200 Watts of Solar

[Carver Power]

The solar salesman says I need to spend $ 4000 on a solar system to get 300 watts of power?
for my Hunter 420 Passage, Sounds like a whole lot of money??
Why can't I purchase panels from Amazon and do it myself??
I don't know where to start...

[Privilege]

He's having a laugh. You can do it yourself and learning it will equip you to fix any issues and give you a better understanding of your power needs.

You can spend a lot of money on semi-flexible panels from a variety of manufacturers, but if you can affix hard panels, they are much cheaper and as efficient as their flexible cousins. Don't go with the cheap Chinese ones on eBay, they'll only last a year.

Buy as many panels as you can fit. The panels on Home Depot are just fine. The more-the-merrier. Buy a decent MPPT controller that is big enough to handle your total wattage and if you want to get a kick out of watching all that free energy go into your system, you can buy a battery monitor like the Link 10.

This is a simple description of a more complicated project but there's plenty of resources to be found on this site and there's nothing difficult about it.

[Adelie]

Privilege covered it pretty well.

[billknny]

That would be the price that the would be the salesman's wet dream... unless you are paying someone to do the entire installation. That can add up in a hurry at typical yard rates.

I installed 600W of solar and all the parts and materials cost less than that, including the stern arch to mount it on!!!

[Haddock1]

Originally Posted by billknny

That would be the price that the would be the salesman's wet dream... unless you are paying someone to do the entire installation. That can add up in a hurry at typical yard rates.

I installed 600W of solar and all the parts and materials cost less than that, including the stern arch to mount it on!!!

Likewise. I had an arch fabricated on my Sense 46 fitted with two aluminium framed house solar panels that gives me 550W. The panels were less than £250 each and the whole system only cost me £2500. The most expensive part was the regulator (£600).

[Heldenberg]

Yes, you can do much cheaper than that, framed panels are normally much cheaper that the flex ones.
For MTTP charger, I would not buy any other brand than Victron, they are awesome, very user-friendly and easy to set up, and you can see history and all data on your phone or tablet. They seem to be cheapest on Bay.

[captainwd40]

If you want to do it yourself (DIY) here is a great website I found recently:

www.theinverterstore.com

And the best part ..... free shipping in the lower 48 states in the US.

Please let me know what you are trying to power if you would like some advice.

I am electrical engineer with power generation experience .......

[captainwd40]

Here's a good starting for your solar needs:


https://theinverterstore.com/product...n-starting-at/


$769.00 for 360 watts of 12 volts DC. If you want AC ..... add an inverter to your order for additional $199.00.


Always willing to help out when and where I can ......... Safe and Happy Sailing!

[izzyforreal]

You can get a lot of good info here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/536718196693081/

[kas_1611]

Originally Posted by Carver Power

The solar salesman says I need to spend $ 4000 on a solar system to get 300 watts of power?
for my Hunter 420 Passage, Sounds like a whole lot of money??
Why can't I purchase panels from Amazon and do it myself??
I don't know where to start...

4 grand for 300 watts? Is he taking the p155? You can get a 3kw system for about that on your house.

You can get a 150w semi flex panel from Sunshinesolar for £300 or about $390 US
https://www.sunshinesolar.co.uk/Item/SSF150EB

Add in a good MPPT regulator for another couple of hundred and a couple of hundred for wiring etc and you can have a 300watt system for under a grand.

Only thing I would say is spend a few dollars more to get panels designed to survive the rigours of the marine environment. Standard domestic panels might not survive the exposure to salt water on a regular basis. Better to pay a little more than end up replacing panels.

I have the 100w version and tie it onto the top of my bimini rather than fixed to a deck. It's flexible enough to cope with the slight movement of the canvas but rigid enough not to suffer.

[Redline452]

Got my panels and controller from www.altestore.com, plus lots of good advice. Arch from local supplier, did the installation myself. No affiliation, just a satisfied customer.

[letsgetsailing3]

That price is the "I don't really want to bother with your job, but I will if you pay me enough" price.

[gmakhs]

Delete

[gmakhs]

You can use Chinese (from.aliexpress ).or.otjer cheap panels good quality Chinese brands like :
Eco worthy or dokio will last as long as the more expensive panels you can buy . If.you can go with rigid panels they last almost forever .
For 200 watt don't bother buying an expensive controller but if you have the money to spend :
Victron suppose to be one of the best (I have it and I don't really like it ) or similar quality but Chinese : epever (some stores sell.it as a.good brand 3 times the price )
Other brands maybe are good too.but those are the ones I tested and always from.aliexpress , Amazon is.full.of resellers same.for eBay .
Total price without installation labour costs should be 200 to 300 us .
I have 1 KW eco worthy in the house back in Greece and 200 watt eco worthy on grandpa's boat and 200 watt dokio.on.mine .


P.s dokio are less bulky and little.hiegher voltage so I prefer them .


If you use an mppt controller consider using 4 X 50 watts to raise the voltage as much as possible (if no.shadow issue )

[smac999]

Your post doesn’t tell us muchwithout more info

Proper Soliban panels are ~$1000 each. Plus 3 controllers, and wire, fuses is close to $4000 just in parts. If having some sew onto Bimini with zippers add a bunch more on top of that for labor.

If they are selling junk for $4000 then that is too high.

Or yes. You could do it yourself with Chinese junk rigid panels. And add lots of weight high up on the bost which is not a good thing. And it will last a year.