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My charger (a cheapo) quits if it thinks the air around it is too warm. I put a fan next to it, restart it, and all seems to be fine.<br>Kirsti.

My guess is that there was a bad connection (high
resistance) on one of the leads that caused the charger to
think it was done. Did you move any of the connections
when you restarted charger...which might have made a
better ground ? If not it might be a faulty charger.
Good luck.

Under what circumstances does an automatic
battery charger stop charging in the middle of its cycle?
I had 170AH to replace in the bank this morning and
when I went down to check I found that the charger had
stopped after adding 70AH. It started right up again when
I restarted it.<br><br>Any ideas?<br>Larry

I've sailed so far without being able to rely on
an engine, first the old Gray-marine gasoline, and
now this old monster. I def. rely on my sails, but am
not good (nor brave!) enough to try to enter my slip
in the marina under sail. Can't afford to pay for
the damages.<br>About cruising under 2-3 Kn. That's
pretty common - I thought! And all I would ask for. But
those shuold be with some good torque...<br>About
writing the manual as we go...mine would mostly consist
of ?-marks!<br>Good luck to you with your
projects.<br>Kirsti.

Kirsti there are more steamers than sailors on
these pages and the Freshwaterseas site says it all
there. North America is very inclined (electrically) to
that idyllic pursuit of tranquil lakes and trolling.
No doubt you are as excited as i am that there are a
few bigger units around capable of replacing internal
combustion.<br>You can find my boat in my profile - a lot different
to yours but similar power needs.<br>I am waiting
for a final solution which includes re-charging as i
sail because i have the sailpower/boatspeed. Until
then i am fitting a pancake (disc) motor in my
outboard as a retro as it's all i can afford and i'll use
the bits later in a new system (probably first
battery change)and sell off the surplus.<br>Getting out
of the port is all i need and there's usually
off-shore morning wind so 10-30 minutes power is adequate.
If there was no wind at all then it would be 3 knots
of speed and conserve the range. As the boat was
always under-powered i will still put up with 2 kn
boatspeed into a 35kn headwind when i cannot sit outside
all nite.<br>I think 90% of us are like you and we
are writing the manual ouselves as we speak....

Sorry about that my isp shut down just as I posted that message.So w'ell try again. <br><a href= target=new></a> hope that worked.

Hi Gary.<br>Couldn't find the mentioned link- please try to post it again.<br>kirsti

Hi Gary,<br><br>Just joined, but have been following this thread. Where's the link?

Kirsti you may find this link of interest as it contains pricing on a couple of systems and a few interesting links.As a bonus they are cheaper than the diesel.<br><br>g'luck

THANKS!<br>Kind of what I was hoping for: The
possibility to buy the "pieces" (whatever they might be) as
my economy would allow me. To me that looked like
another HUGE benefit of going electric...the chunk of
batteries one day, the motor another eehh...month, then the
controller e.t.c. instead of forking out $7-10.000,- for a
diesel, and:VOILA!<br>I've installed a diesel myself
once, and still don't know how I had the guts to do it,
but it went fine, was easy, and was only about a week
of sleepless nights. I had by my side two 3" thick
manuals, full of coffee-stains, but finally the thing
turned over and RAN. Stupid me, I sold the boat!<br>So,
here I am, having to do something similar to this
"new" boat...but very different! Because I won't have
those 3-inchers by my side to leaf tru when all the
questions pop up.<br>I have realized, that I'll have to
rely on somebody with electrical engineering
experience. Darn!<br>I feel a littel bit like an easy
mark.<br><br>Your advice is good, and looking back on 16 years of
cruising, several years of those with old Gray-marine
gasoline, halfway retired gasoline engine (that was the one
that got retired in favor of a new Yanmar) I don't
need much. It's a sailboat, and I'm in no hurry. I'll
heave to if I can't make port in daylight. It's nice
out there under the stars anyway! But I DO need some
little thing-a-majobby to push me into my slip. And it
WOULD be nice to know that I could flip a switch and
pull away from that reef not charted!<br>Modest
demands, I'd say.<br>What do you think?

"I do have problems understanding why an electric
motor for a boat<br> should cost MORE than a diesel
replacement!"<br><br>Not a bad question, Kirsti. It doesnt have to. Mine
cost about 45% of the cost of a similarly sized
diesel.<br><br>Its easy to define your "needs" so that only very
expensive, limited production components can meet them.
Youve self-defined a very expensive system. If you can
define your "needs" to suit an already existing,
mass-produced technology you can save lots. <br>Are some of the
products and systems discussed on this list "better"? I
dont know for sure, but I certainly suspect so. But I
also believe the law of diminishing returns kicks in
pretty rapidly: 10% "better" may cost 100% more, 30%
"better" may cost 1000% more and that last little
increment of "best" maybe only the government can afford.
If you really NEED the little bit better, then you
will simply have to pay the hefty premium. But often
people confuse "desirable" with "necessary". <br><br>I
just bought a 38lb thrust (I think that works out to
about hp electricright?) electric outboard at Costco
for $134.95. How can they do that? Answer: thousands
of fishermen use these things and they are
mass-produced.<br><br>36V golf cart components are quite cheap up into the
6-10 hp. range. So are the batteries and accessories
that go with them. How come? Same reasonlots of
people wanting to use the same product.<br><br>So my
advice is to look hard at the existing, off-the-shelf
technology and look hard at what you realistically demand
from the system. A great many of us, I think, could
function quite happily with systems that are a fraction of
the cost of some of the more esoteric technologies
and those systems are more easily serviced, more
easily repaired and more easily replaced when the time
comes.<br>Larry

OOOOps! I didn't mean to start a fight! I
appreciate ALL input and help, in this new and exciting
world (new to me, at least!) I do have problems
understanding why an electric motor for a boat should cost MORE
than a diesel replacement!<br>I would have thought
there were all kind of financial help and suppeot
available to developers of any device improving the
environment? <br>You guys: Why not get together and post good
links in this club to manufact. of motors, a page of
evaluations, what ever would help in the research for the rest
of us. Off course EWHEEL will will try to promote
his product, but an open and positive discussion
about available options would be more productive. All
manuf. I have heard from are making "the best" on the
market, and that leaves me more confused than ever! Right
now my only way of choosing is counting my pennies
and see what I can afford. Haven't even been able to
decide if it should be inboard, or if I should make a
well for an electric outboard! Or maybe I should just
get a pair of OARS!<br>If anybody in this club have
the knowledge, time and interest, I'd love to see a
good evaluation of products, including the biggest
secret: The price! That eval. could be the biggest
promotion of electric drives for boats, something all of us
are interested in.<br>It's a jungle out there, and
I'm getting lost and discuraged!

At the risk of offending both ewhel and
donaldbaer please remember that this dialectic or collision
of ideas reveals advantages of both motors. Both
ewhel and donaldbaer are correct. The insufficient
words used to describe complex devices cannot convey
adequately the advantages that both ewel and donaldbaer are
really referring to. Some of us, your audience, need to
see diagrams (can either of you provide these?)
<br><br>I surmise that donaldbaer's totally enclosed motor
is not completely sealed/pressurized but that it is
vastly superior to regular motors that flow vast
quantities of air over the armature or windings for cooling,
and that it could be sealed up. I am particularly
interested in doing this with submerged motors in my
"electric log" boats, or by adding fins that contact the
outer surface of the boat hull for cooling. At the same
time, ewel's motor seems to be rather efficient and to
require less cooling, as well as less moving parts for at
least some function(s).<br><br>The market that we are
watching develop is (will be) very complex and fractured.
It is easy to believe that both motors are
absolutely perfect in different areas of that market.

Donalbaer....get a grip on yerself man....Lynch
motors do have to breath...and how much are the thrust
bearings,thrust plate, belts, fans, pullys, and controls for that
AC motor. And beyond that...has anyone called Hunter
in Alachua, FL to ask how well AC motor systems did
on Hunter's Child....and how much regeneration they
collected. And learn how to spell man or at least cut back
on the coffee yer gettin' too wound up. I did all my
homework...that's why our motor is the "only" motor designed
specifically for pushing props and the marine environment.

hi everyone . I was just wondering if anyone has
any experience with the 100 pound plus trolling
motors/outboards with larger displacement hulls.<br>my boat is an
80 year old 32 foot motor sailer that is very easily
driven, currently it is over powered by an 18 hp
diesel(1/2 throttle equals 8 knots).I would be keeping the
diesel.regarding the thread on designs, the boat next to mine at
the marina is 60 years newer in design 1 foot longer
and requires its full 110 hp to reach 8 knots! things
other than efficiently using available hp now take
priority.not to mention the fact that most of the newer
designs lack character.IMHO thanks Gary

You should do some research before you keep
sticking you foot in you mouth. Your so busy plugginh your
own product you don't bother to look around to see
what other people are talking about. You stated that
"has to breath that salt air to keep cool...and so
does the AC motor."<br>The Stainless steel motor I
refered to in my post is a TEFC that stand for totaly
Enclosed fan colled. In case you not familiar with the
terminology that means that AIR does not go into the motor on
over the outside and sinze it all stainless steal gues
what the salt air wont bother it. OH and buy the way a
5 HP 1750 RPM motor sells for less tha $700. ALso
if an AC motor is oer driven it will regenerate.

Kirsti....sorry for the delay in response but I
have been on the road....we are getting Coast Guard
and Lloyds certifications and going public at the
same time. I need your address or phone number to give
you data as I have been reminded several times that I
can't use this as a forum for advertising the Solomon
motors. Email: ewhel@... and our phone number is
301-274-4479. We will send you a package. And when it's all
said and done...you won't find a drop-in replacement
with thrust bearings, controls, emeter and for less
than our Solomon 35 motor. Oh and did I mention that
no one in the world is providing more regenerative
sailing energy than us.P.S. that Lynch motor has to
breath that salt air to keep cool...and so does the AC
motor.

If you are considering using AC motors you might
want to look at the "Sterliseal" all stainless motors
from Sterling Electric. They are made for wash down
environments and are relativly inexpensive. Visit their web
site at www.sterlingelectric.com. I am sure they have
reps and distributors in your area. These will require
a 230 VAC 3 pase power. If you have 230 3 Phase
available you can the use any good ac Variable frequency
controler which would control the speed and also provide
reversing. At 230 Volts you would draw about 16 amps per
motor. These controler cost about $1500 each. The
advantage to this setup is you have a NO maintence motor.
<br>As a side note, a company in San Diago (ISE
research) is building a hybred electric garbage truck with
a 300 HP AC motor for propulsion. They power the AC
controler with a 100 KW Generator driven from a Natural Gas
engine running at a constant speed. They also have
batteries hooked into the controler so when they need more
power the controler can draw it from the batteries.
This type of Hybred design is becoming very popular in
the EV field for extended range EV's. Several cars
will be hitting the market this year with similar
propulsion systems.<br><br>I hope this helps. <br><br>Don
Baer

Thanks, Chris. <br>I went to the 4QD site and got overwhelmed!<br>Lots of information there.<br>I'll keep meandering on.....<br>Kirsti

Kirsti -<br>I considered purchasing a lynch motor
a couple of years ago for a smaller solar electric
boat, but the price was a bit too high for the high
school project which was limited to 24 volts. Their
specifications are very good, noting 87 - 93% max efficiency at
voltages between 12 and 48. Their web site and literature
has great charts and much info on electric boat
conversions. <br><br>I'm on my third electric boat project and
all three have been inboards with cog belt drive and
series-wound dc motors. The first used a surplus Thermo King
refrigeration motor with an industrial (not marine!) Leeson PWM
motor controller. The last two have used Advanced DC
motors with Curtis PWM speed controllers and Albright
system and reversing contactors (relays). The Advanced
motors were chosen for budget reasons. The Curtis
controllers are rugged units, sealed in a watertight aluminum
heatsink case. They're used in a lot of electric vehicle
conversions. System on/off is usually controlled via a 12v
coil contactor and a 12v coil reversing contactor.
Albright is a typical manufacturer, and they make
"marinized" models. These relays are not cheap - expect to
pay $75-150 for the main contactor and $150 - 225 for
the reversing unit, depending on system amperage. You
have to use them because the Curtis controller isn't
designed as a full h-bridge (reversing)
controller.<br><br>With all this said, the ~$1200 Lynch motor claims much
higher peak efficiency than an Advanced DC motor in the
36-48 volt range (92% vs 85%)and the Lynch's efficiency
curve is very flat through most of it's RPM range. The
Lynch motor weighs about 28# vs the 50-60# of most
series wound motors w/ similar specs. I'd explore using
a $QD brand speed controller - They are British w/
US reps, and their top model controllers have
solid-state revers built into their design. They also have a
number of standard safety features like
acceleration/deceleration ramping linked to reverse. If you throw the motor
into reverse at full speed, you won't fry the
controller. Instead the motor will decel rapidly, reverse
kicks in, then accel starts. 4QD has worked with Lynch
in Europe on boat and go-kart projects. They also
have this nifty weather resistant control box with an
umbilical you can carry in your hand for on-off, speed pot,
reverse, etc.<br><br>Good luck on your
project...<br><br>Chris Krumm<br>krumly@...