Energy recovery · under 6 Wh/L

Spectra Ventura 150 Deluxe

Modular · 12/24V DC · 1 × 2.5×20in
24litres per hour
108watts drawn
4.5Wh per litre
$6,000indicative price

What you are actually buying

Drawn to this model’s own published specification: modular, 1 × 2.5×20in membranes, and a pump driven by a 12/24V DC motor.

Schematic of the Spectra Ventura 150 DeluxeA flow schematic of the Spectra Ventura 150 Deluxe, a modular watermaker. Seawater passes through a prefilter to a high pressure pump driven by a 12/24V DC motor, then through one 2.5 × 20 inch membrane. Fresh water leaves at the manufacturer's rated 24 litres an hour; the concentrate goes overboard.seawaterprefilterHP pump12/24V DC108 W1 × 2.5×20in membranesfresh water24 L/hrbrinesold as a modular unit
Schematic drawn from the published specification, not from the manufacturer’s own drawing. The Spectra Ventura 150 Deluxe is a modular system with one 2.5 × 20 inch membrane, driven by a 12/24V DC motor. Rated 24 L/hr for 108 W, which is 4.5 Wh per litre.

What it costs to run

A four-person crew using 25 litres a head needs 100 litres a day. On this system that is:

4.2 hrun time per day
450 Whenergy per day
38 Ahfrom a 12 V bank
0.3×400 W panel-days
$250per L/hr of capacity

DC systems have to fit inside the energy your solar, wind and alternator can spare. Run the numbers against your own bank in the calculator.

Is it worth it?

At 4.5 watt-hours per litre it is the 3rd most efficient system we rank of 34 — a day's water for four costs 450 Wh, which a modest array covers without touching the engine.

Suits

  • Boats making water off solar. 100 litres costs 450 Wh, which is roughly 113 W of array — well under a single 400 W panel, so it runs on surplus rather than on engine hours.
  • A couple or a small crew. 24 litres an hour is a trickle by design; run it for 4.2 hours and the day is covered without a spike in the load.
  • 12 volt boats with no inverter. It runs straight off the bank, drawing about 38 Ah a day at 100 litres.
  • Awkward spaces. The modules mount separately, so they fit around obstructions a single frame will not clear.

Look elsewhere if

  • Larger crews in a hurry. 24 litres an hour means 11.7 hours to cover a charter crew's day.
  • Boats you cannot drill. This is an installed system: intake, seacock, brine discharge and a wiring run, quoted separately from the unit.

Every line above is a consequence of a published figure. We have not tested this machine and publish no opinion on its build, reliability or support. How we judge systems.

Where it sits in the market

Ranked 3 of 34 rated systems on watt-hours per litre, where lower is better.

0best 3.720 Wh/L

This is an energy-recovery system: the brine's pressure drives the inlet instead of going overboard, which is why it needs so little power. How the two technologies differ →

What people cross-shop it against

The rest of the Spectra range

Common questions

How much power does the Spectra Ventura 150 Deluxe use?
It draws 108 W and makes 24 L/hr, which works out to 4.5 watt-hours per litre. Making 100 litres — four people at 25 litres a head — costs about 450 Wh, or roughly 38 amp-hours from a 12 V bank.
How long does the Ventura 150 Deluxe take to make a day's water?
At its rated 24 L/hr, 100 litres takes about 4.2 hours. Output falls in cold or silty water, so treat that as a best case rather than a promise for every anchorage.
How much does the Spectra Ventura 150 Deluxe cost in Australia?
Our indicative figure is $6,000, taken from European and US dealer listings and excluding freight, duty and installation. Australian dealer pricing is usually all-inclusive and reads higher. Ask a stockist for a landed AUD quote before you budget.
Who sells the Spectra Ventura 150 Deluxe in Australia?
We have not yet verified an Australian stockist for Spectra. If you sell or install these, send us the evidence and we will list you.
Is the Ventura 150 Deluxe efficient?
It ranks 3 of 34 rated systems in our table on watt-hours per litre, where lower is better. The best in the table is 3.7 Wh/L. It uses energy recovery, which is why it sits in the bottom band.
Is the Spectra Ventura 150 Deluxe worth it?
At 4.5 watt-hours per litre it is the 3rd most efficient system we rank of 34 — a day's water for four costs 450 Wh, which a modest array covers without touching the engine. It suits several cases: Boats making water off solar. 100 litres costs 450 Wh, which is roughly 113 W of array — well under a single 400 W panel, so it runs on surplus rather than on engine hours. Look elsewhere if: Larger crews in a hurry. 24 litres an hour means 11.7 hours to cover a charter crew's day. We publish no opinion on build quality or reliability, because we have not tested it.