A few people have asked about our solar setup. I have now some better pictures I think will illustrate what I did.
I built the frame out of 1" s/s pipe and off the shelf fittings. After the frame was completed I drilled all the fittings and added s/s pop rivets, I don't trust the set screws supplied.
I used Gemini mounts to add two 1.25" aluminum angles I had from a previous project. The Gemini's allow the angles to be moved to align with the mounting holes in the panel frame. The aluminum angles extend past the end of the bimini and are cantilevered to verticals from the pushpit. The aluminum angles were sand blasted and clear coated. The Gemini mounts have nylon insulating washers to minimize corrosion.
Lots of triangles makes for a very sturdy frame. The frame feels like it would handle chin-ups, if I could do one
.
The Hunter arch provides a solid anchor for the forward end of the frame, and a nice sched 40 s/s conduit to run the wires in.
The Kyocera panel is large, 68" x 52", 60 LB's, 325 W. With a 40 volt output we could get away with #10 wires running through the Hunter arch to the cockpit lazarette.
We bought the panel from eMarine in Ft Lauderdale for $378, a reduced price as it had a scratch on the aluminum frame.
The MPPT controller is a Rogue unit (as suggested by Maine Sail, tnx) with a nice display showing all the data we could want.
We are in Florida. The solar panel can supply all our needs if we have 3 out 4 days sunny. We have a 400 Ahr AGM house bank. They are usually on float by 1 or 2 pm in the afternoon. We are living aboard now. We have a large refrigerator and very large ice box. Almost all our lights are LEDs including our anchor light.
Without a backstay and our boom moved to one side we have been able to avoid any shadow issues.
Bob
(yes, our stern light will be moved out to the end of the aluminum angle !)
I built the frame out of 1" s/s pipe and off the shelf fittings. After the frame was completed I drilled all the fittings and added s/s pop rivets, I don't trust the set screws supplied.
I used Gemini mounts to add two 1.25" aluminum angles I had from a previous project. The Gemini's allow the angles to be moved to align with the mounting holes in the panel frame. The aluminum angles extend past the end of the bimini and are cantilevered to verticals from the pushpit. The aluminum angles were sand blasted and clear coated. The Gemini mounts have nylon insulating washers to minimize corrosion.
Lots of triangles makes for a very sturdy frame. The frame feels like it would handle chin-ups, if I could do one
. The Hunter arch provides a solid anchor for the forward end of the frame, and a nice sched 40 s/s conduit to run the wires in.
The Kyocera panel is large, 68" x 52", 60 LB's, 325 W. With a 40 volt output we could get away with #10 wires running through the Hunter arch to the cockpit lazarette.
We bought the panel from eMarine in Ft Lauderdale for $378, a reduced price as it had a scratch on the aluminum frame.
The MPPT controller is a Rogue unit (as suggested by Maine Sail, tnx) with a nice display showing all the data we could want.
We are in Florida. The solar panel can supply all our needs if we have 3 out 4 days sunny. We have a 400 Ahr AGM house bank. They are usually on float by 1 or 2 pm in the afternoon. We are living aboard now. We have a large refrigerator and very large ice box. Almost all our lights are LEDs including our anchor light.
Without a backstay and our boom moved to one side we have been able to avoid any shadow issues.
Bob
(yes, our stern light will be moved out to the end of the aluminum angle !)
