Page 184 - Vetus

RETRACTABLE DC BOW AND STERN THRUSTERS

Want a thruster but your hull is too shallow for a tunnel thruster? Here’s the solution:
For any thruster to work properly, the propeller and the tunnel in which it
is mounted must be adequately submerged. Without this, the thruster will
create a whirlpool at the water’s surface, on the suction side of the boat
and pump a mixture of air and water, instead of all water, with a great
reduction in thrust.
The minimum submersion of the top of the tunnel/tube/duct is considered
to be half of the tunnel/duct/propeller diameter. As an example, the top of
the tunnel for a thruster running in a 12” (300 mm) tunnel must be at least
6” (150 mm) below the water. This applies equally to bow and stern
thrusters. In addition, a bow thruster must be as far forward as the
waterline and underwater profile of the boat will allow, and the stern
thruster as far aft as possible, in both cases to create the maximum turning
effect when the thruster is activated. If the design of the vessel is such that
these forward and aft thruster locations are in parts of the hull which are
too shallow for a conventional athwartship (crosswise) tunnel or stern tube
to be adequately submerged, then the solution is to install a Retractable
thruster.
A VETUS Retractable DC electric thruster in housed entirely inside the
hull when not in use, but when sideways force is required for docking
or maneuvering, the thruster swings down into the water, then retracts
when docking and maneuvering operations are safely completed. These
retractable thrusters may be used in bow and stern applications.

The VETUS retractable has some big advantages
The benefits of the VETUS Retractable Thruster reside in its simplicity, strength, ease of installation and limited service requirements.
Those benefits include:
• The ability to equip a shallow draft boat, including a sailboat with a cutaway forefoot and raised stern, with thrusters
• Constructed around a time-tested standard VETUS DC thruster.
• A simple and sturdy swing mechanism, with a minimum of moving parts. The thruster pivots on a permanently lubricated and
substantial bearing.
• The propeller revolves in a short duct, creating focused flow and minimum energy losses
• The hull bottom plate (lid) is attached directly to the propeller duct so no additional or complex mechanism is required to open or
close it – it swings in and out with the thruster.
• When the thruster is retracted and the bottom plate closed, the retractable creates slightly less drag than a standard tunnel,
which may be significant on a racing sailboat
• Fiberglass housing and electronic control mechanism (excl. the dashboard panel and cables) are supplied in the base package.
• The thrusters deploys and retracts automatically, as the control panel is (de-)activated, so no separate controls need to be operated.
• It will also retract automatically if the thruster has not been used in fifteen minutes
• Electronic sensing protects the actuator of the swing machanism from damage in event of an overload or jam
• There is a one and a half second time delay when changing thrust direction to prevent shock loads on gears, drive mechanism and
swing mechanism.
• The thruster(s) and their control panels are connected by cables carrying digital V-CAN signals (VETUS canbus type) allowing
future integration into boat-wide electronic systems and information displays
VETUS Retractable Thrusters are suitable for installation in power and sail boats ranging from 30 to 60 feet. They are available
at thrust (effective power) ratings of 55 kgf, 60 kgf, 75 kgf, 95 kgf, 125 kgf and 160 kgf, at 12 Volt and 24 Volt. See next page for
specifications.
VETUS strongly advices the use of original V-CAN connection cables to ensure an optimal connection between controls and truster.

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