The Best Electric Boat Motors

The Best Electric Boat Motors:

• Minn Kota Endura C2 30 ($99)
• Minn Kota Endura C2 55 ($257)
• MotorGuide VariMAX V55 – Freshwater, Pontoon Mount ($414)
• Torqeedo Travel 1003 ($1,999)

Compared to gasoline-powered boat motors, electric outboard motors provide quieter operation, no exhaust fumes and zero emissions. Electrics are great as the primary means of propulsion for small boats, a secondary means of propulsion for large boats, or in places where gasoline motors are prohibited or otherwise undesirable. Because electric boat motors are often used for fishing, they are commonly called “trolling motors”. When shopping for an electric boat motor, be sure to consider the size of your boat, the conditions you’ll typically encounter, and the amount of additional weight (people and gear) you’ll have on board. Make sure you select a motor powerful enough to meet your needs. We’ve researched dozens of trolling motor reviews on sites such as Cabela’s, Bass Pro Shops, Amazon, TrollingMotors.net, Practical Sailor, Panbo, CruisersForum.com, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Walmart, and iboats.com in order to bring you a list of the best electric boat motors for sale today:

Minn Kota Endura C2 30

Minn Kota Endura C2 30 ($99)

Pros:

• Reliable
• Performs as advertised

Cons:

• Only for very small boats

Top Review Sources:

• Cabela’s: 5.0/5.0 (5+ reviews)
• Bass Pro Shops: 4.2/5.0 (15+ reviews)
• Amazon: 4.5/5.0 (15+ reviews)

The transom-mount Minn Kota Endura C2 30 is the smallest in Minn Kota’s line of Endura C2 trolling motors. It delivers maximum thrust of 30 pounds, sufficient to adequately propel craft of up to 1,500 pounds or 12 feet in length. It has a 12-volt power system and a 30-inch composite shaft. Control is administered via a six-inch telescoping handle. There are five forward speeds and three reverse speeds. Reviewers find the Endura C2 30 to be reliable, quiet, and well-built. There are hardly any complaints of underperformance or premature failure. The Minn Kota Endura C2 30 ships with a two-year warranty.

Purchase the Minn Kota Endura C2 30 on Amazon.

Minn Kota Endura C2 55

Minn Kota Endura C2 55 ($257)

Pros:

• Well-built
• Two shaft size options

Cons:

• Transom-mount only

Top Review Sources:

• Bass Pro Shops: 4.2/5.0 (15+ reviews)
• TrollingMotors.net: 5.0/5.0 (1 review)
• Dick’s Sporting Goods: 4.5/5.0 (3 reviews)

On the other end of the Endura C2 line is the Endura C2 55. Like the Endura C2 30, the Endura C2 55 is transom-mounted and has a 12-volt power system. The Endura C2 55 is capable of producing 55 pounds of thrust, which is enough to propel an 18-foot craft or a craft weighing up to 2,500 pounds. This motor is available with either a 36- or 42-inch composite shaft. It features a telescoping steering mechanism and five forward speeds (three reverse). Like the Endura C2 30, the Endura C2 55 has a reputation for hassle-free, reliable performance and solid build quality. It is backed by a two-year warranty.

You’ll find the Minn Kota Endura C2 55 for sale on Amazon.

MotorGuide VariMAX

MotorGuide VariMAX V55 – Freshwater, Pontoon Mount ($414)

Pros:

• Precise, variable speed control
• Digital speed and battery gauges

Cons:

• Non-traditional throttle and direction-change hand controls

Top Review Sources:

• Cabela’s: 4.5/5.0 (5+ reviews) (VariMAX V45)
• Walmart: 5.0/5.0 (2 reviews) (VariMAX V45)
• iboats.com forum user comparison of VariMAX V55 and Endura C2 55: “I tested both for one week and I kept the MotorGuide Varimax”

MotorGuide’s VariMAX V55 is one of many VariMAX models from which you can choose. MotorGuide offers freshwater and saltwater editions of the VariMAX. Within the freshwater edition, you have three mounting options: bow, transom, and pontoon. For each mounting option, you have at least two output choices. Though we are reviewing the VariMAX V55 freshwater pontoon-mount edition here, most of our findings can be extended to other models in the VariMAX series. The VariMAX V55 provides 55 pounds of thrust and 12 volts of power. It has a 50-inch aluminum shaft. A distinguishing feature of the VariMAX series is its variable speed adjustment. Variable speed adjustment allows the boater to incrementally increase speed via a dial, resulting in precise control and up to three times longer battery life than five-speed electric motors. The user interface consists of a digital speed gauge that also indicates direction and remaining battery life. Reviewers enjoy the variable speed operation and convenient digital interface. The MotorGuide VariMAX V55 has a two-year warranty.

You’ll find the MotorGuide VariMAX V55 (freshwater, pontoon mount) on Amazon.

Torqeedo Travel 1003

Torqeedo Travel 1003 ($1,999)

Pros:

• Fully submersible
• Accepts solar charging

Cons:

• Long battery charge time

Top Review Sources:

• Practical Sailor: Best Choice (of three electric outboard motors tested)
• Panbo: “A joy to use”
• CruisersForum.com user review: “The torque is surprisingly powerful”

The Torqeedo Travel 1003 is a fully-waterproof, three-horsepower electric outboard. Its integrated 29.6-volt lithium-manganese battery provides an estimated 10.5 hours of runtime at 1.5 to 2.0 knots, 3.5 hours at 2.5 to 3.0 knots (half throttle), and half an hour at 4.5 to 5.0 knots (full throttle). This 30-pound electric is appropriate for inflatables and small boats up to 3,000 pounds; it also makes a suitable sail boat motor. It is available in long- and short-shaft versions. A full battery recharge takes about 15 hours for the Travel 1003. This motor will also accept power from solar chargers (Torqeedo sells one for $999) and onboard generators. A feature reviewers really like is the onboard GPS chip, which provides a continually updated range estimate based upon current usage. The results are reported via a display integrated onto the tiller. The display also indicates battery charge and boat speed. Reviewers enjoy the smooth power delivery of the Travel 1003 and praise its build quality. This motor carries a two-year warranty.

You’ll find a list of Torqeedo Travel 1003 dealers on Torqeedo’s website.

The Largest Solar Powered Boat In The World: Turanor PlanetSolar

Solar power is increasingly becoming a feasible choice for powering electric boats. In the last decade, we’ve seen improvement in the efficiency of electric boat motors, lithium-ion batteries, and the efficiency of solar panels. In 2010, the Tûranor PlanetSolar, a huge catamaran yacht powered by 470 square meters of solar panels, was unveiled by New Zealand’s LOMOcean Design. It became the first solar-powered vehicle to circumnavigate the earth, when it finished a world tour. The name Tûranor, derived from J.R.R. Tolkien’s novel The Lord of the Rings, translates to “The Power of the Sun”.

Tûranor Solar Catamaran Sailing

On a less grand scale, solar-powered boats are becoming available in the consumer market, driven by the introduction of lithium-ion marine batteries. These batteries have been mostly used to power small electronic devices, but now large-scale lithium-ion batteries are available for boats. Lithium batteries deliver four times the energy per pound of battery weight when compared with conventional lead acid, gel or AGM batteries. They also last about three times longer than conventional batteries (up to 10 years), and less susceptible to shocks and temperature extremes.

A German company, Torqeedo has introduced high-efficiency boat motors come with lithium-ion batteries pre-installed. Torqeedo offers a range of motors that connect to crafts of all sizes — everything kayak motors, to large outboard motors with the equivalent of 20 HP of thrust, capable of powering boats up to 6 tons in weight.

Torqeedo also has a line of solar products available — it recently introduced powerful lithium-ion marine batteries that connect to marine-ready solar panels. The batteries have a capacity of 2,685 Wh and weigh 44 pound.

Solar Module Changing Torqeedo Electric Motor

Sea Eagle, a maker of inflatable boats, also offers a solar panel that connects with Torqeedo motors. Sea Eagle says the Travel 1003 Torqeedo motor can be combined with a Sea Eagle Solar Panel, and this panel will completely recharge the lithium-ion battery in less than ten hours. The solar panel also charges the battery while the motor is being used. The 45 watt solar panel can be mounted on canopies on dinghies, transom and pontoon boats.

Solar Powered Catamaran

The Travel 1003 Torqeedo motor can monitor your sailing speed with built-in GPS, and the display panel also shows the status of the charging battery. The Sea Eagle Solar Panel is made by US company PowerFilm. It measures 58” x 36” and can be rolled up for storage when not in use.Torqeedo products are available online at West Marine.

Right now, I’m investigating a new travel technique, which I’m calling “Slow Daily Travel”. By going slow (traveling 1o to 100 miles per day), your journey can often become more intriguing and enjoyable. My technique involves traveling as far as you like each day, and then staying overnight in a hotel. The next day you repeat, until you reach your destination. If you pack minimally enough, and you are not in a hurry to get anywhere, this techniques works quite well.

You can use any efficient type of transportation you like to travel. You can walk, cycle, kayak, sail, ride a bus, or ride a train. Electric vehicles are also ideal for this kind of travel because you can recharge your batteries overnight, and have them ready for the next day. You can use electric vehicles like electric bikes, electric kayaks, electric catamarans or dinghies (see the book Sustainable Sailing for more info on electric boats). You can also make use of solar chargers with these vehicles (I’ll be examining solar charging in detail in an upcoming article).

In conjunction with this, I’ve been investigating car-free routes around my home. So far, I’ve discovered a surprising number of car-free routes from my local area, Northern Virginia. Some of the routes include: the WO&D Trail (biking trail from Washington, DC to Purcellville, VA) the C&O Canal Trail (biking trail from Washington, DC to Cumberland, MD), the Great Allegheny Passage (biking trail that goes from Cumberland, MD to Pittsburgh, PA), the Intracoastal Waterway (an inland waterway that goes from Norfolk, VA to Miami, FL). The Chesapeake Bay is also a huge car-free region that you can explore for months in a small boat.

By investigating car-free routes, I’ve actually become more aware of the terrain around my home, and this has made me think differently about my vacation plans. I’ll be going into the details of my slow travel in upcoming articles.

Here are some book I found useful while investigating slow, car-free travel:

Books On Electric Vehicles

• Sustainable Sailing: Go Green When You Cast Off  by Dieter Loibner
• How to Live Well Without Owning a Car: Save Money, Breathe Easier, and Get More Mileage Out of Life by Chris Balish
• Bike Touring: The Sierra Club Guide to Travel on Two Wheel by Raymond Bridge
• Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Seth Leitman
• The Electric Vehicle Conversion Handbook by Mark Warner
• Build Your Own Electric Bicycle by Matthew Slinn

Mid-Atlantic Biking Books

• Rail-Trails Mid-Atlantic: Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC and West Virginia
• Bicycling The Atlantic Coast by Donna Ikenberry Aikenhead
• Linking Up: Planning Your Traffic-Free Bike Trip Between Pittsburgh, PA and Washington, DC  by Mary Shaw and Roy Weil

Mid-Atlantic Boating Books

• The Intracostal Waterway, Norfolk to Miami: The Complete Cockpit Cruising Guide by Jan and Bill Moelier
• Cruising the Chesapeake: A Gunkholer’s Guide by William H. Shellenberger (Hardcover)
• Guide to Cruising Chesapeake Bay 2011 Edition by Staff of Chesapeake Bay Magazine
• Sea Kayaking Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay: Day Trips on the Tidal Tributaries and Coastlines of the Western and Eastern Shore by Michael Savario
• Sea Kayaking Virginia: A Paddler’s Guide to Day Trips from Georgetown to Chincoteague by Andrea Nolan

See also this Wikipedia article on Slow Travel, and the Rails-to-Trails group.

Note: This post on 12V Solar Battery Chargers has been updated for 2010.

Solar cells really shine at charging your batteries at remote location or on a boat. They are also useful for maintaining a charge on a 12V battery, such as a car battery. The best (and most expensive) solar battery chargers are flexible, thin-film solar cells. These cells can be folded and packed away easily.

Sunforce Solar Battery Chargers

You can find get basic solar charger for under $25, such as the Sunforce 1.8 Watt Solar Battery Maintainer. These solar charger are good for trickle charging or topping off the charge of a 12 V battery. Sunforce chargers get good reviews from owners at Amazon.

You can plug the Sunforce 1.8-watt solar charger into your vehicle’s 12-volt lighter socket and position the panel to pick up the most daylight possible. Or, if you prefer, use the alligator clips to connect it directly to the battery, so you can keep your lighter socket open for cell phone chargers or other accessories.

A higher wattage charger will charge your battery more quickly. When in doubt, opt for a higher power charger because owners are often disappointed with the charging times of lower wattage chargers. Sunforce offers a 5 watt charger, a 15 watt charger and a 60 watt charger. However, once you got over 15 watts, rigid solar cells start to get bulky, so you might want to opt for a flexible solar charger (see below)

Another good range of solar charger is the Coleman solar chargers, which are similar to the Sunforce chargers.

Brunton Solaris 26 Fleixble Solar Battery Charger

The Brunton makes a good range of flexible, portable solar cells. Brunton solar charger use CIGS (Copper Indium Gallium diSelenide) instead of the usual silicon.

The entry-level Brunton charger is the Solaris 6, which produces 6 watts of power. However, most remote users opt for the Brunton Solaris 26. This flexible solar charger that generates 26 watts but measures only 21.5” by 37.5″ and folds down to 11″ by 8.5” by 1”. The Solaris 26 is available from Amazon for around $425.

Solaris chargers can charge a laptop, video camera or 12V deep cycle battery. They are often used to charge marine batteries. It takes between 1 and 2 hours to charge a small device using the solar cells. It takes between 4 and 8 hours to fully charge a laptop computer. Brunton’s chargers operate well in low-light conditions such as overcast days.

Brunton Solaris 52 Solar Battery Charger

Brunton also offers the Solaris 52, a 52 watts solar charger. It’s available from Amazon for $891 .

^{The Brunton Solaris 52}

Portable Power Station

A useful addition to a solar charger is a portable power station. A power station will store energy generated by the solar cells, so it can be used when needed (like at night). Brunton offers the Solo series of lightweight power stations. These units can be recharged by plugging them into a USB port, household outlet, vehicle DC outlet (cigarette lighter socket) or by using Brunton’s solar panels.

Brunton’s lightest power station is the Solo 3.4, which weighs just 12 ounces. It has a 3.4 Amp/H lithium-ion battery inside, and it can be used to charge a variety of small electronics. It comes with adaptors for iPod, mini USB Motorola, Nokia, Sony Ericson cell phones, and Playstation PSP.

It’s available from Amazon for around $38.

In November 2008, Brunton will be releasing the Solar 7.5 and Solar 15, which will have larger power storage capacities.

Ken-ichi Horie, a 69 year old Japanese sailor, is planning a solo 4,350 mile trip from Hawaii to Japan using an innovative wave powered boat. If successful, the trip would earn him a Guinness record while simultaneously proving the viability of wave powered propulsion.

His boat, the Suntory Mermaid II, turns wave energy into thrust using two fins mounted beneath the bow. These fins move up and down with the waves and use them to generate “kicks” that propel the boat forward. Another green element of the journey: all of the radios and electrical equipment are solar powered.

The fins will only garner a top speed of 5 knots, so his trip will take about three months.

From the Popular Science article:

This month, 69-year-old Japanese sailor Ken-ichi Horie will attempt to captain the world’s most advanced wave-powered boat 4,350 miles from Hawaii to Japan. If all goes as planned, he’ll set the first Guinness world record for the longest distance traveled by a wave-powered boat and, along the way, show off the greenest nautical propulsion system since the sail.

At the heart of the record-setting bid is the Suntory Mermaid II, a three-ton catamaran made of recycled aluminum alloy that turns wave energy into thrust. Two fins mounted side by side beneath the bow move up and down with the incoming waves and generate dolphin-like kicks that propel the boat forward. “Waves are a negative factor for a ship—they slow it down,” says Yutaka Terao, an engineering professor at Tokai University in Japan who designed the boat’s propulsion system. “But the Suntory can transform wave energy into propulsive power regardless of where the wave comes from.”

Horie’s latest adventure builds on a storied career of eco-sailing. In 1993 he pedaled a boat 4,660 miles, from Hawaii to Okinawa, setting a world record for the longest distance traveled by a pedal-powered boat.

n 1996 he set the world record for the fastest crossing of the Pacific Ocean in a solar-powered boat. And in 1999, he made a solo trip across the Pacific in a catamaran made from recycled beer barrels.

With a maximum speed of five knots, the Suntory will take two to three months to complete a voyage that diesel-powered craft accomplish in just one. But speed is not the point. The voyage aims to prove that wave propulsion can work under real-world conditions, opening up the technology for commercial applications such as cargo shipping. “Oil is a limited power source,” Horie says, “but there is no limit to waves.”

Via: Popular Science

The Gisborne family has completed a 12-day trip on their solar-powered electric boat, the Loon. The Gisbornes travelled the Erie and Oswego canals for 12 days before reaching Albany, New York. Monte Gisborne, the captain, said this will mark the first time anyone has traveled an American canal system using solar electric energy as the primary fuel source.

The Tamarack Lake Electric Boat Company designed “The Loon” — it’s a pontoon boat with 738 watts of solar panels mounted on its cover, and a 30 mile range on its 48 Volt deep-cycle battery array. It has a top speed of a 5 MPH.

The boat is “solar-assisted” because it has a built-in battery charger that allows users to augment the solar energy input with electricity from the utility grid, usually from shore power available at marinas or dockside. Electric boats, unlike gas-powered boats, eliminate the discharge of hydrocarbons into waterways.

Monte Gisborne, in an interview, said this about the efficiency of the boat:

The primary consideration here is that internal combustion automobiles and boats, even in this advanced age of computers and emission controls, are horrendously inefficient. We just cannot seem to turn the energy available in a litre of gasoline as efficiently into mechanical energy as we can into heat.

Negating the obvious benefit of solar, and assuming that my boats will get 100 per cent of their energy from the grid, my system efficiency is at least eight times more efficient than the equivalent gas-powered boat, meaning that I can travel at least eight times as far on a unit of energy than the most efficient gas-powered boat.

The actual truth is that a 1969 Chris Craft boat with twin 454-cubic-inch engines (not uncommon on the waterways) is so horrendously inefficient that my boat costs only 1/150 of the fuel costs to run per km.

Generally, the solar panels provide you with about 16 km of free travel on a sunny day. For most customers, 16 km is ample and, even if you travelled 32 km one day, as long as you don’t use it the next day, you’re fine and the batteries will catch up.

Generally, these are weekend toys that soak up the sun all week long, gathering a charge for the weekend.

Via: Groovy Green and the Globe and Mail

A company called MW-Line in Switzerland has been busy creating solar catamarans for tourism operations, where quietness and clean fuels are major pluses. Their Sun21, a 46 foot catamaran, was the first boat to cross the Atlantic on solar power alone. The Sun21 is actually a commercially available solar Aquabus C60, which holds 60 passengers.

The five-man Swiss crew took less than a month for the Atlantic crossing from the Canary Islands to the Bahamas.

‘Sunny days, we used to go 5 to 6 knots, and a little slower when it was cloudy,’ says the French-speaking skipper, Michel Thonney, of Moudon, Switzerland. ‘I don’t understand why everyone doesn’t use the sun’s power at sea—our voyage was fantastic.’

Thonney has crossed the Atlantic five times, in various vessels. After his latest exploit, though, he is looking for a bigger pond. ‘Our next project is named Planet Solar,’ he notes. ‘We’ll use solar power to take a 30-meter boat clear around the world.’ ‘This proves that in our modern society it is indeed possible to travel the world efficiently and still safeguard the environment.’

The founder of MW-Line is Swiss shipbuilder Mark Wüst. He says MW-Line has built more than 30 Aquabus solar boats for public transportation. These Aquabuses have passenger capacity of between 15 and 75. ‘These electrosolar boats of MW-Line SA are operating on rivers and lakes in France, Switzerland, Germany and France already. The running costs are 20 to 45 times less than for the equivalent powered motor boat.’

Now MW-Line is extending its ranges from Solar Aquabus to leisure boats. It unveiled its latest solar powered houseboat to the public on the lake of Gruyère on Wednesday.

The 8.5-metre (28 feet) Aquabus features a four-bunk cabin, kitchenette and a small bathroom. The cabin’s roof is covered with solar panels supplying the batteries with renewable electricity. The houseboat’s price ranges between US $65,000 to US$110,000.

Via: Sail World