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Ocean Alexander 46 - Panakeia

Terry and Karin live on their boat, Panakeia, for five months of the year. They spend their first couple of weeks in Vancouver to load up and settle in, then head out to the islands. They bought their 50-foot Ocean Alexander trawler three years ago.

Terry and Karin really appreciated that Jeff spent time with them to work out what they needed. "We talked over problems and solutions and adapted our plan to incorporate new ideas - we ended up with exactly what we wanted.

 It's pretty rare, says Terry,  to find somebody in this industry—another boater—who speaks your language. When that person is a systems engineer and a certified installer, it's a pretty great package.

They say it's the perfect retired person's boat—lots of space, high bridge, good visibility, and comfortable. But manufacturers build a pretty bare-bones boats, and most owners don't live or cruise on their boats for extended periods, so Panakeia's systems needed upgrading and customizing, which is why they contacted Pacific Yacht Systems.

Until fairly recently most boats had limited electrical needs: propane stove, a few lights, maybe a diesel furnace. Now some boats, like Panakeia, have a fridge, freezer, washer, dryer, dishwasher, microwave/convection oven, TV, VCR, computer, diesel hot-water heat, electronic engines, radar, and chartplotter—boats need the electrical system of a small house.

"It has been a learning experience for everybody in the industry, including manufacturers" says Terry. "There's no how-to manual—it's moving so fast that you need the background to be able to figure out why and how yourself; being an engineer, Jeff has that expertise."

Jeff calculated how much power was needed and worked backward from there. With big boats, people often settle for having the generator on all the time, but Terry and Karin were looking for peace and quiet.

PYS put in a new Mastervolt 100-3 Charger, added new batteries, and put in a new inverter. Now the generator needs to be on for only three hours a day to meet Panakeia's electrical needs, and Terry and Karin can anchor out for longer periods.

"We're pretty self-sufficient now" says Terry. "It's basically a floating condominium."