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Since we are about to add a watermaker, this thread came along at just
the right time. We had decided on a Spectra because of the currently
good reputation, the small ah draw, the small space required, and the
fact that the various parts of it can be installed in various places
arond the boat. The cost is well above what I'd like to pay however so
SK sounded interesting; and it is.
I did a little research on SK Watermakers. I downloaded their electronic
brochure and I spoke a couple times with Tom, the new owner. (Seems like
he is one of the "good" guys.) The brochure says the smallest unit draws
24 ah. Tom thought the new units were at about 16 ah. The gph are about
equal to the Spectra but the ah draw is more. This morning, he called
me back and said that he was wrong about the ah being about 16 and that
it was 24. He went on to say that he really _couldn't_ recommend his
product for our small boat since we didn't have a genset. Oh, and the
price estimate was _considerably_ below what the comparable Spectra
"boat show" price would have been too. FWIW, the SK unit uses a "Cat
pump" and not the Clarke.
If I were to have a genset (not gonna happen in this lifetime) I would
look at the SK unit _very_ seriously. In fact, I'm going to check the
parts that come with the Spectra. If their individual costs are what I
think they will be when something dies (not the electrical parts) and
the sizes are the same, I'll check with SK before I go to Spectra for
parts unless it is a warranty deal. For instance, I think I heard the
HRO membrane is in the neighborhood of $1,000+ while the SK is about
$200 for essentially the same thing. If true, you can do a lot with
what is left over.
Looks like we will be going with the Spectra Ventura 150 after all.
Rick
S/V La Vita
1987 HC 33T
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