Lets see your solar setup

[Jared1048]

Im starting to put more time into figuring out how Im going to do my solar setup.

From my research so far I'm liking the idea of the panels to the rear and above me like it was going on top of a Bimini. I don't have a Bimini as I think I can kill 2 birds with 1 stone if I get the solar setup to act as a bimini. I don't mind if I only get the sun blockage of 80-90% of a true bimini setup.

I'm also liking the idea of leveraging the split backstay somehow since its there and a great mounting point.

Having the ability to adjust the panels is something that has been on my mind also a lot. How much more will it help or if its even needed if I have enough solar.

Thanks!
-Jared

 

[Don Crowther]

Jared
I have my solar panel attached to my bimini.

It's a 125 watt panel and most day's it puts out enough power to run my fridge with a little left over for the batteries. When not on the boat the fridge is off and 100% goes to the batteries.

I thought about attaching to the back stay as well but felt there was to much movement. I'm not sure how you could attach the panel without being concerned about the attach points flexing. Maybe some kind of rubber insulator between the panel and backstay.

 

[IanJ]

Don
I am interested in solar panels, and like you, my needs are fairly basic, with a fridge and a little left over for the battery etc. If I use a 125 watt panel, what else do I need to get this up and running? (invertors etc). Would be grateful; for any advice, products etc that you can recommend
Ian

 

[Jared1048]

How many amps does the 125 watt panel put out? I did some number crunching and figured I needed 320 watts. Was looking at putting 4 80 watt panels on.

I was worried about the wear/tear on the backstay also. It would add a lot more "noise" to it and wear it out faster.

 

[Don Crowther]

Ian
I see about 7 amps from the panel. It came with a controller so you don't cook your batteries. If your refrigerator is 115 volts you will have to add an inverter.

My refrigeration is 12 volt and uses 6 amps when running. Once things are cooled down it doesn't run all the time. We do start with frozen food in the bottom of the cooler and everything has been pre cooled before we leave home.

 

[BigEasy]

Don't have a solar setup yet; however, I am thinking about using a Solbian flexible panel. The panel is more expensive; however, it can be attached to the bimini top with Velcro or snaps. Less weight, less expense for mounting hardware, and easily removed and stowed for storms.

 

[centerline]

there are many options for mounting, depending on the size of the panel....
I extended the height of the taff rail and installed the panel out of the way..... if I would have went 6 inches higher with the rail, I could have had the panel fully overhead and on the inboard side, but i prefer it the way I have it now (outboard of the cockpit)....
it is all mounted with delrin rail clamps, so if the need arises to remove it from the boat, the wires can be unplugged, the clamps loosened and the whole panel taken off in less than 5 minutes.

a plus to extending the rail higher is the addition of the ladder access cutout. the way it was before, anyone coming in from the ladder had to crawl over the rail, but now its a step thru. its easier going both ways, and we use the ladder a lot when its on the trailer to get into and out of the boat.

this is a 130w panel and the bluesky controller will efficiently utilize the maximum amount of output the panel will produce... providing that you have used the proper wire size for the system during installation..... when i did this, I used wire big enough for two panels this size. I may want to upgrade someday, and with the initial install the way it is, all I will need to do is add another panel to the rail and plug it in to the existing one.... you can see more photos of it in my album.

 

[DannyS]

This is my setup. I installed it in June. Two 60 watt panels, each with their own controller. We just got back from an 11 day trip and never had to fire up the engine to charge the batteries. Primarily my goal was to negate the refrigerator consumption and evening light usage, which this does very easily.

 

[Don Crowther]

Here's my panel installed on the bimini. The front attaches to the middle bow. I've run the wires down the side and though the aft locker to the controller. In the fall I just undo 4 bolts and 2 connections and lift the panel off for storage.

 

[sesmith]

Mine's in this post here:

http://forums.hunter.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=155066&#post1047558

 

[Jared1048]

This is my setup. I installed it in June. Two 60 watt panels, each with their own controller. We just got back from an 11 day trip and never had to fire up the engine to charge the batteries. Primarily my goal was to negate the refrigerator consumption and evening light usage, which this does very easily.

I got it!! You're double panel setup gave me a genius idea. Lets see if I can explain it.

First off I like the double panels spread apart because it doesn't block my view looking up at the masthead or sail trim. That is a requirement.

I'm going to have two round tubes to mount the panels similar to what you have but i'm going to have a "slide" with set screw (more like a knob used on ports) to be able to make a movable corner that can either "push" up or "pull" down flat per corner. If all 4 corners are movable in the single plane you can "tilt" the panel in any direction! The connection from the panel to the sliding set screw will be about 6 inches so will be enough to add maybe 15 degrees tilt in any direction which could be changed by adding a longer "arm".

I think I can do this with 2 130 watt panels. Looking at your panels i can imagine it just extending a little past the forward part of the bimini and same over the rear.

 

[sea_casper]

Here is how I mounted my 235w panel on a H33

 

[Chief RA]

Jared: Recalculate your max current demands as 2 ea. 130 watt panels seems excessive for a boat of your size. Chief

 

[sea_casper]

Jared: Recalculate your max current demands as 2 ea. 130 watt panels seems excessive for a boat of your size. Chief

I have found with my flat mounted 235w panel, the most power I have seen is 180w. You will never see full output power especially in Seattle. In MHO the most panel the better overall, I was getting a 1a charge during a thunderstorm. The bigger panels (200-300w) are less expensive and provide power under less favorable conditions. A good controller is key, and then you will never overcharge your batterys.

 

[centerline]

Jared: Recalculate your max current demands as 2 ea. 130 watt panels seems excessive for a boat of your size. Chief

I agree with sea_casper.
when sizing a system for anything more than just maintaining a small battery, it should be oversized by at least 50%.
there are days when you still need the power but the weather isnt cooperating.....
anyone who expects more than 50-60% efficiency from their solar array will probably be disappointed. I am NOT saying there will never be days that give more than that, but i will say that there are too many people who have installed systems and monitored them over a period of time, and found that is about the best you should expect over time....
when the sun is out and hot, the panel itself will heat up and cause the efficiency of it to drop, and when its cloudy, the panel will be cool, but its not getting direct rays.... efficiency suffers.
the best efficiency of a panel is in direct sun during cold weather.... this is why a good sized and quality panel can still give a decent output during overcast days. its surface is cool....

and when is the last time you heard anyone say, "Dang, I wish I didnt have so many watts coming from my solar panels"....
but many times I have heard someone say "I wish i would have installed a larger panel"... and "i gotta watch my power usage because i dont want to run my battery down"...
and when you have the available amps that arent being used, you have room to expand.... when you build a system that just fits your current needs, your only option is to rebuild it if you decide you need more power from it, which is more expensive and more work in the long run....

 

[Jared1048]

Jared: Recalculate your max current demands as 2 ea. 130 watt panels seems excessive for a boat of your size. Chief

I have a 440 AH house bank, 12volt refrigeration and a huge 1400 watt stereo system with 10' subwoofer. We use lots of power (40-80 AH/day) depending on what we are doing.

 

[Jared1048]

Mine's in this post here:

http://forums.hunter.sailboatowners.com/showthread.php?t=155066&#post1047558

I was thinking of putting a panel on top of my dodger so would be similar to your setup. Out of curiosity what kind of Ah's are you getting from that panel per day?

Thanks for posting all!

 

[njsail]

A couple of Kyocera 135s on Kato davits. The panels tilt but i never move them. they survived hurricane sandy winds of.90mph without damage. I tied them so they couldn't move and the wind would hit the edge. Blue sky mppt down below.