Hello

We are planning to spend a good part of next winter in the Bahamas, and we
prefer to moor/anchor rather than stay at a marina.

How practical is it while in the Bahamas to plan to cruise around every
couple of days to recharge batteries, top up hot water, run the fridge etc?
The batteries are probably the most important; we can heat water in a kettle
and use a sun shower , not sure about doing without refrigeration.

We're wondering if boats there tend to stay put rather than cruising around;
or if weather will dictate that we stay put for extended periods of time.

The question came up this week when we were looking at 110v/propane fridges;
the salesman suggested that a generator would be the better solution.  We
will be looking into gensets but expect that they are too expensive.  So we
are tossing ideas around, one of them being just to plan to be on the move
every few days or go to a marina when necessary.  The other solution is to
put in a propane demand water heater and propane fridge, but we aren't sure
about so much propane on the boat, and that doesn't address the battery
issue.

We knew that so many of you have been to the Bahamas several times, and so
would have experience.

Thank you
Darby

Darby wrote, "<snip> The question came up this week when we were looking at
110v/propane fridges; the salesman suggested that a generator would be the
better solution.  We will be looking into gensets but expect that they are
too expensive.  So we are tossing ideas around, one of them being just to
plan to be on the move every few days or go to a marina when necessary.  The
other solution is to put in a propane demand water heater and propane
fridge, but we aren't sure about so much propane on the boat, and that
doesn't address the battery issue."

Once an Engineer always an Engineer. I hear that safety alarm going off
inside my head.

Absorption refrigeration is not recommend for boat applications. Those units
are only designed for operation in a stationary position and require that
they be level during operation. Here is an excerpt from
http://www.thenaturalhome.com/gasappliances.htm, "Gas refrigerators are
designed for residential use in dwellings only.  They are not designed for
mobile home or recreational vehicle use.  When a gas refrigerator is in
motion, say in a vehicle, boat, or trailer, the continuous rolling and
pitching movement will not affect the actual cooling operation of the unit.
Safety with gas appliances is the issue.  Once you reach a stationary point
for an extended period, the gas refrigerator must be level and stable for
correct operation."

Here is an excerpt from http://www.homedoctor.net/tipsfaq/8.4.html, "Gas
refrigerators are very reliable but require a different kind of thinking to
fix them -- they don't have a compressor. They use what is called a
"generator" and the closed system uses a mixture of water, hydrogen, and
normally ammonia. The closed system is a cast iron unit and normally doesn't
fail, unless it's operated while it's not level."

I think there is a reason that no reputable builder will install propane
Refrigeration systems in boats. I think they just aren't safe.

Cheers;
Mike Schooley
Designing "Portager" a 36' trailerable trawler

Bob wrote, "But Mike.  Almost ALL RV manufacturers install these reefers in
their products...and they work great, underway and at rest."

I used to have with one and I noted a warning in the manual to only use
propane while stationary and after leveling. The intent is while you are
underway you will use electrical power.

If you search the archives you will see Paul Browning did a propane frig
survey in 1999. I think he had about 20 responses and only one was negative
(although I understand the trawler made a nice reef). If your intent is to
build a ICW motor home you can probably get away with it. If you get a
combined gas/electric unit and only use gas on the hook in calm waters can
probably get away with it.

Nuf said.

Cheers;
Mike Schooley
Designing "Portager" a 36' trailerable trawler

Mike........... You mean to tell me you would rather live on a possible Gas
Bomb instead of getting a generator. What kind of engineer are you.
Ever see a boat blow up, I've seen two at seperate times about 100 ft. away
each time. It wasn't very pretty when the carried the occupants by our
slip. I'd go back to the drawing board.

.
Captain Al Pilvinis

"M/V Driftwood"--Prairie 47
2630 N.E. 41st Street
Lighthouse Point, Fl 33064-8064
Voice 954-941-2556 Fax 954 788-2666
Email  yourcaptain@earthlink.net
Website http://home.earthlink.net/~yourcaptain