Hey, uhm, a couple people and I were looking into buying a cheap old boat and making it sailable. The idea is to create a self-sufficient communal seaborne party house.
I'm trying to get some vague information on what exactly we would need to make it work energywise.
I'm trying to keep it on DC as much as possible, with a (Bio)Diesel generator as well as a small windmill and a submerged generator.
I'm not sure on the specifics of how much power we'll need yet, but what, generally, would we need for about probably 20 people at a constant party? Equipmentwise, how big of a diesel generator we would need, etc.
I haven't been able to count up all the electronics we'd need yet, so I don't have an exact number for how much power we'd be needing.
Is there anybody off-grid who can share their advice here?

cooling would be the largest draw,ie, air conditioning/refrigeration. those could be partially accomplished with out compressors by running heat exchanger hoses into the cooler water, operated with a good 12 or 24vdc pump,or driven,as a water pump, off a running engines drive belts. a few cheap power inverters will run a pretty loud stereo, and several of those new tube type energy efficient lightbulbs. i have a $29 350 watt inverter that changes 12vdc to 110v ac. when the power goes out, i can run my tv,stereo,computer and 2-4 lights off my truck battery.only for a little while, though. with just one battery, i have to start the veggie datsun where the inverter lives. i have a home stereo in the truck,and plug in a big window fan in the summer.when people ask me how im running the fan, i just look and say, what you dont have wall plugs in your car??you got ripped.LOL then i show them the setup.my $20 junk store technics 200 watt tuner rocks far better than most $300 12 volt car stereos. why pay premium for 12v compatable low draw bulbs,tv, computer,stereo,etc, when standard junk store stuff can be used with a cheap inverter. tell me what you want to run, and i can set you up with some real numbers or a whole system. you can produce power at 12v, if you like, but you dont have to use it at that level. for large draw things like window air conditioners, regular refrigerators, microwaves,etc,inverters get more expensive,check ebay.refriges are available that run on propane, or,really any reliable heat sourse.jc whitney sells a 12v air conditioner, i think for campers. a few of those, with water cooling added, may be eneough. your excess generator engine heat or solar heat may be used to trim real fuel use. i can show you a 4ftx4ft solar reflector that can turn a beercan to smoke, so, what do you want to set up??

if you want to get really creative, you can use 12v,wind,solar or a few other things to make hydrogen gas from the water around you, and compost the toilet and foodscraps to make natural gas(methane).both of which, treated properly, can heat water or oven or people on the boat, or run a gasoline genset

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Originally posted by powersavers:
if you want to get really creative, you can use 12v,wind,solar or a few other things to make hydrogen gas from the water around you, and compost the toilet and foodscraps to make natural gas(methane).both of which, treated properly, can heat water or oven or people on the boat, or run a gasoline genset

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It is a bit of a waste to use solar/wind to electrolyse hydrogen, unless you have already recharged your batteries. You would also have problems with compression & storage of the H2.
I agree about the methane though , it has potential if you have a few people (and they are not on antibiotics) to feed the digester with waste

I've long since given up on Hydrogen.
Too expensive and inefficient tp produce and use.
I am interested in trying to find a way to produce methane if it can help me produce biodiesel. Think it can be purified to that level?
I'm also wondering about this heat exchange system. Would it work with a passive solar water heater typer setup on the roof but run to an air conditioner or something?

I'll get on trying to get an list together of all the equipment we'll be needing to run, but I'm not exactly too hopeful that it'll be finished anytime soon, hehehe...
Oh, uhm...that composting toilet...would a diabetic onboard create any problem with that? Just wondering, because one of the people is one and I'd hate to have to alienate him by doing something as silly as having to segregate the bathrooms, hehehe ^_^
Thanks, I'll try to get a list now then

Methane digesters are not affected bt insulin or lack of it. Antibiotics really screvv up the biotics which make it work.
Only invite well people to your parties

some solar refigerators use regular solar panels to power the low draw compressor inside, others concentrate the sun and run like a camper fridge,by causing ammonia to boil and condense. activated charcoal and methanol are also used in some setups. i just saw some big inverters at home depot. 1000watts was $189, 3000 watts was $600, if you wanted to use window type a/c. another bet would be to use an a/c setup hooked to your generator engine, like an automotive system.with a belt drive instead of an electric compressor. the solar cooling units are mainly used to make ice, then you use a heat exchanger to cool air with it.but may be too big for a boat. search solar cooling, solar refrigeration or solar ice to get started. and there is always the old crosley icyball to investigate