We purchased Daedalus Adventure new in June 2017, taking delivery in Les Sables-d’Olonne, France. It came equipped with a wind turbine and two flexible solar panels on the roof. Being a charter version, it also had a 12kW generator – serious overkill. It performed reasonably well in the Mediterranean, but we encountered our first problems during the Atlantic crossing.
In the main cabin, we had a 90-liter external freezer with a 12-volt option. We also had a standard small fridge and freezer, both 45 liters. The generator consumed about 5 liters of fuel per hour, roughly the same as the engine, so there was little difference in fuel consumption whether we ran the engine or the generator.
Our first major issue was power management. At night, when the waves and wind picked up, the angle at which we were sailing caused the waves to toss us around considerably, requiring the autopilot to work much harder than usual. During the day, the single wind turbine and two small flexible solar panels couldn’t generate enough power, forcing us to frequently run the generator to recharge the batteries. Knowing that the trip had just begun and that the Pacific lay ahead, we knew we had to improve our power generation.
We decided to install another wind turbine and three large solar panels. The marina had a great shop with reasonable prices, but the problem was finding someone to install them, especially considering it was December 20th and Christmas was just around the corner. The marina was already decorated for the holidays, and we were searching for a technician. The only person available was a guy known as “ChinaMan.”
We visited the dry dock several times but couldn’t seem to catch him. One day, when we again asked for ChinaMan, someone pointed inside. We entered a small workshop where a black man was welding. When he finished, we explained that we needed ChinaMan regarding the installation of solar panels. The man replied, “That’s me. They told me you’d been looking for me.” We were confused – a large black man with slightly slanted eyes.
We explained our situation. He said it would be difficult to finish before Christmas and that he wouldn’t work on Christmas Day, but he would try to complete the job in a few days. He said he would source the materials, as there was a lot of work involved: precise measurements, welding the mounts, and then bolting everything securely to the boat in a way that wouldn’t interfere with daily use. Everything, of course, had to be stainless steel and not excessively heavy.
True to his word, he took the measurements and finished the job two days after Christmas – absolutely incredible. We were thrilled. He said he was 25% Chinese. He had two wonderful children who looked like twins, though they weren’t, having different mothers and only three months between them. Because it was partly a family business, everyone came and worked together on the project. There was no stopping until the mounts were installed and the panels were connected.
Now we had more than enough power, and we could continue our journey. St. Lucia was now behind us.
