Solar panels which type?

macd said:
Rigid panels, if it is practical to fit them: more bangs for your buck and far more durable than semi-flexible, which are especially prone to UV damage (learnt the hard way).
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+1, I have rigids, 4x80w. Cheap, I also agree with!
 
Cardo said:
As far as I can tell: Cheap ones.

We'll be moving aboard in April and heading Med-ways. We're in the process of fitting three 100w eBay specials. I figure if one is damaged, they're cheap enough to replace.
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Fitted 2 x80 watt ebay specials last year -- so far no problems at all.
 
On a multihull I have lashed out on semi flexible Sunware panels which can be screwed to the deck and walked on.
I find they last about ten years. Eventually I'll have a rigid bimini and then will be tempted by rigid panels!
 
GrahamM376 said:
We use Kyocera in rigid frames on gantry, can be tilted fore/aft. Hard to say which are best/worst make as too few reports of failures.
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We have the same, although I gave up on the tilting as it was never necessary. The panels themselves look as new after four or five years. I also have a semi- flexible on deck, a Sunware I think, fitted in 1996 and still working fine. A small amount of delamination but the output doesn't seem to have changed.
 
I have a gantry on the back with 2 panels fitted at the moment but they don't appear to work anymore.
I'm going to replace them with similar aluminium framed panels.
But I thought there was a better type of panel to go for?
One that was less susceptible to shadows? I may have it wrong though?
 
I have a pair of 100W semi flexible panels (on aluminium sheet) that bend a little, provide 18% efficiency which is nearly what fixed panels provide (some go to 21%) and are 5mm thick. I built mine on to the top of a curved hard bimini so the solar panels and hard bimini a nearly not seen. It looks pretty good, the windage is low, doesn't make the boat look like a travel warehouse and are a good compromise to the incredibly expensive and ineffective flexible panels (12%). They were not cheap though and are from Aurinco in Sweden (aka china). By the way each panel is actually 2 x 50W panels so shading may be less of an issue as the 200W is made up from 4 x 50W cell groups.
 
TQA said:
I have Like and see lots of Kyocera panels.
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Kyocera specifically do not recommend their panels for marine use. Which is a pity because they have by far the best solar conversion rate and I can get them from the local importer at very economical prices.

In the 4 years I've had my 292watts fitted they've been conspicuously more effective than the couple of their competition that I've had alongside them.
But it's unfair to compare polycrystalline with amorphous silicon PV panels.
The prices quoted on the internet for PV panels are amazing - I'd expect to pay c £1/watt for amorphous and about x4 that for polycrystalline.

The only PV panels specifically recommended for marine use are BP Solar, now unfortunately subsumed into Solarex.
 
Actually BP bought Solarex (Aussie Company) and now BP have all but dropped their development of alternate energy (or they did when I was their). I have a pair of original Solarex's (64W each) and a Solarex regulator as well. At least 20 years old.
G
 
Solara M-Series semi flexible are specifically designed for marine use with a unique dimpled surface offers the dual benefits of a "prismatic effect" refracting the light from all different angles onto the cells and also acts as a non-slip surface. They have a bad press with delamination problems and we now have two new ones, replaced under warranty after 4 years, and we are very please with them. They do not like shade when connected in series with our new Morningstar MPPT controller- beware!
 
charles_reed said:
Kyocera specifically do not recommend their panels for marine use. Which is a pity because they have by far the best solar conversion rate and I can get them from the local importer at very economical prices.
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That's very odd. When I bought mine around five years ago they were the only ones that were recommended for marine use. As you say, the current datasheet does not actually mention marine use but the oil and gas line suggests corrosion resistance. http://midsummerenergy.co.uk/pdfs/kyocera_kd70_70W_solar_panel.pdf

However, mine show absolutely no sign of any degradation.
 
vyv_cox said:
That's very odd. When I bought mine around five years ago they were the only ones that were recommended for marine use. As you say, the current datasheet does not actually mention marine use but the oil and gas line suggests corrosion resistance. http://midsummerenergy.co.uk/pdfs/kyocera_kd70_70W_solar_panel.pdf

However, mine show absolutely no sign of any degradation.
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You were severely misled:- Kyocera have always ruled out their panels being used for marine purposes:-

http://www.shop.solar-wind.co.uk/acatalog/kyocera_solar_pv_panels.html

Their distributors have never, to my knowledge, refused exchange of panels which have failed in use in marine applications.

Their latest, KD modules, claim a 21% conversion efficiency, but this requires full insolation - by not having panels @ 90 degrees to the sunlight you will experience up to 40% reduction in power.
 
To be fair, Kyocera in your link don't advise against marine use, they only state that a 20 year performance warranty does not apply for 'mobile and marine applications'. Midsummer Energy in my link above recommend Kyocera for boats.
 
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