Story by Andrew Holland / July 18, 2018
It’s not unfamiliar for anyone working in the yachting industry to run into the question of what generator size is required on a particular boat. An answer will depend on a few variables, such as the boat’s size, where the boat will be spending most of its time, and whether there will be access to shore power. However, the most telling question a sailor can ask is how often air conditioning is needed.
In our client’s experiences, they often over-power their boats—meaning they will equip their boat with a generator more powerful than is actually required. This results in a more costly and unnecessary expense for an owner. But how can one determine which size is right?
The first question we ask clients is how many evenings per year they think they will need to run a generator for air conditioning while they are at anchor. The answer is often when clients are stuck in windless marinas where there isn’t the necessary airflow into the boat to cool it down that one resorts to turn the A/C on, not just anchoring in a place known to be hot and humid.
However, while dockside you’ll have the ability to plug your boat into shore power, so you will not be dependent on your generator. To bring your boat to a frigid chill, you may need as much as 15 amps of power, all depending on how large your boat is.
The best piece of advice we can give to those in the market to buy a boat is to get sufficient air conditioning to completely chill the boat dockside and get a smaller generator to run one or two of the air conditioning units for the rare days that are uncontrollably hot or humid at anchor.
Have a question you want answered by our expert brokers? Drop an email to in**@**************ny.com today!
We had an outstanding experience working with Andrew Hodgdon to find our dream boat, an Outremer 52.
We were actually referred to him by several different people—clients who had been very happy working with him, as well as boat owners who were planning to use him to sell their own boats. After working with Andrew ourselves, we completely understand why he came so highly recommended.
We worked with him for several months, and from start to finish, he was exceptional. Andrew is incredibly knowledgeable and truly an expert when it comes to performance catamarans. He took the time to understand exactly what we were looking for, was always responsive and organized, and never made us feel pressured throughout the process.
Andrew went above and beyond to arrange showings for us in multiple states and even traveled to another state to be there with us for the sea trial. His expertise and guidance gave us tremendous confidence as we evaluated such a significant purchase.
The entire process could have been overwhelming, but he made it remarkably smooth. He was on top of every detail and made the paperwork and closing process easy, working seamlessly with his team at The Multihull Company.
What impressed us most was that he genuinely had our best interests in mind. And his support didn’t end when the sale was completed. He has continued to stay in touch and has made it clear that he is still available to help us if we ever need him. That kind of follow-through is rare and speaks volumes about the kind of broker he is.
Buying an Outremer 52 was a huge decision and a major investment, and having someone with his knowledge, experience, responsiveness, and integrity made the entire experience so much easier and more enjoyable.
We couldn’t recommend Andrew Hodgdon more highly. If you’re looking for a yacht broker—especially if you’re considering a performance catamaran—we would choose him again without hesitation. The fact that so many people recommended him to us was the reason we called him, and after working with him, we would be one of those people recommending him to others.
I highly recommend Andrew Hodgdon. He served as our buyers broker. He is responsive, highly knowledgeable and very experienced. He is also an excellent guide and counselor before, during and after the boat purchase process. If you are looking for a good-sailing cat, he seems to collect most of the available boats on the better-sailing side of the market. Top marks.
Andrew did an excellent job getting me started on my new adventures. Worked with my conflicting schedule. Is very knowledgeable in the catamaran industry. 😎
I recently sold my Lagoon 450 with the Multihull Team. I would highly recommend their services. The professionalism and personal treatment I received was greatly appreciated.
Great Service, Great People
Helped me through the process.
I would go through them again in a future purchase.
Successful relationships cannot exist without it. At The Multihull Company we base every relationship on a firm commitment to earning and retaining our client’s trust.
Advice of any kind is valuable only when grounded in hard-won expertise. It too, must be trustworthy. Trust and expertise define the heart and soul of The Multihull Company. We are a team of skilled professionals who thrive on providing expert, trustworthy advice and service to catamaran and trimaran sailors around the globe.
More About Multihull
