Groucho
Well-Known Member
Agree with most of the above. No way I would have a boat 28' or more without a generator..I mostly use mine for my 5:00 coffee every night. Worth every penny.
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The way we use our boat the generator doesn't play a big part in the experience. Resale however is important. I think you would be better off to have it and not use it.Long story short—all depends how you plan to use the boat. I also feel resale is better too
I vote get one with a generator, but make sure to get one with a sound shield!
My 310 has no sound shield on the generator. The sound it makes doesn't really bother me, but my wife can't stand it so we run it a lot less than we would. Honestly I think the blowers are louder than even the unshielded generator.
My cabin would be nearly permanently air conditioned if I had my druthers. I do overrule her if we've been on the hook for a while, and we run it when cooking -- it's mandatory for the Kenyon grill and the microwave.
I've looked at adding a sound shield, either the Kohler OEM one or an aftermarket model, but near as I can tell they all involve quite a bit of effort, which I think included unbolting and lifting the generator, something I'd have have done by a real shop.
But—we do use it and I think that is key. The marina where we keep the boat says most of the generators they work on are the ones where people never use them—until they try to.
Tiara deals with the genny noise problem in two ways that are very effective. First of all they use Westerbeke gennys in many if not all of their Open models. WBs run at lower RPMs than other brands so the noise levels are lower. Secondly, the cockpits floors of later model Tiaras are heavily insulated with sound deadening materials glassed into the floors and finished on both sides so it can not be seen or damaged going into and out of the ER. The ER is the sound shield and the result is a very quiet boat. The gennys are almost inaudible to your neighbors when running in a anchorage. The sound inside the boat is a steady hum that is not objectionable. Something to consider when shopping for your next boat.I vote get one with a generator, but make sure to get one with a sound shield!
My 310 has no sound shield on the generator. The sound it makes doesn't really bother me, but my wife can't stand it so we run it a lot less than we would. Honestly I think the blowers are louder than even the unshielded generator.
My cabin would be nearly permanently air conditioned if I had my druthers. I do overrule her if we've been on the hook for a while, and we run it when cooking -- it's mandatory for the Kenyon grill and the microwave.
I've looked at adding a sound shield, either the Kohler OEM one or an aftermarket model, but near as I can tell they all involve quite a bit of effort, which I think included unbolting and lifting the generator, something I'd have have done by a real shop.
WTF!Just make sure you strap it down real good.
View attachment 78351
Just make sure you strap it down real good.
View attachment 78351
We had our WB genny serviced by the local distributor in Spring Lake and it provided reliable service. It could be a little finicky to start for the first time coming out of storage in the Spring. After 5-10 minutes it always came to life and ran with out issues until it was winterized in the fall. We followed the maintenance rountine by the book, which was not cheap. This saved us the frustration that so many complain about on boat forums. I will add that it did not get lots of use. We averaged about 30 hours a year over the 15 years we owned the boat. Some years it ran for hours straight and then some years not so much. I believe this is a case of you get what you pay for.It's threads like these that make many of us quickly forget how much pain and suffering can be associated with a generator.
Our dear generators can be 1.) many times the hardest to access system on the boat, 2.) substantially impacted by non-use (in a bad way), 3.) often times rather difficult to trouble shoot (110v side, 12v side, fuel system, cooling system, oil pressure, etc) and 4.) require rather special skills to repair when dealing with the electrical side (ie, not all marinas are equally awesome at servicing generators, get a capacitor replaced to prove this ).
I wouldn't own a boat without a generator but man.....there isn't any other system on the boats I've owned that I've spent more time cussing about.
It's threads like these that make many of us quickly forget how much pain and suffering can be associated with a generator.
Our dear generators can be 1.) many times the hardest to access system on the boat, 2.) substantially impacted by non-use (in a bad way), 3.) often times rather difficult to trouble shoot (110v side, 12v side, fuel system, cooling system, oil pressure, etc) and 4.) require rather special skills to repair when dealing with the electrical side (ie, not all marinas are equally awesome at servicing generators, get a capacitor replaced to prove this ).
I wouldn't own a boat without a generator but man.....there isn't any other system on the boats I've owned that I've spent more time cussing about.