wrote in message
...
On Fri, 04 Jan 2008 20:14:09 -0800, Gordon wrote:

Any recommendations?
Gordon

Think about it this way. If the generator is 100% efficient, then to
generate 746 watts, one horsepower must be provided. Imagine a dinghy
with a one hp engine pulling your boat backwards and you get a sense
of practicality. In practice, two or three hp is probably closer to
what the effect might be.

So there is plainly an upper limit to the amount of power a towed
generator can realistically provide to a small sailboat.

Chuck
S/V Sans Serif

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In the late seventy Yves Gélinas "Jean-du-Sud around the World" used a towed
generator.
The electrical power produced was mainly used to communicate on his short
wave radio.
Every day he radioed his position. Then all of a sudden no more
communication were transmitted by him.
Later it was learned that the impeller on his towed generator had been
chewed to pieces.
When he returned home I talked to him and he stated that the sharks made a
meal of the generator impeller.
He also mentioned that the life expectancy of an impeller is in relation
with which region of the globe you are sailing.