years old work heavy equipment since 18 and drove 18 wheelers and heavy haul till 2016. I hate the smell of diesel smoke, fuel, and the price. Love you guys more for this video. Fat Coffee in the morning for sure it is 1:30 am now. Couldn't sleep.

Very interesting.

Love the cute ending of the vid.

I had a similar set up for the solars on my 1976 31ft Bostrum ,for 7 years with no problems in any weather conditions. I never had to take the panels down ,even in gale force winds they d stay in place.While on anchor they d function a bit like a small stay sail,keeping the boat heading in the wind. To decide on the design i was walking around marinas for ideas,and talked to a lot of liveaboards. The construction I made in Almerimar marina's workshop ,where you could work on their tools for a small fee.Total cost (without the panels) 50 euros.(the pipes i got from the waste basket of the workshop. I was also using bangies to assist the panel stability in high winds. Generator is a must have ,especially if you need to run power tools. Of course there was a big difference in the computers of my time as far as power consumption is concerned. Back then i had a sony vaio that consumed a lot of electricity,and for navigation i had a HP workbook from the 90s ,running CMap .:):) With my old Yanmar 12 hp engine i couldnt charge the batteries even if i wanted as it had an old alternator that barely charged the batteries. I wish i could sail today ,with all the technological advances it would have been an easier ride. But it would also mean that i d have to sail in todays world,a smaller,more closed,more fearful,more scary more dangerous world. The borders between countries have become harder to pass ,even with a boat. Also nationalism /racism has shown its ugly head in places that few years ago you wouldnt even dream of hearing something abussive against a foreigner/visitor Back in 2000 i sailed from UK to Mallorca in 7 years,stopping in over than 200 marinas along the European atlantic coast and the Mediterranean coast . My sole advice is this: Sail while you are young,dont wait till you "make it" in order to make your dream reality. I started sailing at 40 years old,and i think i was at the limit. 10 years later it all became harder,so i sold the boat and got on land. Today at 60 years old I have good (and bad) memories that i wouldnt have otherwise ,i ve lived things situations and met people i didnt even dream about ,poor,rich,good,bad,welcoming,haters,people in need,people who offered help,and visited places that most people havent even heard about. I was the 1st Greek sailor to single handedly sail from UK to the Med, the 1st skipper to enter some of the ports i did, the 1st greek who called for help outside Cabo Montego and got saved by the maritime salvamento of portugal (for free i might add),the 1st Greek sailor in the last 1000 years to enter the cala de los Griegos ,Mahon in Menorca .(and probably lots more 1st places for entering Rio Guadiana and sailing 30 miles inland,etc) My only regret is that i didnt have the tools to record these 14 years i was a liveaboard. Apart from a few photos ,i dont have much to show. You see cameras/mobiles back then were over my budget (of 600 euros per month for all expenses,boat maintenance included).... :)

Nice. I'm thinking visit a car scrap yard and get some old tail gate gas struts. Use them to support the panels. Also, maybe a sailing dinghy sized line clutch/holder could replace those hose clamps.

If you can get into to each cell, you can heat up distilled water and baking soda and put in each low cells. I do this with my deep cycle battery and trickle charge for about 12 hours and Wala a new battery !

This is not a criticism only an observation based on 30 years of cruising about the planet. Being an engineer with a sailing background I'm always looking for improved systems at sea. Going back over our logbook, the most anchoring in one year was 90 times . Our average is under 40, if you use two litres of fuel every time you anchor, 2 x 40 = 80 liters x10 years = 800 litres x $2 per litre = $1600 dollars in 10 years. Based on the maintenance cost of a diesel engine being equal to electric motor and battery replacement. Electric drives certainly give cruisers a feel good thing as they move about the planet. Our cruising background has been in the more remote areas around the world hence a lot more anchoring. Great video. ⛵🌍🤔 Phil and Lynda

I purchased some stainless steel zip ties awhile back for use with my mast. That's what you need for the solar panels instead of the regular zip ties that you said won't last got them from Amazon on line for $12-$13 a package or for $35.00 you can get a tool to use with them plus 100 pcs of stainless zip ties.

Brandy, I was listening without watching while making lunch and noticed your voice sounds very similar to Nikki from Gone with the Wynns. Also enjoyed your cross over stuff with One Life. Have fun guys.

Braided nylon lines stretch. Use a different line for tying down the solar panels

Have a look at the rear shade solar-power system on the 30 foot boat belonging to the couple on "Free Range Sailing" It is extremely strong and laterally adjustable, and the next vessel I have I will build a system similar to this. My last vessel I had the solar panels drop into angle-aluminium frames bolted to the coach house roof. I would never do that again--the sails shaded them some of the time. The firther aft they are the better--and the more shelter one has the better as far as I am concerned.

Food for thought Look into buying used medical batterys There about a third of the price and There lithium Great Show Denny from Minnesota

I didn't know that you guys were totally solar powered. That's cool. But I want to thank you very much because you showed me something that I never thought of. And that is you used brackets to hold together your solar arch. I never noticed it from your videos. I will be doing the exact same thing on my boat when I get it. So thank you very much. Oh I was wondering have you ever heard of, " pour mans fiberglass?" Instead of using 1700 fiberglass they use like old bed sheets. I know it sounds funny but it works and it will save you lots of money on your glassing because you can get it at any yard sale or goodwill store or Salvation Army store. Plus you paint it when you are done so you won't see the hellow kitty or Spiderman print on the sheets. I know it sounds funny but I seen a show on TV about this guy that makes customized speaker boxes and he used colored velvet as his 1700 fiberglass. Plus he didn't have to paint the boxes because of the colored velvet. Okay thank you again for the idea about the brackets. I'm not a welder and those arches are very expensive to have custom made. See you next week.

Wow, you guys have worked so hard to get where you are! Did you know how to do all these electrical/wiring and engineering jobs before you tackled them? It seems overwhelming for someone like me, with no experience, to tackle the wiring and solar set up. Awesome video, AS ALWAYS!

I would put the batteries in an aluminum battery box (1/8 inch sheet) or maybe 2 mm steel well treated with POR15 rust preventative paint. Li batteries, even LiFePO4 are extremely flammable, and if something goes wrong with your BMS sealed metal boxes and a Li battery rated fire extinguisher could mean the difference between your boat burning up or not. The Li fire extinguishers are expensive, but so is your boat. It is worth the insurance.

Maybe add layered slide out or fold out panels where as when in calm or semi calm conditions these can be folded or slide out to double or triple the power output. These maybe could be incorporated or designed into being part of a hard top and then being used more of the time .

First - thank you guys for great videos. Now; about sealing the batteries in a box, Have you checked the heat produced by the batteries? Without ventilation would the batteries not overheat? Take care and God bless and keep you safe.

The dude looked like a bald matt damon in this vid. Great content. Thanks for sharing

You mentioned wishing you had a bigger motor. In the specs for the motor you mentioned it is a 48-96V motor and you are running it at 48V. If you got a more powerful motor controller/inverter and ran it at 96V you could double your mhp. Your 10 KW rating is at 208 amps (208.33... actually) and motenergy specs say the motor can handle 150 amps continuous power, so your safe continuous rating is maybe only 7.2 KW. Anyway, if you upsize the battery pack and controller/inverter to give the motor 96V you will double your power. 20 KW @ 208 amps, or 14.5 KW @ the motenergy stated continuous rating. Anyway, you can get 50%-100% more power without changing the motor. Just need higher voltage battery pack and probably a new motor controller/inverter. You should be able to get this kind of low voltage, low amperage controller for less than $1500. If you don't mind buying from a Chinese company Kelly Motor Controls has them for around $700 USD.

I would try to spray on Liquid tape from Plastidip or something similar on the encoder board. Its PU based and leaves a very stretchy waterprof film over the entire board. It never cracks so it doesnt trap moisture. Its also possible to peel off withing a few years for solder repair. I spray that on to protect my pcb's in salty or wet enviroments. I just inspected my amlifier wich is a 10cmx10cm open pcb in an open sailboat. After 1 year it still looked like new because of the polyurethane film. PU is extremely tough!

Love this one! Don't hurt me if I copy a few things, okay? I'm recovering from a dislocated shoulder and subsequent surgery and physical therapy - ouch - but my plans are the same... see you out there soon (but you'll most likely be in the Pacific by the time I start off)...

You might want to experiment with zinc plates on your metal areas which are getting hit by salt corrosion. You might find that even through this is open air - zinc will take the hit first -- and spare other surfaces from some corrosion. Also -- try to tie grounding between all your metal surfaces too. AND perhaps pull all those grounds down to the bottom of the boat and have your zinc plates outside in the water too if you haven't done that yet. It is easy to over-look grounding. You will get hit with corrosion between dis-similar metals. Check out that subject on the web too.

Different Video, Very cool

You'd do it all over again except maybe the "small" water leak! Nice video

I'm going to have to vote for the old mechanics illustrated bicycle generator

That's a really nice solar system. Not sure what all else you could do.

Love this episode. I bought a 1971 Pearson 35 last November and am refitting as we speak; been watching you guys for over a year and only just realized a few weeks ago that Saoirse is a 1971 Pearson 35 too! LOL Want more serendipity? My vessel is currently parked at Riverside Marina in Fort Pierce, FL! She had the Yanmar 30 diesel, but it was sold as non-functional and I am looking to replace with the Thunderstruck 18kw, wired at 48v (so 12kw actual). I'm thinking I can run the glycol coolant through the batteries and the motor into a heat exchanger...possibly the one from the Yanmar 30...I got a decent price on some used EV batteries so I've been rewatching the episode where Beau installs Saoirse's battery bank for ideas about configuration. I am super interested in what you guys are thinking for a hardtop bimini constructed from panels, having basically had the same idea. Will you start from scratch or is it feasible to bolster your current bimini? Would love to hear what you think along those lines since you guys have a practical understanding of the boom movement and other considerations. Thanks for all you guys do!

Just wanting to say hi glad your doing good

Hello from Siesta Key Florida

if you guys did a mini refit you would get double the subscribers. data shows that on other channels. great stuff guys

Building that extra steel equipment with Stainless would have been pricey but it would last. Its pricey because stainless is so hard, and that makes it hard to drill. Its also a little hard to cut although not nearly as hard as it is to drill. I'd say to those who have working or easily fixed up (top and valve work) engines , use them till they are gone. Then, it sounds like electric would be the way to go because your not tied to getting diesel everywhere and can be self sustaining for longer periods. It would have been good for those who were told to quarantine on remote islands in the pacific, as long as they had extra parts for things like water makers ect.

Hugs thanks for sharing love you guys .

If you're inverter ever goes poof, look at Genetry solar. A startup company but the 6kw unit is a beast. Would also charge your battery bank from shore power. It's what I put in the bus.