trailer sailer electrics

[Croak]

Don't discount the electric cool box, Get one and just use it as a cool box with ice blocks , then you can run it with any spare capacity from the solar panel. If you get a 12/240v one you can also run it from shore power.

I have a 30w solar panel dedicated to the cool box it only runs when the sun shines.

 

[Stemar]

Depending on where you can fit your solar panel, it might be worth getting two smaller ones than one large one. The only practical place on Jissel is on the hatch garage, under the boom, which means the shadow of the boom and or main often shadows one side or the other, but rarely both. A small shadow and significantly reduce the output of the entire panel, so I opted for two 20w panels rather than one 40w one, reasoning that I'd get a full 20w plus a bit of the other rather than just a bit of the 40w panel.

I got rigid panels and built a frame from angle ally and pop rivets. As I have starter and domestic batteries, I went for a twin battery controller that puts 90% into the engine battery until it burps, then turns its attention to the domestic one.

In use, the panels keep up with our use at anchor, including the FM radio, that tends to be on most of the day, but not the peltier effect cold box. Even in midwinter, it puts back during the week what I use in a weekend.

 

[Clint]

Really good advice guys, thanks. Does anybody have a basic wiring diagram, I have had a look at a few 12v boat electric books, and I am now even more confused as how to wire the damn thing up. The only time I have ever done any electrical work on a boat, everything was already wired up, and all I did was rewire an engine fan. (That was on a 30' powerboat, and it took all day to trace 2 wires.)

Clint