Oceans of Horsepower
The Oceans of Hope carries a wide array of systems ranging from computers for weather and navigation, to electronic autopilots and an electric water pump. These all require electricity to function while at sea. Having a 3,000 mile long electricity cable connected to shore is, of course, highly impractical. So the yacht must be self-sufficient in terms of creating energy. A large bank of batteries supplies the systems and these batteries need recharging on a daily basis – once 150 Amps have been used, 150 Amps need putting back in. This means we must use the fuel efficient diesel generator installed down below or we crank up the main diesel engine which has a high-output alternator to feed the batteries.
These engines are the mechanical heart of Oceans of Hope, and like all hearts they need to be taken care of properly. While at sea the oil pressure and coolant levels are regularly checked, but when there is the chance (our current maintenance of the yacht in Newport) the engines undergo a full service and tune-up to ensure reliability and pre-empt any problems that may occur offshore. While at the Newport Shipyard our skipper, Kristian, has been working closely with local engineers, Noreast Marine Systems, who are well-accustomed to the care and maintenance of all things mechanical. Noreast are experienced at working on enormous super yachts. We are grateful for their kind expertise looking after Oceans of Hope which is simply super!