Nice post, Thanks!

BTW, have you considered setting up your boat to have the
propellor shaft turn an alternator while you are sailing?

I realize that there are issues with this approach, but it
seems like they can be solved by the addition of an electric
clutch to decouple the transmission when the engine is not
running. You might also need to add another prop shaft bearing
to handle the side load from the alternator.

What do you think is the maximum practical amperage that a person
could get out of solar on a 50 ft boat? It seems that you could build
a hard bimini with the entire top covered with solar panels, and that
you could probably squeeze a few more onto the front deck if you
were careful where you put them. I'm guessing that this would still
not come to more than 30A on a sunny day.

palmtreedreamer wrote:
snip I have used almost every type of power
maker that there is so I thought I might cough up a little knowledge
for those that are still in the wondering possess.

That would be me--wondering that is.

Other good stuff snipped

Don W.