[Mark F]

Hi Andrew,

There are plenty of Electric Auxiliaries out there. I installed one in my Ericson 27 three and half years ago and have been completely satisfied. This is a link to a blog that I started recently; Ep - Blogs - EY.o Information Exchange there are four parts so far. It will give you an idea of the setup and limitations of the design.

Here are some Marine EP manufacturers;
Electric Yacht - Electric sailboat propulsion systems that are cost-effective, yet CLEAN, GREEN and QUIET!
ThunderStruck Motors - Electric Sailboat Kits
ASMO Marine
Electric | Propulsion Marine

 

[Mark F]

Hi Donna,

You wrote, “It does the electric motor industry a disservice by having folks screaming that it is the right way to go for everyone rather than just putting the facts out there and letting people make an informed decision."

I'm not sure who you are referring to. Most people that I see commenting about EP - that have made the conversion - are pretty up front about the limitations of battery power.

I think what it comes down to is being comfortable jumping into unfamiliar territory. When I repowered my first sailboat (Ericson 23) with electric in 2005 I had only been sailing for a few years, so I wasn’t all that familiar with any type of auxiliary. After dealing with a finicky outboard it was easy for me to explore EP. On that boat a strong trolling motor (36 volt 105# thrust) worked great, for my mostly daysailing out of Santa Cruz CA. Now I was accustomed to the EP and it was easy for me to envision my next boat (Ericson 27) with an electric inboard.