Design and Construction
Andersen's hull is a hand-laid fiberglass monohull with a solid laminate, while the deck uses a fiberglass sandwich — the same insulated-deck approach LM Glasfiber applied across its sailboats to stiffen the cabin top and curb interior condensation. The yard offered the Mermaid 315 with different keel alternatives, and the ballast itself could be iron or lead depending on the build built with different keel alternatives. Displacement is around 10,580 lb with a 40% ballast ratio and a length-to-beam ratio of 3.02, giving her a beamy, settled footprint for a 30-foot hull; the displacement-length ratio of 259 and an immersion rate near 927 lb per inch confirm a heavily built, slow-to-react cruiser rather than a light-displacement flyer.
Rig and Handling
The boat is a masthead sloop carrying roughly 441 sq ft of working sail area between mainsail and jib. Under power she may be fitted with an inboard Bukh DV20 diesel rated at 20 hp with a saildrive, which the record credits with a 7.5-knot speed; a second 20 hp diesel alternative with the same saildrive transmission is listed at a calculated 5.2 knots may be equipped with an inboard Bukh DV20 diesel engine. The theoretical hull speed for a displacement hull of her length is 6.9 knots, and her Relative Speed Performance figure of 21 places her firmly in motoring-and-sailing territory. The capsize screening value of 1.84 and a Motion Comfort Ratio of 26.4 to 27.1 describe a stable, forgiving platform with moderate motion in a seaway rather than an edgy performance craft.
Accommodations
Below, the Mermaid 315 sleeps six across a teak interior — teak being the standard fitting LM applied much as on its other models. A galley and a toilet facility are part of the layout, and the fresh water capacity runs to 140 liters (36 US gallons). The motorsailer brief shows in the provisioning: a fiberglass fuel tank of 70 liters (18 US gallons) supports the auxiliary, and the 37-gallon water figure from the build record aligns with the galley and head needs of a small cruising family.
The Verdict
The Mermaid 315 is a scarce, solidly built Danish motorsailer that trades outright speed for comfort and quiet cruising range. Her sandwich deck, teak cabin, and six-berth plan make her a practical small-family coastal voyager, while the multiple keel and engine options mean no two boats are spec-for-spec identical. She is best read as a steady, well-found pocket motorsailer rather than a performance sailboat.
Pros
- Hand-laid solid fiberglass hull with insulated sandwich deck
- Stable motoring profile (capsize screening 1.84, comfort ratio ~27)
- Six berths and full galley and head in a 30-foot hull
Cons
- Low production (under 100 hulls) limits spares interchange and resale comparables
- Modest sail area and displacement-length ratio suit motor-sailing more than windward work
- Variant keel (iron/lead) and engine (Bukh DV20 or alternative diesel) demand careful identification
