Review of Marieholm 281

The hull is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season. And outside the sailing season, just bottom cleaning and perhaps anti-fouling painting once a year - a few hours of work, that's all.

The boat is equipped with 7 berths and 85.0 liter fresh water capacity.

Fin keel

The Marieholm 281 is equipped with a fin keel. A boat with a fin keel is more manoeuvrable but has less directional stability than a similar boat with a full keel.

The keel is made of iron. Many people prefer lead keel in favour of iron. The main argument is that lead is much heavier than iron and a lead keel can therefore be made smaller which again result in less wet surface, i.e. less drag. In fact iron is quite heavy, just 30% less heavy than lead, so the advantage of a lead keel is often overstated. As the surface of a fin type keel is just a fraction of the total wet surface, the difference between an iron keel and a lead keel can in reality be ignored for cruising yachts.

The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.50 - 1.60 meter (4.92 - 5.22 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Marieholm 281 may be equipped with an inboard diesel engine at 17 hp (12 kW). Calculated max speed is about 5.1 knots

The transmission is a shaft drive. A shaft drive will in the long run require less maintenance than other types of drive e.g. a sail drive.

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Marieholm 281 is 1.90, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 6.5 knots. The term "Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed" is widely used even though a boat can sail faster. The term shall be interpreted as above the theoretical speed a great additional power is necessary for a small gain in speed.

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Marieholm 281 is about 141 kg/cm, alternatively 794 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 141 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 794 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

What is Motion Comfort Ratio (MCR)?

The Motion Comfort Ratio for Marieholm 281 is 25.2.

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Marieholm 281 is 2.91.

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Marieholm 281 is 39%.

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Marieholm 281 is 283 which categorizes this boat among 'medium weight cruisers'.

What is SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)?

The SA/D for Marieholm 281 with ISO 8666 reference sail is 13.6, with a 135% genua the SA/D is 16.0.

What is Relative Speed Performance?

The Relative Speed Performance for Marieholm 281 is 18

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 24m² (258 ft²).
Based on this, your favourite maritime shop can tell you the quantity you need.

Note: If you use a paint roller you will need more paint than if you use a paintbrush.

Dimensions of sail.

Are your sails worn out? You might find your next sail here: Sails for Sale

If you need to renew parts of your running rig and is not quite sure of the dimensions, you may find the estimates computed below useful.

This section is reserved boat owner's modifications, improvements, etc. Here you might find (or contribute with) inspiration for your boat.

Do you have changes/improvements you would like to share? Upload a photo and describe what you have done.

We are always looking for new photos. If you can contribute with photos for Marieholm 281 it would be a great help.

If you have any comments to the review, improvement suggestions, or the like, feel free to contact us. Criticism helps us to improve.