Expedition Evansvideo
Major but Minor Mechanical FAILURE on Day 17
December 27, 2025 · 16 min · 62K views · Atlantic Ocean
Crew in cockpit as sail unfurls under blue sky
What this video covers
On day 17 of an offshore passage, the engine alternator on Brett and Jade Evans's boat fails, leaving it unable to charge the house battery bank.9:37 The belt remains routed around the dead alternator to keep the water pump spinning, so the engine stays cool and can still start and run — the failure is electrical only.10:50 The house bank then charges the starter batteries, so no risk of losing the ability to motor exists.11:18 The alternator had long smelled and sounded wrong to Jade, who had repeatedly flagged it; Brett suspects saltwater intrusion caused the failure.10:21
Power management is the passage's running problem. The boat carries 1,800 watts of solar but only hits that peak for roughly one hour per day; sail shading and sun angle cut output the rest of the time.4:15 Batteries hit 27% by noon on day 17.4:42 The generator runs to cook dinner and make water.4:55 Brett weighs adding two wind generators, one on each side of the stern, and rules out a hydro generator as impractical at the boat's typical speeds.5:40 Starlink, autopilot, a data hub, and two refrigerators all run continuously on passage, driving consumption well above the solar's capacity.5:22 The crew also tends a dog recovering from an ear injury and manages tangled fishing lines in heavy sargassum.7:12
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