[Vehicles/Spaceships] Sails & Steam Donkeys

Marasmusine · 10-29-2020, 06:18 AM

Some sailing ships had steam donkeys to power winches for the sails, in order to reduce the crew requirement.

I've decided that having powered winches halves the crew requirement. In Spaceships, I can simply say that this uses auxillary power.

I also like to use Vehicles though, and I'm wondering roughly what kW power would be required of the steam engine. Say, per square feet of sail.

Looking at real-world ships, sail area isn't too hard to find. The Preussen has 73,000 sq ft. for example. However Wikipedia just says the ship had "two donkey boilers" - I don't know the horsepower or kW.

Any ideas?

10-29-2020, 06:18 AM	#1
Marasmusine Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Doncaster, UK	[Vehicles/Spaceships] Sails & Steam Donkeys Some sailing ships had steam donkeys to power winches for the sails, in order to reduce the crew requirement. I've decided that having powered winches halves the crew requirement. In Spaceships, I can simply say that this uses auxillary power. I also like to use Vehicles though, and I'm wondering roughly what kW power would be required of the steam engine. Say, per square feet of sail. Looking at real-world ships, sail area isn't too hard to find. The Preussen has 73,000 sq ft. for example. However Wikipedia just says the ship had "two donkey boilers" - I don't know the horsepower or kW. Any ideas?