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Blog EntryAug 27, '08 1:03 PM
by patentnick1 for everyone
Hi to all:
 
This summer, in my quest for cleaner, cheaper energy and with an eye towards future longer-distance cruising, I splashed for a pair of semi-flexible solar panels .  The reason I chose semi-flexible panels was that they're lighter, thinner (3mm thick rather than 35mm) and far easier to store than their rigid counterparts. Also, since they would be installed on the middle and rear arch of the new bimini, heir slight flexibility could come in handy. Following quite a bit of research and advice from a friend who's in the process of building a 1MW solar park, I decided to go for two 45W Solara units. They're very neatly finished and robust (if fixed on deck they can be walked on). After sizing and playing around with some aluminium tubing, teak slats, bolts and wingnuts, I came up wth an arrangement which secures the two panels on the rear part of the bimini, away from shadows. In this manner, the bimini fabric can be half-folded or even removed completely while the panels can still use the arches for support. I also modified a waterproof junction box so that the panels' two cables would lead into one, which would require only one watertight socket on deck. After connecting the cables to the solar regulator, then to the batteries via a fuse, I let the sun do its job.  What really amazed me was their performance. They started producing usable current at 8am (about 0,7 amps), by 9:30am they went up to 1.5 amps and by noon they were giving 4-4.5 amps. Let me translate this into what really matters: for ten straight days, I kept the fridge running day and night, I used my 350W inverter whenever I wanted to charge the laptop or power a blender/food processor--for making sauces and dips--and listened to music whenever I fancied (as for lighting, all my interior lights are LED so their consumption is negligible).  The batteries never dropped below 12,6 volts (which was in the morning) and were up to 13-13.1 volts by midday.  Granted, this was during the height of a typical Greek summer, with clear skies and lots of daylight, but even Solara's official figures which are based on summer daylight in Germany were encouraging too.  Since I've very little storage space left, I'm including only one photo of the panels in position. If anyone would like a more detailed note on installation plus more photos, let me know and I'll figure something out.
 
Nicholas
Moments of Clarity #334
 
 
 

ulrikkejser wrote on Mar 13, '09
Any thoughts regarding the need for a regulator or direct fused connection to the batteries. Re-upload of placement photo much appreciated.
Ulrik #336 "My"
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