Talking to a marina neighbor changed my mind about solar panels on boats

I've always thought solar panels on a small sailboat were a waste of money... too much hassle for too little power. But last week, Bob from slip 14 showed me his setup on a 28 footer. He said after 3 months of running a single 100 watt panel, he's saved $120 on dock charging fees and runs his fridge all day. That conversation hit different because he broke down the numbers in a way I never considered. Maybe I've been too quick to dismiss solar for liveaboards. Anyone else change their mind after seeing a real setup work in practice?

2 comments

2 Comments

derek_dixon7821h ago

That's a really good question about the cloudy days, and it's the same thing I wondered when my buddy tried to sell me on his setup too. Bob probably isn't running that fridge nonstop 24/7 with just one panel, that would be a stretch unless he's got a solid battery bank and only uses the fridge for a few hours at a time. I've seen some guys use those small portable power stations to buffer the power so the fridge only kicks on when there's enough juice, which makes the numbers make more sense. Your caution about the battery bank is totally fair, a lot of these success stories only work because of the whole system working together, not just the panel alone.

thea2461d ago

Bob's numbers sound solid but what about cloudy days? A single 100 watt panel can't run a fridge nonstop without some battery bank to back it up. Did he mention his battery setup or how many amps he's pulling total?