cmedsailor
Well-Known Member
There’s a couple sailing now to New Zealand (from Croatia) on their Elan Impression 384. Search “finding avalon”.
Is an Elan 40 suitable for true blue water cruising?
- Thread starter PHN
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Neeves
Well-Known Member
Avalon, its on Sydney's Northern Beaches - for views watch Home and Away.
Jonathan
Jonathan
shaunksb
Well-Known Member
temptress
Well-Known Member
The boat will be fine. You.may want to upgrade your water capacity and fuel capacity.
You can always reef down. We try to keep sailing between 5 and 7 knots. We can go much much quicker in trade winds (often 10 to12 knots with little effort) but we find reducing sail/speed to keep in our window makes for more pleasant sailing. Then when the wind is lite we like that e we have a big rig with big sails to keep sailing.
The hardest thing on the boat is slopping around in a big ocean swell with little or no wind. Causes more damage than a gale.
You can always reef down. We try to keep sailing between 5 and 7 knots. We can go much much quicker in trade winds (often 10 to12 knots with little effort) but we find reducing sail/speed to keep in our window makes for more pleasant sailing. Then when the wind is lite we like that e we have a big rig with big sails to keep sailing.
The hardest thing on the boat is slopping around in a big ocean swell with little or no wind. Causes more damage than a gale.
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Neil_Y
Well-Known Member
I'd be hove to and go below for some rest until daylight. It worked for us.
The water tankage is a bit of a red herring as one or two big tanks can get contaminated so you need bottled all alternative supplies. Same with a water maker, you need bottles for the journey if that fails. Without water you are in serious trouble so that was one of our priorities. We carried enough water in bottles for the whole passage + allowance for a slow crossing where you may be under jury rig.
In open ocean you have the space to run with a storm or heave to, I've only done it in Biscay in November 50knts weather but it worked well and that was on a Bavaria 390.
geem
Well-Known Member
We care about the planet. We never buy bottled water. We make our own water and store an emergency supply in jerry cans for ocean passages. We have had the same fuel and water cans for 14 years. We have 800 litres of water in our main tank. It is enough for two people for most ocean passages. We make water on-route when we need to. We never fill our tank from a dockside supply. In my experience contaminated water only comes from dockside supplies
shaunksb
Well-Known Member
cmedsailor
Well-Known Member
Pinical
New Member
We’ve circumnavigated in a 40 ft Alu Dick Zaal design. Strong, though a bit heavy. Never felt insecure. A Dutch couple left in 2006 on a First 40.7. They’re still underway and went from Cape Horn to the NW-passage and Japan. Look for Giebetau. An Elan suits too!
PHN
Well-Known Member
800 liters would be 1 meter x 1 meter x 80 centimeter (or any other combination) so yes, that would fit. And as there already is an approx. 250 liter tank on board you "only" need 2 more of those.
shaunksb
Well-Known Member
No weight is the issue not size.
A boat can only carry a certain weight before it starts to affect its designed stability and you’re not going to want that.
Just like an inflatable dingy it will be stated on the CE plate of the boat and you may be surprised how it varies from one “similar” boat to another.
If you are going long term cruising you’ll have a lot of stuff to start with.
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PHN
Well-Known Member
Let's say we add 500 liters extra to the original 250L tank = 500 KG extra minus 4 people (6 berths of which 2 will be used) x 80 KG = 180 KG extra weight for water on 7200 KG displacement. I don't expect that to be an issue.
And then of course there is extra diesel, spare parts, food, etc.
shaunksb
Well-Known Member
The reason i'm pointing that out was that I remember a blog about a circumnavigation with a couple looking for a 38'er and the original boat they looked out wouldn't have actually carried all their kit when they actually did the sums.
They ended up with a Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 37 which apparently has a good carrying capacity for it's size.
In the OP you asked about handling in bad weather. It will handle worse with an extra half a tonne of water onboard.
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dunedin
Well-Known Member
Adding water tanks below the waterline will not adversely affect designed stability. Probably improve it. And on a boat like an Elan 40 would have minimal visible impact on waterline.
It is things like add on roller furling mainsails, radar arches, high up wind generators, mast steps etc which in fact are likely to impact designed stability - just the sorts of things people often fit to old boats before going blue water
dunedin
Well-Known Member
What basis do you have for this? Any objective reason?
Often some extra weight low down can improve sea kindliness - though perhaps slow performance marginally in very light airs. Again much less adverse impact in bad weather than adding weight up in the rig.
shaunksb
Well-Known Member
The fact that they bother to work out very carefully their maximum plated carrying capacity.
Anything added to boat weight reduces the ballast ratio, lowers waterline etc.
Otherwise AWB manufacturers could just add a couple of plastic tanks and ask potential customers to marvel at their stability curves...
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Frank Holden
Well-Known Member
Just found their boat card... Jenny Sun Legend 41 from 1990... main must be second hand from the second hand main shop....
More can be seen here... https://syimpuls.blogspot.com/2018/05/
Currently in Alaska...
Chimney? Chimneys are rather passe.... An Espaker and rum works for me....