Along with the report came educational materials for the distributors, intended to be passed on to customers. Westerbeke also is trying to create a low-emission generator for its next generation of houseboat power plants. The design is still on the drawing boards, Bryant said, and probably will not be available for at least 12 months. Unlike, say, the auto industry, which orders vast quantities of engines, the houseboat industry lacks the leverage to demand cleaner-burning engines. Estimates of how many houseboats are produced each year range from 500 to 1,500 boats.
Houseboats make up a very small part of the market.
If we went to them and said that we wanted them to go to a 100 percent different generator for 3 percent of the market, they'd laugh at us. As the company designs a new generator, it must take into account that the usage of houseboats has surpassed the technology. The generators were not designed to vent into confined spaces beneath extended swim decks, which are becoming more and more common on today's houseboats. Swimmers are quickly overcome by the fumes.