Solar Panels for C34

[Stewartn]

Made a passage on a Tartan 41 and the owner had installed solar panel(s) on the sea hood, just forward of the traveler. It was a great place, since no one ever walked there. C34, # 1472, has exactly the same space (although meas. are probably smaller). Any ideas about installing there on the deck? We're at a mooring and it is important, since I can't constantly hook up and charge with AC. All thoughts welcome. Thx/Rgds.

[Ralph Masters]

I would think unless you have inmast furling on the main that it would be a step hazard there.  I have looked at adding daivts just to have an "out of the way" place to put a solar panel or two.

Ralph
Ciao Bella

[Ken Juul]

I second the davits location.  If they aren't availalbe I think on top of a bimini would be a better spot than on the deck.  Run the wires to an aircraft quality cannon plug placed near the aft end of the hand rail, wires run between the cabin top and liner into the area under the head sink then forward under the sole to the batteries.  The cannon plug can be sealed to keep water out of the boat and they are designed to keep the connection clean and dry. The plug also allows for easy removal of the solar panel should you need bimini repairs.

[TonyP]

On Moonshadow we have a Bimini with 2 panels on top. The shade for us is most important and davits can be attached to the Bimini frame if and when required, also could be folded away when not in use. Of course the panels only trickle charge and keep the batteries topped. We need to run the motor every so often to offset the fridge/freezer drag.
good luck with your decision
Tony

[waterdog]

Anything that gets shade from the boom will seriously curtail output from the panels.   If one third of the panel is shaded output doesn't drop by a third , it goes to zero.  Your voltage drops below charge threshhold. Multiple panels wired in series with a good controller alleviates the problem. 

Are you just looking to keep a battery topped up?   Or are you trying make up an 80 Ah deficit in a day or two?

Bimini is a great spot because its out of the way and clear to the sky.

[cmainprize]

This is our setup.  Works great, the panel is 240 watts.  We rarely if ever plug the boat.  The fridge is always on and we cruise for the month of July with two power hungry kids.  We have four golf cart batteries for a house bank and always have lots of juice. 

[lazybone]

I know somewhere in that picture, there is a boat,

[Rick Johnson]

It's an old picture but I went with two 40watt panels on the DIY hard dodger and a 100 watt panel on the davits.  This picture has the old "jungle gym" davits installed by the PO, but she now has a set of davits that look like Garhauer davits.  Much better and a secure place to mount the 100watt panel.

Cheers,

Rick

[Stewartn]

I just want to keep the 2 4D batts topped up, so I don't have to run the boat off the mooring for an hour or 2 every now and then to top up with the alternator. Spoke to the Tartan owner where I crewed and saw this set up. He's also at a mooring, and rarely (if ever) starts the diesel. He says 75 or 80 watts should keep them topped. Thx.

[waterdog]

If all you're doing is keeping them topped up and not trying to run the fridge or anything, small capacity panels will be fine.  Put them where they are convenient and do not worry too much about shade and other cirumstances.  If the boat swings around and they have clear sun for a good part of he day, you will be fine.

Somewhere in the wiki is a 400 watt bimini install to consider if you decide to go cruising extensively...

[Ralph Masters]

We don't have a refrig or AC on Ciao Bella, still in the dark ages with the ice box.  So I figure one 120 W panel would do fine for keeping us up on a three or four day trip up to Catalina and back.  I run two group 27's for house load, and a third group 27 for start, they all fit under the seat in front of the sink.

Ralph
Ciao Bella

[mainesail]

Made a passage on a Tartan 41 and the owner had installed solar panel(s) on the sea hood, just forward of the traveler. It was a great place, since no one ever walked there. C34, # 1472, has exactly the same space (although meas. are probably smaller). Any ideas about installing there on the deck? We're at a mooring and it is important, since I can't constantly hook up and charge with AC. All thoughts welcome. Thx/Rgds.

Horrible location for solar and clearly done by someone who does not understand how badly shading affects solar performance....

Convenient location, yes, but PLEASE don't waste your money to put one where it will be affected by shading.... Dodger tops and sea hoods are among the WORST locations for solar panels. Performance can be cut by as much as 90+%.....

Feel free to read this it may give you some ideas:

http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/solar_panel


Here's what just a teeny, tiny bit of shading can do to performance..... Less than 10% of the panel was shaded and it led to about a 60% reduction in output....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2UdCOq0A5c

[Ralph Masters]

Very interesting read.  I really like the idea of getting off the "shore power" and reducing my slip fee just a little.  Everytime I walk down the pier I see at least one power cord sagging into the water. (I always pull them up and tie them off).  Few boaters understand how much damage stray current can cause and how easy it is for that current to come from a cord in the water.

Ralph
Ciao Bella

[PK]

I've been tossing some ideas around about the solar thing lately... without a bimini or davits what's one to do?  Under the boom is bad, on the dodger is bad so what's next? I've seen some other boats that hang their panels on the side life lines that are solid and extend further forward than ours do.  Has any one added stainless rails from the stern rails to the next forward stancion and hung them on thoses rails?  Would that span be too much for the new rail to be solid enough to hold the panels?  I figure they could be deployed most of the time unless the sailing gets pretty rough.  Also doesn't add length to your boat for those worried about the marina police   Just some ideas, if anyone has thoughts or experience with this set up I'd love to hear about it.

[fulvio]

That's the setup I have.  I installed one additional stanchion between the stern rail and the gate stanchion, then added a stainless rail mounted on those three points.  It just so happens that there is a perfectly straight line between the outside of the forward gate stanchion and the stern rail, and the inside of the new middle stanchion, so the new rail is not bending at all.  I have one 120 W solar panel on each side.  The panel hangs on its longitudinal center line, so it can be swiveled around the rail, and will stay put at any angle (unless it's really blowing).

I'm really happy with the panels as they keep me charged all the time.  That is, in Seattle they work great between spring and autumn equinoxes, the other half of the year they don't do much, but I also don't sail a lot then.  When I was in California and Mexico, they more than covered all my power needs.

This setup also is great for the following reasons:
- Exposure to sunlight is optimal and unoccluded for at least one of the panels, often both;
- The installation is much stronger than I would have expected.  When I first did a Pacific offshore passage with the panels I was prepared to take them down, but it never became necessary.  It also survived a couple of light collisions in tight marina quarters.  And during one memorable sunset cruise on Puget Sound, some inebriated female crew repeatedly used one of the panels as a diving board, and neither the crew nor the panel was any worse for wear.

I've had this for 10 years now, and am really happy with it.  I believe I obtained the panels, charge controller and mounting hardware (rails, aluminum brackets, U-bolts, etc) from Arizona Wind & Sun.
If I find some good pictures, I'd be happy to share them.

Disadvantages:
- Visibility from the cockpit or helm is slightly impaired.  It only becomes annoying in a tranquil anchorage, when you'd like to enjoy the sunset, and you forgot to tilt the panels to the horizontal position, and now you have to get up and do it....
- Since the panel installation now occupies where the lifeline gates used to be, the gates had to be moved forward.  When I did this, I didn't think of the fact that the (vented) stanchions aren't strong enough to take the tension of the lifelines when the latter are open.  So they are now somewhat bent, and I'm rectifying the situation with a diagonal cross-brace.