Cruisers with Generators question

MAKC

MAKC

Member
Oct 23, 2006
519
Windsor Locks, CT / Milford, CT
Boat Info
1997 400 Sedan Bridge
Engines
3116 Caterpillar
Hi all I wont even dare mention the portable generator thing here! What im curious about is built-in generators right from Sea Ray. I am considering a move up to a 280 Sundancer (thanks to Jeremy haha!) and there are a few boats im considering. One of them has the built-in generator option from Sea Ray. With all the concerns and talk about CO poisoning, im curious as to how safe these genset options from the dealer are. I know they are built specifically for boats and are vented and have special exhaust system setups. My question is this: Are they safe enough to consider being used overnighting with my family on a mooring or on the hook? The admiral likes the thought of using the A/C on hot summer nights away from the dock but if the reward is compromised by fumes or CO, then i say we sweat or stay hooked up to shore power. Is the 280 big enough to use a built-in generator from Sea Ray safely? Thanks in advance.
 
You'll probably get different answers on this, but I say it can be done safely with the proper precautions. Some things to consider if you choose to do so:

You need a known good (preferably 2) CO monitor in your cabin.

You need to be on the hook or a mooring (not beached, etc) so that your bow is always pointed into the wind.

You need to be away from other moored boats (not rafted).

If you are getting a new boat, insist on one of the new low CO models.

You need to be aware of the symptoms of CO poisoning.

There may be other things I've left out, but people do this safely all the time. Like anything else, you have to be smart about it.
 
maluman said it all.
 
We don't sleep with the genny running because it just does not quite feel right to us. We spend weeks sleeping on our boat every summer. Last fall we had an experience that confirmed the decision at least for us. It was a cold fall evening in October. We were on the hook and the wind was gusting to 35-40 as a squall was beginning to move through the area. We had quite a thunderstorm. Our heat was on because it was in the high 40's. Right at the height of the storm our CO alarms went off-one in the master and the other in the galley. We shut down the genny right away and cracked some hatches but with the weather not very much ventilation was possible until the rain died down. It took 20 minutes of opening hatches, running DC fans before the alarms would reset. We just run the genny for A/C and heat until we go to bed and then shut things down for the night. Diesels produce 10% the CO of a gas genny but I would not trust a diesel genny either for sleeping.
 
Ok Ive got enough info now :) I think based on what I've read and learned, i would run the AC/Heat until i went to sleep and then shut it all down. I realize that for when i would actually NEED the genny, i could actually live without the option and save myself some money on my upgrade. Now the question becomes, do i want to pay more money for a boat with radar...Hmmmm lol Thanks for all the replies.

Mike
 
That's what I usually do - cool it down with the genny and then rely on 12v fans to keep it comfortable thru the night. Plus, I like the fan noise.

Don't forget about resale ramifications. A 280 with a genset is going to be worth more and be more widely attractive to buyers than one without.
 
I plan on using my 8K option as much as I can this summer.
I will take the necessary precautions and I have already asked Santa for a battery powered CO detector. This will be in addition to the one already installed. I will sleep, eat, watch TV, and whatever else possible with that thing running. One thing I wont do this summer is sweat! I intend to get my moneys worth :wink:
 
First... your welcome or I'm sorry (whichever applies) :grin:

In our area have regular periods of near 100, 100, and 105+ temps... if the good ol "Delta breeze" does not kick up... it will remain very warm throughout the evening. When we have a warm evening we have had very good success with running the AC (before we retire to the cabin) for about an hour or more lowering the temp about 10 degrees below where we would normally set it.... or just use the low setting and turn the fan on full... get all of the heat out of the fabrics..... and stuff in the cabin... keep the doors closed as much as possible... without the direct sunlight we have found that the cabin will stay comfortable. In addition to the built in CO detector we keep 2 other battery powered units onboard. We have never had these guys go off.

I don't think I would ever own a cruiser without a generator (now that I have experienced how easy it makes things)...

The HVAC and resale aside think of the other items that the genset runs.... Microwave, stove, TV (In some boats), water heater. I think (guys with more knowledge on non-genset boats please correct me if I am wrong) the hot water in a non-genset boat is made hot by running one of the engines (not sure what has more CO a V-6./V-8 or a 2 cylinder genset) after a cool night on the hook (and the water is no longer warm in the tank). I think the microwave and electric stoves are unavailable unless shore power is around. I think there is an option for a butane type stove... but I am not familiar with this. The genset makes all of this easier.... and last but not least... if you use a bit more battery power than you expected.... and the mains won't crank..... I bet the little 2 cylinder genset motor will.... then you flip on the charger (AC Converter) take a hot shower..... or cook up some eggs.... and then fire the mains.... instead of calling for a tow.

Wether you have one or not... you are still sitting on a boat... so life is real good. I just prefer to have one.
 
We have two summers in bullhead city were the temps can stay above 100 at night and the boat has gotten so hot through the day that we have no choice but to run it. Use your co detectors, keep the boat in correct direction for the wind and above all else just use common sense. :thumbsup:
 
do NOT, i repeat, do NOT buy a boat that size without a genny! also, i would never go to bed with the genny on - too much chance of waking up dead. did you ever notice that at night or in the wee hours of the morning (no wind whatsoever), in an anchorage or a bay with boats on moorings, every boat is pointing in a different direction. God knows where the fumes from a running generator will wind up in this situation.
 
Two other considerations. If your run it at night, it's best to do so in an achorage where your neighbors are far away. It's a little rude to be the only one making noise. Also, you should rethink how much you drink. Alcohol lowers your tolerance to CO significantly and makes it harder to wake up if the detector goes off.
 
The responses seem to depend on geography. Here in south FL, there is no sleeping on board in the summer w/o AC <too hot and too humid>. We run the genset at night all the time at anchor. But we do take precautions. The genset is newer and well maintained <I just changed the clamps on the exhaust hoses this weekend just to be sure they were good>. We have a hard wired CO detector and a portable battery operated one with a digial read out as a back-up <plus a smoke detector>.

As mentioned, don't run in when you are beached, rafted-up, or against a seawall.

The CO deaths I have read about seem to be when someone one was swimming behind a boat with the genset running, floating on a raft, laying out on the swim platform, etc. Has anyone heard about CO effecting people when they were sleeping on board? If so, what were the specifics?
 
Last summer ('05) a couple died from co poisoning while sleeping in a cruiser on a lake in the Lakeland Florida area. I don't remember all the details but as I recall there were 3 boats rafted together and the one in the middle had the fatalities. They had a portable generator onboard, but there was speculation that the killer fumes may have come from a built-in genset on an adjacent boat.
 
I use the generator any time at anchor. Never a problem. CO Alarm never goes off. Exception-raft ups. Then CO alarm always goes off.
 
LMBoat said:
The CO deaths I have read about seem to be when someone one was swimming behind a boat with the genset running, floating on a raft, laying out on the swim platform, etc. Has anyone heard about CO effecting people when they were sleeping on board? If so, what were the specifics?
Click to expand...
Not sure of the specifics but 6 people died in 05 from CO according to the CG. I really thought that number would be much higher.
 
MAKC said:
My question is this: Are they safe enough to consider being used overnighting with my family on a mooring or on the hook? The admiral likes the thought of using the A/C on hot summer nights away from the dock but if the reward is compromised by fumes or CO, then i say we sweat or stay hooked up to shore power. Is the 280 big enough to use a built-in generator from Sea Ray safely? Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

Personally, we do not run ours when we are sleeping on the boat and we usually leave a hatch open when it's on. Though we are the minority in our area, almost everyone runs theirs. I added 2 carbon monixide detectors to our cabin just in case. We run ours long enough to charge up the batteries and cool the cabin down then we shut it off. I think they are safe enough as is, out of the box from the dealer, but why chance it is our opinion.
 
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