Choose and install a Solar Panel

If you go to navigate to the end of the world, a solar panel could become the only way to be self-sufficient with electricity on board. He goodbye to annoying noise diesel generator at the end of the day if we sail to sail is to forget about civilization and its noise!

A good solar panels can be the smartest solution to always keep the batteries fully loaded, though of course not the only, as it can be perfectly complemented by a wind generator, or even a hydro generator seize the ship's motion to move a propeller connected to a generator or alternator.

But back to the solar panels. Although they may seem an expensive investment, it is not carried deception. If you consider the fuel saved to start charging its battery, the savings in ports for plug a charger, the fact that they are practically eternal and do not have any wear, investment will have another look, and without account gained independence thanks to them.

We must consider several aspects when choosing solar panels, as the type of photovoltaic cells, where and how they will be installed, the amount of power needed, the choice of the charge controller, or even the choice of driver consumption.

Types of panels

There are 3 different types, with monocrystalline, polycrystalline or thin-film technology, also called amorphous silicon. The first were those who left the market initially and remain the most widely used because they offer the highest levels of performance and higher power per unit area. They are rigid and are protected by glass which makes them almost eternal but fragile against shock.

Polycrystalline have very similar characteristics to the first but offer a lower return for a price somewhat lower potency. Its duration and monocrystalline is very high.

The thin-film panels use a very durable technology because they are flexible and can be stepped on, or bent without any problem, but offer half the power than the first, so to get the same power need twice as much surface. In return they are much less sensitive to yield loss if any part of the panel is in the shade.

The amount of them you will need depends on the consumption of your boat. It is not the same a small boat with little more than the navigation lights to another with a fridge and complex navigation equipment. But when calculating the power delivered by these, keep in mind that you usually calculate about 4 hours of full sunlight daily on the panels. If for example your panel delivers 75 watts, you must have 4x75 = 300 watts / day. If further its panels are not fitted with a system that allows them to be oriented entering shady areas or misdirection, count with only 50% of this power.

Mounting a solar panel must be optimized so that they tend to receive the most sunlight perpendicular to sunlight. Therefore there are systems that allow rotation of these to get the best performance. A fixed assembly can greatly reduce the functionality of the installation, as in when an area of ​​the panel stops receiving light because of a shadow, it begins to stop working very quickly. Do not think that if the panel is half in shadow deliver half the power. Much less simply will not work.

You can use a support mounted above the transom, radar arch, bimini top, above the cab if your boat has one. Use a power cord appropriate section and prepared to withstand the corrosive marine environment. They are more expensive but more durable.

Except for very small solar panels you will require a charge controller to adjust the power anointing the state of charge of the battery. When this goes charging voltage increases and this is detected by the controller to protect it from excessive loads. The charge controller also prevent your batteries are discharged at night due to a reverse consumption produced by solar panels, although this unwanted effect can be solved by a simple soldier diode in series with the solar panel.

The most advanced controllers dotting the diode during periods of performance of the panel to avoid the slight voltage drop produced by the diodes. Use controllers that can withstand more power than delivered by the panel because they never know if you later end up installing another panel, and in any case work more comfortably and with less possibility of damage due to excessive power controlled.

A good battery monitor will let you know the performance of your system, the energy supplied by the panels in amperes which will help you to know the best angle adjustment panel facing the sun. Digital monitors battery provide figures indicating the current supplied to the system and consumed. That is we will indicate the battery voltage, charge status expressed in ampere-hours, if the battery is charging or discharging at this moment and that makes current flow. More information you read this details article for this topic.