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Thank you for the referral, the Azipod engines look very interesting. They are somewhat like a diesel electric solution, but move the concept another notch forward by putting the motors under the water directly mounted to the props.
We almost went diesel electric, but gave up on it, when it became apparent that it isn't as simple as it first sounds. My original vision was that everything was essentially the same, but that you swap the main engines for two electric motors. It only takes around 300 horsepower to move my boat at 9 knots, and a 300hp electric motor is certainly smaller than the main engines.
Unfortunately, to power a 300hp electric motor requires something like 250kw to 300kw in power generation. Imagine an engine room with six 50kw generators, or twelve 25kw generators, and you start to see why things aren't as simple as they first sound.
I haven't (yet) been into the engine room on any of the diesel electric boats, but I have met the owner of one that was just delivered and hope to talk my way into an invitation to see it. A friend who saw the engine room said it resembles an electric power plant. Handling that much electrical power is a serious issue.
As I've dug deeper into all of this, I've found that I am starting to think that fancy solutions are sometimes a step down the wrong path. Some technologies are a step forward, such as AIS, Sonar, night-vision, broadband, etc. but, not all. In this particular case, a good-old-fashioned diesel motor, that any mechanic can fix, anywhere, is probably the best possible solution. In fact, I'm start to wish diesel engines could still be found that didn't have computers on them. If lightning strikes my boat, and fries the computer on my engine, it may or may not run. The best I can hope for is that it runs poorly. Were it not for emissions standards, which have forced all engine manufacturers into making fancy computer-based engines, my choice would be a nice-simple mechanical diesel engine, with a gravity fed fuel system, and wet exhaust (because of sooting issues).
-Ken W
| Williams, Ken |
2007-04-05 12:10:56
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A lot of people are going to be thankful for the 68, not just for the nice large shaded aft deck, but that design in general is going to be THE perfect couples boat for many, many people, and the perfect replacement for the 62.
Looking at the photos of the 86, which looks HUGE, I wonder if and when Nordhavn will think about the Azipod type engines now appearing in many newer boat designs, and long a part of larger cruising and navy boats.
Anyone heard any thoughts of this? | doctor@pearsonwellnesscenter.com
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2007-04-03 17:40:05
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