1. Fountaine Pajot
 

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410-263-2311

Are you a candidate for a Trawler cat...

Yes, if:

• •You want to live aboard for extended periods.
  
• •You want a long range cruiser.
  
• •You want a fuel efficient cruiser.
  
• •You want a safe, stable platform. You don't like to be rolled by wakes or at anchor.
  
• •You want a roomy, light bright interior with lots of deck space. The room of a 6-8' larger single hulled vessel.
  
• •You prefer lower maintenance.
  
• •You want to spend less initially, and on fuel. (You get more room in a smaller, easier to handle package that requires smaller engines for the same or better performance!)
  
• •You want live-aboard and offshore capability.
  
• •You need a longer range (I'm repeating this, because this means lower operating costs as well) We have complete engine performance curves available--see more information below.
• •You believe that form follows function.
  

Power Catamarans 

Here's where we get more technical

Why choose a Catamaran trawler?

• You can have the speed. Up to about 25 knots.
• You can have fuel economy. 1,000 mile range. 3.5-5 gal/hr at 8-12K.

  Fuel economy? A big reason for choosing a Catamaran!
  Striking benefits!  At lower speeds, say 6 to 10 or so knots, the power cat will use anywhere from 10% to 20% less fuel while traveling at the same speed as her monohull counterpart. At speeds of 15 to 25 knots, the cat will offer as much as 40% to 70% better fuel economy than with a monohull. (Example: The Maryland 37 cat uses 8 GPH at 16 knots, while a same-size monohull uses about 13 GPH at that speed.) This can mean literally hundreds of dollars in savings per DAY! A  Nordic Tug 52 uses 45 GHP at 18 knots. In an 8-hour run that amounts to hundreds of dollars of savings with a comparable Catamaran trawler.

• You can have space. And privacy. Twin hulls offer 2-4 cabins with maximum privacy. Wide beam gives the space of an 8' longer boat in a more compact size. A 37' feels like a 45' Price per square foot is less expensive.
• Comfortable underway and at anchor. No rolling. Straight tracking in a following sea.
• Protected gear. A structural skeg protects the shaft and rudders. Go ahead. Run up on the beach. No problem.

BOTTOM LINE: More comfort with less motion. Better efficiency (lower fuel consumption for a given speed). Power cats outshine conventional Trawlers. They give you the range, comfort and higher speeds.

Some important stuff 

A lot's been learned recently--some stuff didn't work.

What didn't work-the solutions...

1. Setting up an aft-cabin, mid cockpit boat. Not enough headroom over the island berth, too many ups and downs--stairs, and trip ledges everywhere.

2. Open bridge deck between the hulls forward. Spray guards on the hull don't work. What happens is that at once you start exceeding 8-10 knots, the bow wave on the inside of the hulls allows the increased wind pressure from the higher speed to create a venturi effect. This causes fine droplets of water to be swept up onto the fly-bridge where the occupants experience a fine mist that ultimately soaks them! (The solution is a tight weave spray cover, or solid decking led further forward.)

3. Narrow hulls. Not enough load carrying and/or they submerge with extra power. (How can you tell? A simple test. If the berths are over the bridge deck, instead of down in the hulls--the hulls are too narrow for load carrying and higher power applications.) Other disadvantages of berths up high, over the hulls: High and difficult to get in and out of. In summer or southern waters--this is where the heat is--up high!

4. Unprotected running gear. This is a problem on virtually all trawlers. Hit a sand bar, and you take out the shaft, strut and probably the rudders. Not only is this expensive, but typically it costs you 3 or more months waiting for everything to be made right--get the insurance company involved and it probably takes longer! The better solution is to build in a structural skeg. All of the Fountaine Pajot models incorporate this. 

5. This entire category of cruiser is new. Many players will come and go. Do you want to get stuck with a one-of-a-kind, with no warranty if the Manufacturer goes under? Not me. Fountain Pajot is the largest builder of Catamarans in the world!!! They build power, sail and commercial catamarans. They are financially strong and well capitalized. They've been around for over 25 years and will be there when you need them. This will also protect your resale value.

6. Keeping the heat out. A great design (left-the Fountaine Pajot 37) uses more vertical windows with a substantial roof overhang that keeps the high, afternoon sun out of the living quarters. Many boats, like the one to the right, below, have little or no overhang and sloped windows. You end up having to put covers on the windows which defeats the entire purpose of the large, eye level windows. You restrict the wonderful outside view! (Also makes it very difficult to clean the windows from the salt crud, etc. that accumulates behind the covers.)

Also, note on the boat at the right that the narrower, W.L. beam may have created the need to extend the transom aft to gain more buoyancy for load handling and/or to give more planning surface for larger engines--not a good solution. . 

Now, continue on...

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There is none!

The phenomenon of power catamarans is very recent. Sailing catamarans and Trimarans are steeped in deep history, however, dating back to the early days of the Micronesian and Melanesian migration.