solar panels for Bav 38

[stevem]

I'm thinking of fitting solar panels on my 38. Has anyone fitted them ? If so what type/size and where did you mount them? Any suggestions gratefully received

[Sweet As]

I am in a similar position with our Bav36, so will be intertested in the advice your thread produces.

I would like to get at least 200W over the bimini if possible and am weighing up going with a stainless arch off the pushpit versus the semiflexible panels now available that can be sewn into the bimini cloth.

From my perspective the advantages of the arch and solid panels are;
* adds strength to the bimini structure
* solid panels are cheaper than the equivalent power in flexible panels (although you need to then add the cost of the arch)
* can be designed to incorporate a set of davits and/or attachment point for other toys (radar, wind generator etc)
The advantages of the flexible panels are;
* light weight
* low windage

[Odysseus]

Hi Steve, there is some info on the forum about panels,  however I have fitted a glass 120watt  in aly frame to a frame on the stern that has other equipment like satellite dish, aerial for wifi, and siren.

The power output in french sunshine is 9 amps and my biggest power usage is the fridge that has been sorted, see info on fridge, alls well. Fitted 3 years ago, purchased direct from China for £200 delivered.

Email address suguihua1007@gmail.com

I have some photos will send them to you.

Odysseus

[Stuart]

Hi here is a link to show our arch http://www.bavariayachtowners.org/page8/page6/files/page6-1023-full.html (sorry not sure how to post the pic ), which holds 340 watts of solar panels, our KISS wind generator, radar etc.
This year for about 3 1/2 in Florida and Bahamas we only had to plug in twice to a marina and turn on the Honda once using the wind and solar , not bad 

[westward]

Hi Steve,

I have two 105 Watt solar panels fitted on an arch over the rear. The arch is mounted on the pushpit rather than having a replacement pushpit built or fitting a purpose built arch directly to the deck. This was a more or less standard part made by a local (to me in St. Cyprien, France) supplier. I was dubious about the strength and stiffness of this but it was a low cost alternative and so far has performed all right. It is a bit wobbly and I have not been in any force 12's yet however.

Two 105 Watt solar panels plus a wind generator made me completely autonomous doing continuous cruising in the Med in summer.

It is not enough for crossing the Atlantic in January if, like me, you consume about 6 amps per hour continuously. This is :
- Nav and auto-pilot running full time consisting of : Garmin 4008 chart plotter, Garmin GHP12 auto-pilot, Garmin tri-data unit, VHF.

We had to turn the fridge off. There is nothing to keep cold after the first week anyway.

We had to run the motor for at least one hour every day after the first couple of days. This is very unsatisfactory as motor charging is very inefficient and costly in diesel. I don't have a "smart" charger and the diesel only charges significantly during the first hour. After that, charging falls away to a trickle no matter what the battery amp-hour level.

This is also true for the solar panels to a certain extent. The regulator switched the charging off when the voltage indicator showed around 13 volts but the amp-hour indicator showed that the batteries were still at -70 Amp-hours. The only way to get it to switch on again was to draw down the battery by switching the fridge on. This dropped the voltage and the charger would switch on again for a while. I have not worked out any other way to get round this yet.

For trans-atlantic useage, I would consider a water generator like a Wattsea. I haven't worked out yet how to mount one with the very nice but in some ways impractical wide swim platform.

[Keiron]

We have 2x 32W flexible panels from Marlec which we slap on the top of the bimini and tie to the backstays which give a good top up charge during the day and allow us to run our fridge all day while sailing and keep enough juice in the battery to allow 2 days on anchor without worrying about power.

Rigid panels are slightly more efficient but you do have to weigh up the pros and cons.  If you are needing a lot of power for prolonged periods off grid then they are the better option.  To make the most of them you do need a good regulator with the correct rating.  If you have a wind genny as well there are intelligent regulators that manage your power input automatically.

I can't rate Marlec highly enough, they have given me excellent advice and service while I went through the decision process plus excellent after sales service as well.

The other part of the equation is to work out if you need to increase your battery capacity (Amp Hours) and how you can cut down your power drain.  Our biggest drain is the fridge but since lining it with camping mat foam (closed cell, 5mm thick) we can keep the temperature between 0 and 10C with only 10mins per hour of fridge use.  Need to change the anchor light to an LED as that sucks a lot of power all night.

Keiron
Black Gold
Bavaria Cruiser 40