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Our canal boats for sale are also sustainable

Our canal boats for sale are also sustainable

Friday, August 30, 2024

Our aim is to build completely sustainable, carbon-neutral, live-aboard house boats. Now that we have managed to get 90% of our propulsion and electrical energy from the sun, we have almost completely negated the need to burn fossil fuels. However, this relies on your boat laying in a south facing position and still won’t allow you to cruise throughout the winter.

Customers who are continuous cruisers and living in central London, find sunny moorings hard to come by and often need to move their boat every 2 weeks. A simple remedy for this, is a small back-up generator running very occasionally.

We delivered a boat recently to a loch in Ireland where we were unsure how much daylight (free energy) they would benefit from. Wind turbines need a constant breeze, so don’t perform well in a city or in between buildings - but Loch Erne is a very exposed location with uninterrupted wind coming over the water almost all year round - so our solution was a 1200w wind turbine mounted on a mast, which, so far, its going extremely well.

To bolster the heating capacity of a boat in the winter we use recycled eco logs which are made from compressed hardwood shavings, although this is burning a wood by-product, the original tree grew for many decades absorbing carbon, so with this type of fuel, in effect we are part of a carbon-cancelling cycle.

Other things we've done to make our canals boats sustainable throughout the 4 main winter months is to triple the standard insulation and add triple glazed windows - containing whatever heat energy we have created and our heat recovery ventilation system helps keep the air fresh clean and warm. We're also experimenting with water source heat pumps to be even more sustainable.

Iain Cattroll
wrote
Sunday, September 15, 2024
Great article thanks













        THAMES SOLAR ELECTRIC BOATS

The UK's first supplier of solar electric boats and propulsion systems 
No fossil fuels - No energy bills - No noise

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"A quiet revolution in inland boating" Waterways World

Solar powered
Off-grid

A rooftop array of highly efficient solar panels provides all the energy which powers both the motors and all onboard domestic appliances. A large battery bank stores unused energy for whenever you need it. 
And yes, it works in winter!

Peaceful & Pollution free

No diesel engine means no diesel fumes and no noise. Electric motors power you almost silently through the water. With a full battery, you can cruise for up to 10 hours without additional daylight. In summer, you can keep going until you're ready to moor.

Sustainable
Eco-solutions

A wide range of additional eco-solutions are available to compliment our solar powered widebeams, narrowboats and barges. Triple glazing, superior insulation, heat recovery systems, even rainwater harvesting all help you get even better use from your energy.

Uncompromised
Luxury

Being eco doesn’t mean compromising on style. Our fully fitted boats are designed to maximise space and incorporate a bespoke bathroom and luxury kitchen with a full range of energy-efficient domestic appliances, such as electric induction hob and dishwasher. 
We are able to offer viewings of current boats at our build yard by appointment only.
You can take a virtual tour of The SunFlower on our VIDEO page and on YouTube.  

Fully-fitted boats

Our fully fitted boats are bespoke builds from start to finish. Widebeams, narrowboats and barges. Turnkey projects with nothing for you to do but start the motors and go.

Sailaway/Sailaway Lined

Our basic Sailaways include the steel shell of the boat, primed and blackened hull, our Solar Electric Propulsion System (SEPS), triple glazed windows and doors, triple insulation and a plywood subfloor ready for you to sailaway and begin your own internal fit out. Our Sailaway-lined options also include first fix electrics and plumbing, and wall panels ready for you to finish to your requirements.

Solar Electric Propulsion Systems

Our Solar Electric Propulsion System (SEPS) packages can be supplied directly so that you or your boatbuilder can build your own solar powered electric widebeam, narrowboat or barge. We also offer installation and consultancy services. 
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