Solar panel selection

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sargentef
Posts: 45
Joined: Tue Nov 01, 2016 6:33 pm

Solar panel selection

Post by sargentef »

Has anyone used the Hamilton Ferris-Power Products solarflexx packages that is advertised in the Mainsheet magazine? We are interested in adding the 400 watt solar package to our 350.

Erik
Hull #309
cuthbert
Posts: 86
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:20 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by cuthbert »

Did you end up buying the flexx panels? If so how do you like them, I am thinking of 2 x 100W panels and wanted to here about how they perform pictures of installation etc,
sargentef
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Joined: Tue Nov 01, 2016 6:33 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by sargentef »

We did not...as a result of no one answering our query!

"Seawing"
Hull# 309 2005
cuthbert
Posts: 86
Joined: Fri Apr 27, 2012 1:20 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by cuthbert »

There must be no takers on the flexx panels so far. I like the look of that type of product, the disadvantage of Hamilton Ferris appears to be the price. Assuming all are made in China or similar the same size and weight product (both looking very similar) can be found on Wallmart (allpowers) or Amazon (HQST) at a substantial saving.

Invariably buying anything for the boat is a trial and error process with the 2nd or 3rd time around yielding the best solution, but I think I will bite the bullet and buy two 100W panels from a low cost supplier this winter as 10 pounds could be added to the bimini I have without requiring an additional support tube. Wiring in elegantly may be the biggest issue I can see this far out as getting from the back of the boat to the batteries there appears not be to be a simple path (any comments from anyone who has wired from a Bimini to battery?)
JohnNorton
Posts: 59
Joined: Thu Oct 13, 2011 12:27 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by JohnNorton »

Renogy Solar provided my two flexable panels (100w ea.) as well as controller and wiring. The wiring is attached to the controller which is wall mounted under nav station. Wiring to batteries is run behind shore power Charles charger and to batteries. To reach solar pannels on bimini wiring is run also behind charger, up and out along port side under trim in rear cabin with enough length to exit transom thru an extra shore power fitting, run up backstay through bimini and attached to solar pannels which are attached with stretchable cordage to bimini (tape all sharp edges to avoid cutting bimini).
When not in use the wires going thru transom are pulled back into boat, coiled up under port lazeret. Set-up takes me about 20 min, same for take-down. I store the pannels in the aft cabin where the large table in stored. Renogy gave very helpful advice, all was very easy to do. Hope this helps.- John
JohnNorton
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Joined: Thu Oct 13, 2011 12:27 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by JohnNorton »

My reply on the solar does not need to be "private", I don't see how to make it "public". Fell free to share if it is helpful. -John
jbd3
Posts: 60
Joined: Sat Nov 22, 2008 6:44 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by jbd3 »

cuthbert wrote: Tue Nov 28, 2017 7:00 pm There must be no takers on the flexx panels so far. I like the look of that type of product, the disadvantage of Hamilton Ferris appears to be the price. Assuming all are made in China or similar the same size and weight product (both looking very similar) can be found on Wallmart (allpowers) or Amazon (HQST) at a substantial saving.

Invariably buying anything for the boat is a trial and error process with the 2nd or 3rd time around yielding the best solution, but I think I will bite the bullet and buy two 100W panels from a low cost supplier this winter as 10 pounds could be added to the bimini I have without requiring an additional support tube. Wiring in elegantly may be the biggest issue I can see this far out as getting from the back of the boat to the batteries there appears not be to be a simple path (any comments from anyone who has wired from a Bimini to battery?)
I found the run from my davits (right aft of the Bimini) pretty simple. Tied to rails then down into the port stern locker door next to the hinge {natural gap with no pinching} then fed thru the gap at the top of the little cubby aft of the stern bunk. From there, under the valance on the port side above the fixed port. From there behind the hanging locker into the panel above the nav station. From there behind the nav table right to the battery box. No holes drilled and easy to re run each spring when I reinstall my panels.
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TBOT422
Posts: 424
Joined: Sun Jun 26, 2011 5:36 pm
Location: Clearwater, FL

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by TBOT422 »

I had a friend who installed some flex panels on his Catalina 355 and he did not like them. Very poor real performance. He took them off and installed fixed panels. I don't know what brand, make, or size. Just some food for thought.
Gary & Janet
The Best of Times (Hull #422)
sargentef
Posts: 45
Joined: Tue Nov 01, 2016 6:33 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by sargentef »

I would be very interested in knowing what panels he used, where he mounted them, how many watts.

Seawing
Hull# 309
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TBOT422
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Location: Clearwater, FL

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by TBOT422 »

I was wrong that he got rid of them, he still uses them, but they do not produce the power that he expected. He has 2 Solbian panels that are rated at 80 watts each. The maximum power generated in sunny Florida is about 46 watts.
Gary & Janet
The Best of Times (Hull #422)
pjr
Posts: 12
Joined: Sun May 14, 2006 9:33 pm
Location: Georgian Bay, Wiarton, Ontario

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by pjr »

Hi all:
A long time ago, we had a C30 and I installed cold plate refrigeration in the ice box. To power it, I bought 2 32watt solar panels and mounted them on the dodger by tying them onto leather loops sewn onto the top of the dodger.
When we upgraded to the 350 (#406, Imagine) I tried using those two panels. Not enough. So I bought two more. Still not enough. The original two were from UniSolar in Michigan. When I purchased the second pair, they were from UiSolar in China as UniSolar no longer existed as far as I could tell.
I saw an add from Humber boats in Toronto and purchased two, flexible, 100 watt panels which I mounted (on leather loops again) on top of the bimini. These were adequate but not overkill, even in our northern (relatively) cool summer - I'm sure that they would be woefully inadequate in the southern US!
I have seen ads in Main Sheet from Hamilton-Ferris for panels that look very similar to these and they have the bonus of coming with sew-on mounting studs.
There has been quite an improvement in panels, the new 100 watt ones are about the same size as the 32 watt ones I bought earlier.
I think panels are power rated (say 100 watts) with a light equivalent to 1,000 watts per square meter, an intensity I do not think you even get in southern US.
I think there would be room for four of these panels on top of the stock bimini from Catalina.
The panels feed the house bank through a Blue Seas 2000 maximum power point tracking controller and I have seen 11 amps at times around solar noon, even at our location about 45 degrees north latitude. That's only about 130 watts from 200 watt rated panel.
Your mileage may vary!
Peter Richards,
Catalina 350 #406
Peter Richards
Catalina 350, # 402, 'Imagine'
Interlude35
Posts: 44
Joined: Wed Mar 18, 2015 7:44 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by Interlude35 »

We are considering adding solar power to our 2005 350. Since the boat is covered does anyone have the approximate area available behind the backstay’s on a standard Bimini. Has anyone mounted larger than 100 Watt flexible panels? Thank you John & Marilyn Ferguson “Interlude”
man4sail
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Joined: Thu Dec 23, 2010 12:57 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by man4sail »

I have 3solar panels — All Kyocera. Two 60’s mounted on the dinghy mounted on a single bar above the Bimini. They stay on the boat in the winter. All the panels tip fore and aft and can keep the batteries charged in the winter. I also use a Morningstar controller for the panels and generate a peak of about 15-18 amps.
Triumph
Posts: 256
Joined: Thu Nov 03, 2005 7:34 am
Location: Tampa, Fl

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by Triumph »

I have the std JSI bimini that runs a few feet back past the backstay. My estimate is that the distance from the backstay to the back edge of the bimini is about 28". I have installed two 120 watt solar panels end to end in this space. So they run across the back of the boat, out from under the boom and all. If I recall, the panels are 26" x 56" each. I used SS framing to support them.
TRIUMPH
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Captain Kirk
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Re: Solar panel selection

Post by Captain Kirk »

Triumph

Do you recall the brand of panels you went with. I'm looking for 2 -100 to 125 watt panels. Yours seem to be a very suitable size for the amount of power they provide.
Kirk & Leah McCullough
#031 -Full Batten Main, Rocna 20
Sand Dollar
Point Roberts, WA
Triumph
Posts: 256
Joined: Thu Nov 03, 2005 7:34 am
Location: Tampa, Fl

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by Triumph »

My panels are older so the current sizes may differ. The brand is Kyocera, with a Blue Sky booster controller. I've been very happy with the location and performance.

I fixed them in place so that I would not be able to "trim" or adjust them. I come from racing background, and if my were adjustable, I'd be at it every few minutes. This was a form of self discipline.

Bill on TRIUMPH
www.thebookofsail.com
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Captain Kirk
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Re: Solar panel selection

Post by Captain Kirk »

Thanks Bill

I'm looking at the flexible panels that would be fixed to the bimini canvas. I dont want to spend time adjusting them either. I'll look at the Kyocera units.
Thanks
Kirk & Leah McCullough
#031 -Full Batten Main, Rocna 20
Sand Dollar
Point Roberts, WA
hperros
Posts: 52
Joined: Mon Oct 30, 2017 10:16 pm

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by hperros »

I am trying to decide on how many panels I need to install so that to be able to rely on solar panels only while at anchor, with occasional use of the standard alternator that comes with the universal 35B,

Currently, I have two soft 100 watt panels that generate a combined peak of 11 Ah, but they are not sufficient for the boat's needs. Does anybody know how many Ah one needs per day to run the standard equipment that comes with boat? That is, refrigeration, occasional radio, cooking, head, water pump, lights, and anchor light. I have guess-estimated the total consumption to be no more than 140 Ah per 24 hours, but I am not sure. This means that the panels need to generate this much during the day. I noticed that the two soft panels generate electricity from 8 am to about 6 pm with a peak from 11 am to 3 pm (the boat is in Chesapeake). According to my calculations I need solar panels with a combined peak of at least 20 Ah, such as four soft 100 watt panels, each with a peak of around 5.5 Ah, or three 150 watt hard panels, each with a peak of 8 Ah. I have two 4D batteries each with a 180 Ah capacity, but I plan to replace them with 200 Ah AGMs, as they are getting old.

Thanks
Harry Perros
Aegean
Hull #331
R.B.
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Location: Ontario, Canada

Re: Solar panel selection

Post by R.B. »

I have 2 130Watt (rigid and fixed to frame over bimini) panels. They are sufficient if the fridge runs just right. If the fridge runs almost 100% of the time at 5 amps all night then my % state of charge is in the 50s to 60s. And if we have a fairly cloudy day the next day, I don't make enough power to recover to 100%. However If the fridge does well, (side note: I have found if I scrape the frost from evaporator plate every day with a plastic scraper, the fridge runs well and I can make ice daily including on 30 degree Celsius days) then I only lose 10-15% overnight. I also run the radio and inverter to watch a movie on the tv, plus LED lights, water pump and head. I have 4 6V Golf cart batteries for a house bank.

Additionally, the halogen bulbs in the cabin can be a huge draw, if you haven't replaced them with LED yet you should. You will notice the difference on your battery monitor.
Ralph

WOLFHELM
C350 #342
SeaBreeze
Posts: 91
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Re: Solar panel selection

Post by SeaBreeze »

Harry you are probably going to get a wide range of responses. Here’s my contribution. I wanted to insulate my frig/freezer and a good friend convinced me to install a Victron meter to track battery volts, amps and most important to me at the time, amp hours. Following some attempt at insulating the box, and having the boat located near Tampa I regularly monitor ah use when we cruise and are spending most days at anchor. I get the following daily amp hour readings. With a full box with preloaded cold food and drinks and daily high temps in the 60’s I’ll use about 50 ah a day. Same situation when it’s in the 90’s, I’ll use about 70-80 ah per day. We rarely use a radio preferring a hand held VHF, lights are all LED and the high amp motors of pumps only run a minute or so at a time. These are at anchor numbers. Nav equipment draws about 25 ah in an 8 hour sailing day so add that to the at anchor numbers when sailing. As the food and drink in the box is depleted and there is more air space in the box daily ah use goes up about 5-10 ah per day. Sometimes more if we refill the box with warm drinks. Once that stuff cools down the ah use reduces a bit. We notice if we are anchored so the afternoon sun hits our starboard side of the boat in the summer the radiated heat into the box makes the compressor run much more. On a day like that we can use 90+ ah per day. We keep our frig temp around 40F and freezer at 0-10F with the exception being that solar load on the starboard side in the summer sun makes the box warmer until after sunset. We are a couple. No kids no animals.
Rick
Sea Breeze
Rick Parish
Sea Breeze
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