When we took delivery of Old Nick in December 2020, it was not without a certain level of trepidation. Being willing "guinea pigs" of the first all Vetus serial hybrid solution and the first vessel in the UK to fit their brand new E-Line 10KW electric engine, did feel slightly like a leap of faith. Now, after two seasons cruising the UK's inland waterways, we could not be more pleased with our original decision.With more than 1,250 miles and 1,050 locks under our belts, we wanted to try and summarise our experiences (both good and bad) of living on an electric narrowboat and show that the technology "is there" and that anyone commissioning a new narrowboat should seriously consider this greener solution.An electric narrowboat is different and it takes time to adapt your boating habits to this new technology. After the initial shock of completely silent and fume free cruising, the first thing that everyone struggles with is how fast am I going? The lack of engine noise is great, but it is also how most people judge their speed. With an electric engine there are some small sounds, like the bubbling of the water, the slight vibration and cavitation noise as the engine RPM increases, but they are subtle and it takes time to learn the signs.We learnt pretty quickly that the secret to efficient helming of an electric narrowboat, is to regularly check the engine RPM and engine current. Our Ortomate display, developed by Ortomarine, was great for this, displaying all of the boat's data including a clear and simple "cruising display" on our phones or tablets.
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