Bavaria 40 - where to put Solar?

[Graham376]

As Paul says, removable panels are somewhat counter productive. If not wanting a gantry, a far better solution is to pole mount them on swivel/tilting brackets. Article here but I've seen ready made ones mentioned on previous threads which I can't find now. - https://www.sailmagazine.com/diy/installing-a-pole-mounted-solar-panel

 

[PaulRainbow]

As Paul says, removable panels are somewhat counter productive. If not wanting a gantry, a far better solution is to pole mount them on swivel/tilting brackets. Article here but I've seen ready made ones mentioned on previous threads which I can't find now. - https://www.sailmagazine.com/diy/installing-a-pole-mounted-solar-panel

When i bought my boat it had a panel mounted on a pole. It consisted of a 1" stainless tube, clamped to the pushpit with some u bolts. At the top was a short section of slightly smaller tube (snug fit inside the 1" tube) with i length of angle bolted either side of it, with some nylon washers, so the bolt could be done up enough to hold the panel in position, but not so tight that it could not be tilted. The panel was bolted to the angle. The panel could be tilted on the pieces of angle and the tube in a tube allowed it to rotate. I never bothered with moving it around though. There were also a couple of support wires from the top back to the pushpit.

It would not cost much to make such an arrangement and the pole happily supported what was then a 60w panel. For the same size and weight now, that would be a 100w panel. I have since changed the pole for an arch with a pair of 100w panels.

 

[duncan99210]

We’ve got a Bavaria 38 and have 4 semi flexible panels on the coach house roof: a 20 watt just behind the forward hatch, 2 x 40 watt ones either side of the mast and an 80 watt one on the companionway hatch garage. No costs for an arch, easy to fit and the setup produces 6 amps at anchor in the Med. That keeps up with our electricity demand including cold cider and wine.
Just for contrast to the opinions about wind, I don’t have a permanent wind generator but do have a Aquair which I rig when sustained winds are forecast (20 knots +). Not a permanent feature though, just hoisted up the back stay when required.

 

[Malish]

Thanks for posting, what removable panels do you have? What do you fix them to when they are out (for overnight or when you leave the boat) and where do you store them down below?

Edit: Something like this?: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07K3QB8M9/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_JPWPDb1YBQHDA

Nothing so fancy ;-) - I got a solid 100W solid panel and an MPPT controller from ebay. The panel just leans against the coach roof, secured to a grab handle with a short length of line. Yes the stanchion wires can cast a bit of a shadow but it is not a deal breaker. Storage in a fabric bag along the quarterberth. I am sure there are more elegant options out there but this one does what I want it to do, looking after the batteries for most of the year.

 

[Kelpie]

A gantry/arch with hundreds of watts of solar may be a bit overkill for channel hopping, weekending, etc. Will this sort of sailing not involve a fair bit of motoring and staying alongside?

FWIW on our last boat we had a 50w rigid panel mounted using bungees on the hatch garage. Whilst a fairly shaded position, this kept the batteries topped up when the boat was on the mooring, and whilst cruising it just about kept up with our needs provided we had a wee bit of sun, and bothered to move it around to get the best angle. Also worth mentioning that there was no fridge on that boat, so our consumption was just lights, instruments, and phone/laptop chargers.

On the new boat we now have a fridge, but a combination of usual motoring plus a 100w panel on the guardwires seems to keep up quite happily.

In my limited experience you do not have to spend a fortune to get a good solar setup. Cheap rigid panels at well below £1/w and basic PWM controllers, all off eBay, everything just seems to work. The 50w setup on my previous boat is now five years old and going strong, and cost me under £100 all in.

 

[markleuty]

Gantries don't have to be expensive

 

[MagicalArmchair]

We’ve got a Bavaria 38 and have 4 semi flexible panels on the coach house roof: a 20 watt just behind the forward hatch, 2 x 40 watt ones either side of the mast and an 80 watt one on the companionway hatch garage. No costs for an arch, easy to fit and the setup produces 6 amps at anchor in the Med. That keeps up with our electricity demand including cold cider and wine.
Just for contrast to the opinions about wind, I don’t have a permanent wind generator but do have a Aquair which I rig when sustained winds are forecast (20 knots +). Not a permanent feature though, just hoisted up the back stay when required.

Thanks Duncan, I've been looking over your blog for photos. How do you connect the controller to the wiring? I've yet to fully understand her dc wiring set up! I feel a visio diagram coming on... Do you have a deck gland per panel? Where do the wires for the panels run internally under the deck?

 

[ianabc]

On 37 foot boat

built a white powder coated aluminium housing designed to blend in

over the main hatch garage

and

another in aluminium on top of the aluminium dodger over the companionway doors.

Most observers fail to see the solar panels in those positions.

Each is protected by 12 mm acrylic.

 

[XDC]

Wondering if this helps

 

[duncan99210]

Thanks Duncan, I've been looking over your blog for photos. How do you connect the controller to the wiring? I've yet to fully understand her dc wiring set up! I feel a visio diagram coming on... Do you have a deck gland per panel? Where do the wires for the panels run internally under the deck?

Wires for the forward 3 panels enter the hull via the dorade box, then go down to the bilge and routed to the batteries which are located under the starboard seating in the saloon via MPPT controller. The wire from the one on the top of the hatch garage go through a hole adjacent to the starboard end of the mainsheet traveller, under the headlining along to the companionway hatch surround then down into the engine space and then to the batteries. These wires are simply sealed with a good deal of sealant as the deck is too curved for a gland: operating on the principle of if I ever remove the panel it’ll be replaced using the original wires or the hole will be filled with thickened epoxy.

Wiring: the panel wires terminate at a couple of bus bars and are then joined to the controller. In turn the output from the controller is connected to the positive bus bar from the batteries and a negative bus bar connected to the output side of the BM1 shunt. The charging side of my batteries is not standard Bavaria though, as I use a Sterling A to B box to manage the alternator output, so I’ve redesigned the wiring from that point of view. Not sure where my circuit sketches are, if I’ve still got them....

 

[Iain C]

What boat are you coming from? The reason I asked is that I changed from a Sabre 27 to a Bavaria 32 about 18 months ago. The battery capacity on the Sabre was a fraction of what the B32 has, and where I had to be really quite careful in the Sabre, in the B32 I really don't have to worry for weekend Solent hops and Channel/W Country cruises, and that's with the fridge on all the time and lots of Eberspacher use in winter. Change all the interior bulbs and nav lights for LEDs and you'll be absolutely fine unless you are doing serious long-distance stuff, and make sure the engine is running when the Eber is initially starting up.

I do have a NASA semi flexible panel between the main hatch and the traveller and a Scanstrut glad fits in the moulding beautifully to run the cables down to the controller and battery bank. That is quite a job, worth getting cable pullers for, however the only "visible" cable is in the back of one of the saloon lockers.

My boat lives on a swinging mooring all year and that's enough trickle to keep the bank topped up.

Assuming the B40 hatch garage moulding is the same as the B32, and you do put the panel forward of the traveller, you need this gland:

https://www.furneauxriddall.com/acatalog/ScanStrut-Horizontal-Deck-Seal-SC_DS_H6.html#SID=948

...and you can just see it in the slot of the hatch garage on the port side in this shot. The cable exits the panel at the forward end, runs along a slot in the moulding, and enters the gland from the aft end to assist with waterproofing.

Panel visible here:

 

[ashtead]

Would anyone have an idea as to a reasonable stainless arch ( wood doesn't appeal) ? Any recognised stainless companies to use in south ?

 

[Heckler]

My potential (survey report pending) new boat has no energy generation at all, and the obvious thing to do is to stick a wind generator on, however, I'd like solar too.

Where on earth would be the best place for it? I resist the idea of a solar arch off the stern, however, I suppose that could act as davits also if I get it specced strong enough?

What do others do?

I hang mine on the guard rail. I put a solid tube instead of the wire and swivel plastic clamps to hold them. Unfold when makng passage or anchored with a hard word notched prop to position them. Loads of us long distance cruisers do it. Another of my mates actually used bulldog cable clamps as a swivel direct on to the guard wire, even simpler. Couple of my mates done transats with them like this and A lot of Algarve and Gib cruisers do it.

 

[Bobc]

You can get about 80w on the main hatch garage. You will find that this is fine to keep the batteries topped whilst on the mooring.

Since my boat went onto a river mooring, I have had a 100w roving panel, which has done the job perfectly well.

Now that I am preparing the boat for extended cruising, I an fitting 4 x 100w panels onto the bimini with velcro (Bavaria 49), which should give me plenty cover the fridges, lights, and instruments.

Just make sure you buy an ETFE panel, ideally with sunpower cells and the connections on the back of the cells rather than across the fronts of the cells.

 

[Frank Holden]

Side saddle on the gaurd rails.... esp in higher latitudes..... best way to go.
Fit for use at sea?... absolutely.... mine have survived Cyprus to southern Chile eastabout including 3 Pacific crossings , two in the 40's..... lost one when the decks were swept clean by a big bit of wet offshore from Mar del Plata.....

Mine are on a custom mount.... first two shots are on shop bought ( german ? ) mounts on an expedition yacht that was in the Antarctic Peninsula trade at the time.... she also had rail mounted ones.....

 

[Baggywrinkle]

My boat is a 1999 Bav36. I put my flexible panels on the Bimini (see pic) ... not 100% satisfied, one flexible panel has died already.

A solar arch with fixed panels would be my preferred solution but I haven't got there yet.

On the Bimini the output of the 300W panels easily keeps up with my energy needs, the most significant load being the standard Bav fridge which runs 24/7.

 

[ghostlymoron]

I've heard this kind of arrangement before but, in my view, it's far better to have permanently fixed, continuously deployed panels which harvest power whether sailing, moored or anchored. If you only use them when stationary, your missing out on the most productive period of the day. I note that most YouTubers have fixed panels.

If your sailing plans are short trips or even North Sea / Channel crossings then you could just fit a plug connection in the cockpit and have a movable solid panel which you deploy in harbour and placed below when sailing.