Time to upgrade? Will Bruton talks to the crew of SV Delos to discover ways to future-proof your yacht that improve life on board \u2013 and are kinder to the planetDelos anchored off St Barths. Photo: SV DelosWhen Brian Trautman bought a 53ft Amel Super Maramu in 2008 he had little intention of living aboard for ten years. But after putting 70,000 miles under the keel, visiting 46 countries and creating over 200 YouTube videos on the incredibly popular channel SV Delos he and the Delos crew were considering making a change.
\n\u201cWhen we visited the Amel yard, we sparked a lot of speculation that we were looking for a new boat. We were considering it, but it certainly wouldn\u2019t be a quick decision. It forced us to think long and hard about what our plans were,\u201d explains Brady Trautman, Brian\u2019s brother, long-time Delos crewmember (and current skipper while Brian takes some parental leave).
\nThey still aren\u2019t ruling out a \u2018Delos 2.0,\u2019 but rapidly realised that one of the most valuable assets of the 18-year-old Amel was just how well they knew her. They decided to stick with what they know and instead begin a series of experiments to optimise and modernise the boat instead.<\/p>\n
Old dog, new tricks
\nKnowing the boat so well is at the crux of the technology choices the Trautmans have installed and battle-tested over the past two seasons.
\n\u201cWe weren\u2019t aiming to prove that this is right for every boat, we just wanted to make practical improvements that made sense for us and we\u2019re in the fortunate position of being able to share the experiment widely so others can learn [from us],\u201d explains Brady.
\nThis meant trying new technology that works for an older cruising boat. Each modification has also made for interesting YouTube episodes for viewers keen to see how they went about it. Owner Brian Trautman studied electrical engineering before casting off from Seattle and is hands-on when it comes to fitting new systems.
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\u201cWe looked for practical steps we could take towards a better Delos. First and foremost, we wanted to ditch propane for cooking. We were on board almost all year round and it was an on-going headache to find cylinders and a safety concern.
\n\u201cWe also wanted a serious power upgrade to make us more efficient, ideally one that would allow us to run the high drain appliances on battery power alone; even a cooker. That meant lithium batteries of some sort.
\n\u201cThirdly, we wanted to go some way towards making her eco-friendly. Everyone knows that with traditional antifoul, the answer is basically to go for something toxic that works in the environment you are going to be in. We no longer wanted that and were searching for something less damaging. Having spent years in warm water, we weren\u2019t betting it would work, it was very much an experiment,\u201d explains Brady.
\nHaul out for SV Delos in Grenada
\nPowering up
\nKey to all the changes was a new power system. \u201cWe knew that our existing solar set up could provide a lot of power in ideal conditions, but we also knew that our output varies hugely and that solar doesn\u2019t always deliver. We edit videos on board, sometimes powering four laptops at once, so this had to be factored in.
\n\u201cThe second factor was the high-draw appliances that suddenly demand a lot of grunt in one go: this can kill some battery systems. An electric kettle, oven and stove all had to be considered,\u201d explains Brian.
\nAfter a lot of research Brian settled on lithium-phosphate batteries by Dragonfly Energy and planned his system having calculated what everything would use. \u201cWe decided to go with phosphate, which are a much more forgiving and stable battery chemistry than ion. It\u2019s a different chemistry to that used in mobile phones, laptops, and most electric vehicles.
\n\u201cLithium cells are picky about their voltages, so it is important to configure your charging system to the battery specs, in our case this means limiting the \u2018bulk\u2019 charge to 14.4V.
\n\u201cYou can also damage the cells by getting the voltage too low, pulling too much current, or too high and too low temperatures. This, though, is easily prevented with a good battery management system. We installed one from Victron Energy that\u2019s proved brilliant and can even connect to your phone via Bluetooth to track what you\u2019re using.\u201d
\nThe cost of the batteries, despite being far higher than lead acid, didn\u2019t put Brian off after owning the boat for ten years. \u201cWe have already changed out the battery bank on Delos three times and if this technology was available when we started it would have paid for itself by now.
\nLithium-phosphate batteries provide greater power over traditional lead-acid types, and a mobile app allows easy battery monitoring
\n\u201cAlso, it\u2019s important to consider that your usable capacity doubles, so effectively four lithium batteries has the same capacity as approximately seven lead acid batteries (assuming you discharge to 85%).\u201d
\nThe next stage was removing the propane cooker. \u201cNot having gas has been a big improvement to life on board Delos. Only when you get rid of it do you realise just how much wasted heat it generates. You\u2019re in the Caribbean, quite literally heating up your boat cabin!\u201d explains Brian.
\nOnce the new batteries were installed, the crew added a two-burner induction cook top and simple electric oven, building a gimbal themselves to take the place of their old gas oven. It\u2019s proved a reliable set up and only requires the generator to be turned on when both burners and the oven are running at full power, otherwise running on battery power alone.
\nNo more antifouling
\nDetermined to reduce the amount of chemicals used on the boat and going into the water, the Delos team spent a lot of time investigating alternatives for antifouling, eventually settling on a combination of two relatively new technologies.
\n\u201cBy combining a sonic antifoul system and slippery hull paint, we hoped we could avoid using toxic antifoul altogether,\u201d explains Brian.
\nThe sonic antifoul system, manufactured by NRG Marine, works by transmitting electronic waves through the boat that agitate marine growth, discouraging it from clinging to the hull. It can be used for both the hull and seawater systems, being particularly effective when concentrated on high growth areas. The Sonihull technology was originally developed for commercial ships and has now been reduced in size for leisure vessels.
\nA new underwater coat of Sea-Speed elastomeric paint
\nThe crew applied the bottom paint with the help of Spice Island Marine in Grenada. Unlike conventional antifoul, it works by providing an ultra-slippery surface that naturally sheds growth underway so does depend on the boat being sailed regularly. It works particularly well with craft cruising at higher speeds.
\nGetting a smooth application proved essential and the team started by stripping the boat back to a bare hull using a dustless blasting system before applying a barrier coat, finally applying the paint with a compressed air spray for an even finish.
\nAfter a year Delos produced a video reviewing the new antifoul and answering questions from viewers. \u201cThe new set up has worked really well, even in places with very warm water like Grenada.
\n\u201cSome forms of growth still persist, but the heavy growth \u2013 like barnacles \u2013 doesn\u2019t seem to stick very easily at all. We keep giving the hull a quick scrub to keep growth down, but overall it\u2019s been impressive,\u201d explains Brady.
\nWhat Delos installed
\nBatteries: Lithium LiFePO4 (800Ah @ 12V, 400Ah @24V); Victron BMS-712 monitoring system
\nInduction cooktop: Kenyon Trimline 1800W (240V)
\nInverter and solar charge controllers: Victron combined inverter charger; Victron SmartSolar MPPT Bluetooth 100\/50 enabled solar charge controller
\nEnvironmentally friendly antifouling: SeaCoat Sea-Speed paint; NRG sonic antifoul system
\nFirst published in the April 2020 edition of Yachting World. For more videos and an information sheet on Delos\u2019 electrical upgrades, visit: svdelos.com
\nThe post How the crew of SV Delos created the ultimate self-sustainable yacht appeared first on Yachting World.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Time to upgrade? Will Bruton talks to the crew of SV Delos to discover ways to future-proof your yacht that improve life on board \u2013 and are kinder to the planetDelos anchored off St Barths. Photo: SV DelosWhen Brian Trautman … <\/p>\n