The norm with modern gensets is to put them in a sound shield, which has a huge impact on the noise you normally would otherwise hear. But there are tradeoffs.
On the positive side the sound shield protects engine room visitors from hot surfaces and the top provides a work surface. The negative is that the sound shield hides what is going on inside it. If there is a leak, say a hose clamp is soft on the salt water system, you don’t know until it has become a major problem.
On most yachts the size of the genset and the unshielded noise in a central engine room force you to use a sound shield. But the combination of a well insulated aft engine room, and a systems approach which requires just an 11kW genset, reduces sound level of an unshielded generator to where you don’t even know it is running in the salon.
On Wind Horse we removed the sound shield after our first season of cruising. The FPB 64 gensets do come with shields, but we are guessing most Owners will eventually remove the side panels so they can keep an eye on the genset.
Posted by Steve Dashew (March 14, 2010)
