In the middle of the ocean, fresh water is never guaranteed, and this is one of the reasons why we decided to turn sea water into drinkable water. On board Ikigai Sailing, we chose independence: no plastic bottles, no mandatory port stops. Just sea, technology, and ingenuity.
Every day, we produce our own drinking water, even sparkling, directly from sea water. This allows us to live off-grid and drastically reduce our environmental footprint.
Turning sea water into drinkable water: the First Process is Reverse Osmosis
Desalination Units on Board
Our system relies on two desalination units:
- 50 liters/hour
- 100 liters/hour
Filtration and Reverse Osmosis of Sea Water
Sea water passes through a 5-micron filter and then reverse osmosis, allowing only water molecules through while blocking salts and impurities.
Result: clean, drinkable water for all on-board uses: cooking, washing, and drinking.
From Desalination to Your Glass: The “Gourmet” Treatment
4-Way Tap of drinkable water
To improve taste and quality, the water passes through:
- UV lamp → eliminates bacteria
- 5-micron carbon filter → enhances purity and taste
- Mineral filter → restores natural minerals
- CO₂ cylinder + chiller → cold and sparkling water
All water is available through a 4-way tap:
- Water for washing
- Cold drinking water
- Room-temperature drinking water
- Sparkling drinking water
Environmental Impact
Plastic Reduction
Thanks to this system, we have almost completely eliminated bottled water. With five people on board for ten months a year, we have avoided thousands of plastic bottles.
A small daily action that makes a big difference for the environment and the ocean that hosts us.
