40' Solar-Electric Cruiser (1989) - ALGEMAC II

This is a wooden 40 foot Totally Electric Powered Solar (TEPS)tm boat having the entire drive power, electronics, appliances and mechanicals energized only by the Sun’s power. Since its concept in 1986 several different electric motors, control systems and photovoltaic modules have been used, developed and successfully applied.

Living accommodations are replete with a pull down queen size bed plus two fold out singles. The boat sleeps 4 but was created for two full time live aboards. A true, completely composting (fully digesting to loam) head, 6′-4″ standing shower, air conditioning, hot water, refrigeration, convection microwave and induction cook top are all powered by electricity from the Sun.

Initial concept and design started in 1986 for a 30 foot family boat to ply the waters and estuaries of North Carolina, providing long term travel without refueling, smoke, noise, sails and all these features in a boat with less than an 18 inch (.46m) draft.

A 1/2 inch per foot scale model was made from a one sheet C size drawing & table of offsets for a 30 foot Garvey type hull purchased from Graham Byrnes of B&B Yacht Design. The numbers and station locations were typed into my 1985 Prime Computer using Medusa 3D solids modeling software to produce a 3D color rendering, exploded parts views, a set of scaled and full sized plotted frame templates, bill of materials, mass moments of inertia, center of gravity, volume and weight data. This collection of computer data formed the basis around which the first prototype of the MOG Canal Boat was designed. Boat builder Nelson L. Silva and I worked from the finalized data for the the build project, a full time job for nearly two years in his Wilmington, NC shop.

Framed using 2×4 treated pine and planked with 3/8, 1/2, 3/4 and transom of 1 inch AA marine fir plywood, the hull was West System glassed with epoxy. A close look at the radius and fillet areas of the clean white finish paint shows no cracks or crazing in her nearly 35 years, a true testament to select woods, AA grade plywood assembled by boat wrights having decades of experience. This is most probably the reason why, while on the hook, she had ridden out 5 named hurricanes in NC and suffered only a few cosmetic scratches, all above the waterline.

After 12 years, the 30 foot original boat was lengthened 3 feet at the stern and 7 feet for a new pointed bow. The roof and window areas were further trimmed for cleaner lines. A new roof mount system was added to hold 11 of the Sharp 235 watt solar modules used to charge the boat’s batteries. All the work was performed by Richard Reid and me at his Wilmington shop, less than a mile from Nelson Silva’s boat shop where the original 30 foot had been built.

The MOG Canal Boat has been invited to complimentary in water display slips by the NMMA (National Marine Manufacturers Association), as a solar electric boat concept craft, featured at many of their shows. A larger 1.5 inch to 1 foot concept model of the future 40 foot MOG Canal Boat was displayed during the Concept Craft Exhibitions inside the Jacob Javits Center NYC and Cobo Hall for the Chicago Boat Show (5 foot model only). The 30 foot Algemac II was requested for two Miami Boat Shows and a Tampa Boat Show in water displays. The first international invitation of the 30 foot original was at the 1994 Annapolis Boat Show as an invitational in water display twice. After the 1994 Annapolis show, the boat proceeded only by solar electricity to Wilmington, NC on her own hull, a distance of 512 miles during some very inhospitable, rainy, windy and overcast weather often against the tide..

One of the most memorable events was an invitation to an in water event by the EBA (Electric Boat Association). Colonial lake, a large pond near the center of the historic homes area of Charleston, SC was the in water show’s site. The lake depth was about 30 inches not counting a number of old tires and discarded shopping carts hidden below the alluring surface.

The MOG, Algemac II, was the largest of all craft by far in the diminutive Charleston, SC lake, causing quite a stir when a 25 ton boom crane truck lifted her into the water and days later hauled her out. She and others such as Budsin Wood Craft, Doug Little of Black River Boats, an Elco launch and some homemade electric boats appeared in news papers and on the TV news. The excitement was usual whenever arriving in towns.

The MOG has recently received a delivery of a new set of 12 power storage batteries after the previous set being in use 7 years An additional set of 8 batteries will be added around the end of April 2024, about 75% of available battery space.

The batteries are marine deep cycle, flooded cell, from Walmart. With flooded cell the recharge can be quite robust with no dependance on battery management electronics. The rooftop photovoltaic hard modules totaling 2,585 watts weighing 484 pounds will be replaced by flexible modules with the result shedding 304 pounds whilst nearly doubling the array output to 5,000 watts.

This new array should provide 6 knots without drawing down on the batteries during full sunlight. On overcast days, the batteries would be used more, yielding a thirty mile day’s travel before reduction to 80% depth of charge. At day’s end electric storage would still have power left for creature comforts including air conditioning at night. Travel the next day would continue as the day before. One would manage their power as would a sailor with wind or fossil fuels. No diversions to marinas needed for fuel, no raising sails, tacking, staying in channel for keel depths over 18 inches…. solar sailing the Mog is so very quiet and different, there is no parallel..

The maintenance and integrity of the Algemac II’s wood and marine AA plywood, epoxy/glass covered and two part urethane painted boat, has been easy to clean and economical to run to say the least. No maintenance items such as oil, carbon based fuels, spark/glow plugs, fuel pumps, fuel polishing, water pumps, soot removal, engine vibration, noise, sail drying, sheet hauling, sail stowage, rigging maintenance and exhaust runs or boom swings are required. With the MOG’s technology always updating, there is no range anxiety. In fact the Algemac II’s range is unlimited. By fishing and foraging responsibly, there is no limit to living in the Marine Off Grid boat environment. Anywhere there is knee deep water the boat can rest ashore without harm.

Going to the beach is a real hoot. Local kayakers scratch their heads as the MOG silently glides through estuarial knee deep waters to beach itself right next to their boats. Even more amazed are they when the tides goes out, the craft remains level on the twin skegs and armored fore foot design. At the end of the day they go home leaving us the evening to cook dinner, have some wine, take a dip & shower, then turn on the air conditioner for those hot nights.

A totally electric powered solar boat such as the MOG is a dream come true and with technology, has now come into its own. Barring any more family medical interventions for us, we will get back into the cruising mode as soon as possible. Remember this please, if you can dream it, this boat is very close to being the dream. You can read & watch more about the MOG as it progresses toward being under weigh again through our site and blog.

The Great Loop is still being pursued by this most most unique Totally Electric Powered Solar yacht, having no internal combustion engines, dockside power, hybrid generators or sails needed. Someday the MOG Canal Boat might be out on the market as a machine cut kit for a custom build in a yard near you. In the meantime we enjoy the one and only Algemac II, our MOG (Marine Off Grid) Canal Boat.

Videos below are from different time periods, primarily before and after lengthening the boat from 30 to 40 feet.
Also different are the motors that propel the boat. Initially there were two 5 hp 48 VDC, then two 10 hp 24VDC converted Mercury outboards and currently three 2 hp Torqeedo motors.