HYBRID Power on a Sailboat – Conferință video STARLINK offshore!

41 thoughts on “HYBRID Power on a Sailboat – Conferință video STARLINK offshore!”

1. Paul & Sheryl: Hands down, that was the most helpful video I’ve ever seen on parallel and serial hybrid setups! Also, good to see a glimpse of your early days. Thanks so much for the info.

2. Please take a look at the SOK Battery 100Ah 48V Server Rack Battery SK48V100 This type of battery works much better for your new boat costs a lot less at $1,649.99 it takes up a lot less space so that you can both afford and have the space for a large r battery bank. These are sold in Europe this video shows you how well build and assembled they are.
   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrPED4uPsFw

3. Nice overview and experience sharing, thanks! We are also building a 48ft aluminum boat (seems that we are almost on the same building step) with a an arctic and later a Patagonian program. We evaluated the hybrid option(s) but one of our key UR was to keep our systems simple (as much as possible) as well as reliable and easy to maintain in remote places, so we went with diesel engine only from a prop standpoint.

4. I was supprised the question of having a generator + electric motor didnt come up more. For myself I found it more efficient to have the serial hybrid, so then you down need to have diesel motor + generator. Generator are way less complex than a traditionnal motor connected to a shaft, and can be usefull for many usage,, like hybrid water heating as well

   And the most important for me i think is the possibility to have hydrogenerator integrated in the electric motor system. Sailing UMA did a great video on the Salona Yachts system (Step 249)

5. I don't own a boat. I was not an electrical engineer at SpaceX, but….. Before going the route Mr. Schilling recommends consider that he wants his boat to be electric, almost to a fault. He pushes it because of his background. A few things he said bother me, though. At 7:15 he refers to an "electric engine". Of course, there is no such thing. Also, being objective, one has to admit that no machine or transfer of energy is 100% efficient. You always lose something. Using a diesel engine to turn an electric generator (or alternator) to charge a battery that then powers an electric motor cannot be as efficient as having the engine just turn the propeller shaft. He never discuses efficiency.
   His bias toward going electric is also shown in his desire to heat and cool and cook with electricity. He admits (if you listen closely) that he just wants to be able to say he is all electric.
   Please get more opinions.

6. for hot water their exists a hybrid panel which would heat up your water rather quickly.

7. This was a waste of time 👎🏽

8. Chat to Uma about regen and props. Hybrid seems the current way to go. Electric for 90% of the time, regen when sailing and then diesel in a pinch. Ref hot water – talk to Hone. They do combined solar and electric panels. No idea if it would work on a boat. One of the mega yachts uses a heat pump for hot water I believe.

9. Hi, thanks for very entertaining and informative video. I thought a lot about the difference between the parallell/serial installment. A diesel(or petrol gas, whatever) motor installed in the context of driving a generator is normally far less used in different returns per minute, different loads and challenges – the environment gets much more controlled and technically safe for the engine. That factor and the factor that besides driving the drivetrain of the boat you have the wish to have a generator might point in the direction of the serial installment…. thanks again for all your nice shows…

10. Awesome video 👌👍👏 full of info and tech advice Thank you for sharing with us 👌👍👏and the very BEST of LUCK with the build🤞🤞🤞✌❤🍀

11. I was interested to see how MJ Sailing decided to tackle the hybrid propulsion question in the new catamaran they are building. With two hulls, they plan to use a parallel hybrid drive in the port hull and a direct electric drive in the starboard (owner's) hull. That lets them put the battery bank in the starboard hull to counterbalance the weight of the diesel. Plus it means that the propulsion under the owner's stateroom will be quiet. One mode is to cruise with the port diesel directly driving the prop AND spinning the port motor to generate electricity to drive the starboard motor. Everything is 48 volt, so there are no losses from DC/DC conversion.

12. We went to electric cooking , induction cook tops and a very well insulated electric oven . We heat our water with a webasto 2010 diesel hydronic heater through a calorifier , its 45000 btu and we use it to heat the entire boat with it as well.

13. Thank you for all the amazing videos wishing you all the best with the new boat.

14. I would call it "waste energy" that a boat uses to heat water from the diesel engine.

15. Very exciting to be at the forefront of what is currently possible. If this was my installation, I'd want to downsize the diesel engine/fuel tank as much as possible and increase the battery/solar accordingly. Are there electronic controls available to get electric assistance to the prop when it's being powered by diesel, for example for occasional added performance (so full power is e.g 60/40 diesel/elec split), or must they be run independently?
    Also, are you making any sacrifices to levels of electrical equipment so that your battery/solar combo has the best chance of covering your domestic needs? Interested to know what your philosophy is for 'going green'.
    The boat's looking terrific, by the way!

16. I will stick with diesel ,doing my part to push back against the green scam. Besides the cost its not my idea green with all that lithium. I will also stick with lead acid to support local.

17. Hi,
    Hybrid is not something new. Tugboats and trains use it for a long time. Nowadays we have hybrid cars and they are very different. Now both, electric and mechanical work together. There are schemes for boats that do the same, very unlike the shown in this video.

18. Seams the boat industry is a little conservative yet regarding serial hybrid systems, but i am quite certain that's were sailboats are going to end in a while.
    A serial hybrid has several advantages in that the components are smaller and easyer to install, you have more options on where to install items like the generator, you can use a smaller generator, electrcal generating mode when sailing, smaller footprint of the motor means you can install it under the floor and so forth.
    The downside is that you probably nead a higher voltage motor to get sufficient power for a 49 feet boat, there are more components in the system that can fail, danger of electrical corrotion, aging in time for power electronics that probably will mean replacement of a costly system earlyer than a typical diesel engine. At this point in time life expectansy of power electronics is aproximatly 15 years. For a modern diesel engine with common rail it's probably 2-3 times that.
    Regarding electric coocking: This draws mutch less power than i expected. Electrical appliances is very easy and comfortable in practical use. You will never go back to gas after switching to electrical cooking.
    Heating water and cabin is a wery different story. You will not be able to heat a boat at high latitudes by solar panels.
    Best of luck with your new build!

19. Parallel hybrid with keel cooling and dry exhaust. I need a naval architect.😁

20. Check out TallyHo/Samson Boat Building Company. Leo has decided on a Beta Marine 85T hybrid, it looks really good. Best of luck from Ireland. Paddy.

21. They mixing up units is infuriating (k" vs kWh). Good video otherwise tho =)

22. I've been driving electric cars for almost 10 years. I really like the idea of an electric or hybrid boat but cost really is the primary issue. I've seen cost mentioned in other videos. However I haven't really seen a good analysis of the price difference between a standard cruising vessel with 5 – 15 kWh house bank and a large alternator or Integral compared to a hybrid system. They may be similar if the size of the battery was kept reasonable on the hybrid system.

23. Very nice video… very…

24. There are two main advantage of series hybrid over parallel, the first is that you can usually simplify the electrical motor and propellor connections. The second is that if you design your Diesel engine and generator to operate at a single fixed speed, you can tune them (especially the diesel engine) to significantly improve overall efficiency. The electric, series hybrid black cabs that operate in London were designed that way but I haven't seen reports confirming that they are actually more efficient than their parallel cousins.

25. Hi, thanks for another great video – very informative. I only discovered your channel recently and have really enjoyed it, thank you.
    However, if I haven't missed something I'm surprised you haven't yet converted to an all electric galley. For cooking especially with induction hob and microwave/ convection oven combo its more efficient than gas and a whole lot safer and you don't have all the issues with sourcing gas at different ports around the world which can be very problematic. Cooking on a good induction hob gives as much control as gas but way safer and more energy efficient. Eliminating gas also makes your boat way safer and does away with all the complex plumbing and fittings (and cost) that need constant maintenance with no more frustrating excursions to find gas in remote ports.
    For water heating it does not make any sense to use solar electric. Given that the best solar panels on land with an ideal orientation to the sun are only about 20-23% efficient if you are lucky. This is a huge waste of solar energy and requires a large footprint. On land at least one can use direct solar water heating and I'm surprised that this option is not considered for boats as its very efficient and the footprint of the panel is very small compared to a solar electric panel. Also the solar can be further concentrated using fresnel lenses. For those times solar water heating is not possible then a dedicated deisel fired water heater is more efficient than running an engine for heating only. As you already have a diesel engine you also have the fuel available. 
    For propulsion my personal preference would be serial hybrid as it simplifies the drive system. I have also been following the adventures of "Sailing Uma" and I very much like their setup. Technically they have what you might call a serial hybrid setup except they use a small portable generator to top up batteries rather than a "primary diesel" and rely only on direct electric drive. They've done many miles and I don't see them reverting to the older ways. There are a few other cruisers who have discovered the solar electric alternative. (naturally one has to adjust to a different approach to sailing without having a huge engine backup for extended time available).
    I am trained as an electrical engineer in a former life and am very interested in exploring alternative energy for boats.
    I am currently planning a boat build and will be going with an all electric system with small backup portable diesel generator and direct solar water heating. For cabin heating and alternative water heating will go with a Charcoal Burner and make my own charcoal (I may use diesel as backup to this). You'd be surprised how easy it is and the raw materials can be found anywhere in abundance (eg. driftwood, unused wood scrap, dead trees, shrubs etc. can be found on just about any shoreline. This waste wood is only going to break down anyway if not used so does not add to CO2 in atmosphere.
    Anyway, as invited, these are my thoughts (although still developing).
    Cheers dj

26. check out sailing Uma they sail all the way to Iceland their boot is all electric

27. Regeneration will be interesting to see how well it works for your boat. No doubt it will work better on his HH catamaran, as the cat will sail faster, as well as have two props in the water. As for Starlink goes, it is a great device. I have used it myself. Unfortunately, I believe folks using the RV version on their BOATS are in violation of the terms of service and I fear eventually they will be cut off… Hope not.

28. One upside of serial hybrid in a monohull with twin rudders: you can have two electric motors. That adds redundancy and manoeuvrability. Viator Explorer / Volt-at-sea uses that.

29. Thankyou i

30. That was a great talk, covered most of the topics. I am a huge hybrid fan. I was designing a boat to include that but realized I didn’t have enough life left to build another ferro boat so settled with a “bought” one, which sadly is not suitable for fitting a hybrid system. In the boat I was designing I had a reverse mounted engine with the gear box fwd and vee transition box breaking the drive train in two parts. This meant that an electric motor could be easily mounted on the vee drive gearbox face driving the output shaft directly. This arrangement also pushed the engine aft under the cockpit floor for easier access, while also keeping the drive shaft lower and more parallel in the shallow draft hull. To go hydrid with my current Southerly it will have to oarlocks on the cockpit coatings.

31. Have you evaluated the difference between using a diesel engine and using a diesel generator to give you the backup you need? How does a diesel generator compare with a diesel engine in terms of efficiency, capital cost, weight, complexity, and reliability?

    Do you have an energy/power budget? Ignoring propulsion, what do you estimate the total energy requirements per day of a cruising couple, say for basics (navigation, cooking, hot water etc.)? How much will you use for heating in the high latitudes or air-con in the tropics? These are really interesting details. Thank you for sharing your experiences.

32. On our Boréal 47.2 Fabule (Canadian registered) I cook a meal for 4 with 10% of our 10 kWh Li-ion bank, so about 1kWh. For more elaborate cooking I would count 1.5-2 kWh per meal.
    On passage the most demanding equipment is the auto pilot, with the fridge and the freezers. Drains about 4-5 kWh per day including pilot, electronics and life support ( freezers, fridge, microwave oven and water boiling, and water maker).
    No AC though which drains a lot of power.
    Generation:
    2x 350W wind generators,
    900 W solar arrays,
    600 W Watt&Sea hydro generator.
    Diesel 4kW generator for hopeless days without wind or sun (and to drive the dive compressor).
    Hot water for shower is on hydronic diesel Webasto or with diesel generator.
    I would increase solar if I could (lack of place on monohull unfortunately) but the rest is sufficient even on cloudy passage so that the genset is almost not used, but this includes often bit of motoring which tops up batteries, say 10% of passage time in average.
    Hope to cross path on the sea sometime.
    Salutations de Lagos.
    Fabule

33. I think hybrid is best suited for a catamaran, given the ability to carry so much solar. There is a constant demand for electricity on board. Being able to use electric to get away, or into, a Marina or anchorage would be nice, but it is done at the expense of “stealing” battery capacity from the house needs. Even if price were no object, a monohull has more space constraints for battery storage. (if you keep them low in the boat) With lithium’s increased charge times, adding a high output generator to facilitate charging while motoring into and out of marinas etc is probably a better way to go. Maybe one day a boat designer will design a boat the way Tesla designs their cars, incorporating the batteries as part of the structure, integral to the car/boat itself. A little outside the box thinking could go a long way – could not some part of the keel be used for storage? Just thinking out loud, best of luck with the boat!

34. Not sure if you follow the Tally Ho rebuild but there was a session on power systems that, if you haven't seen it, I thought you might find interesting/informative. This is a link to the session: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xohxmwPfctg

35. So much great info in this episode. A conversion to electric is an absolute must on my list. Though, knowing we will spend the bulk of our time sailing the BC coast, a serial hybrid probably makes the most sense. Just need battery costs to drop a little more!

36. Hello Paul, hello Sheryl

    I work in the RV industry and a few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to talk to a sales guy from a Munich based company, which builds and sells compact fuel cell generators.
    I asked him who is buying these generators, because big solar systems are almost standard on the bigger RV‘s. And you don’t need solar and a fuel cell in parallel. His answer was astonishing: it seems to be very popular with the sailboat customers! Because solar is always compromised by weather and the shadow of the tall mast and rigging. And of course the independency from good weather, which you need to create power from solar. I think he has a point.
    Maybe you should also at least have a look at those fuel cells 🙂

    Many greetings from Germany 👋

37. Regen and electric drive on a sail boat make perfect sense! Electric drive is so much more reliable than diesel only. The availability of much more electric power thru regen gives heaps of extra comfort. I did convert to lithium and induction cooking 2 years ago. I modified two 750 watt induction chafing dish heaters to go beyond 100 C to 180 C for baking, by adding a resistor to the temperature sensor circuit. Normal induction is often sold on being much faster than propane. In my setup it is a bit slower, like Alcohol cooking. Advantages are no hassle with bottles, but most of all only the pan heats up, the galley doesn't. The power need in my case is very little. 50 watts for a single cup of coffee. 250 Watts for doing dishes, 250 Watts for a simple meal like mac and cheese or 600 Watts for meat, potatoes and veggies (yes, I am Dutch:-). My 2 kw battery lasts me just over 2 days including a small fridge.

38. Funny, over the past few years the conversations were all about "I don't think it'll work/ can't trust it/ no systems available", now we're spoiled for choice and we talk about scaling systems over time to keep up with the rapidly evolving innovations.

39. hi have you seen the bybrid motor they put in tally ho on sampson boat co channel?

40. Ahoy guys, so excited for you! So I did some calculations a while ago based on our electric cooking. We got rid of propane 5 years ago and went with induction stove and electric convection oven, along with a electric kettle for tea and coffee. Averaged over a 30 day period we use about 60AH @ 24V, so approx 1.5 KWH for cooking per day. For the electric kettle , assuming it's 2KW (most are close to this) to heat up 500ML of water takes about 2 mins. 2/60 = .033H X 2KW = .07 KWH each time you use the kettle to boil 500ML so it's pretty minor. We have a 9.6KWH Lithium bank and found this to be plenty for our needs. Hope that helps! Brian

41. Extra installation care needs to be taken with the stray current in an aluminum boat while running a Hybrid electric motor. Years ago, the German manufacturer of the Distancia 60 built-in fiberglass had a generator running an electric motor advertised. When I sailed her in La Palma, I found they removed them to Volvo diesel motors because of damage created by Stray currents from the e-engine they had installed. The stray current damage was done to the prop and prop shaft. Since
    I am an owner of a 15-meter sailboat, and I'm very sensitive to even leaving my boat at a marina pen. I had left my boat for 4 months in a marina. What happened was the anodes dissolved in a few months at a guess, and then after four months, a few pinholes leaked water into the hull because of corrosion damage because of stray currents leaking in the water from other boats connected to shore power. I will only stay at a marina for a few days at most, I have it moored on its own mooring 99 percent of the time when not sailing. Best SV Skoiern IV

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