Solar Panels & Wind Generators For Yachts and Boats

Marine Solar Panels & Wind Generators for Yachts and Boats.

A glance around any modern marina will see yachts and sailing boats fitted with a wide range of solar pv panels and small wind turbines.

Solar panels & wind generators are well established in the marine market, having been proven over many years as reliable sources of electrical power.

With the constant increase of on-board electronics, solar & wind technologies allow use of autopilots, communications, fridges, pumps and lighting without having to run the engine or a generator.

Not only does this mean more peace & quiet and less fuel costs, it also means less dependence on expensive, serviced marina berths.

At the EDC we can custom design a solar panel kit to meet your exact requirements. We offer a range of wind generators, solar pv panels, solar controllers and deep cycle batteries all suited to a harsh marine environment.

Charging Twin Battery Banks

As many boats have twin battery banks, one of the first things we recommend is to install a high quality automatic two-way split charge relay. This allows the battery banks to charge as one, and discharge separately.

The latest Victron Cyrix 'intelligent' relay is a zero loss, heavy duty, cost effective solution which will operate from any charging source, connected to either battery bank. A simple switch allows the Victron Cyrix to 'emergency' parallel the battery banks in case the starter battery should be faulty.

Alternatively, we supply solar charge controllers such as the Sunsaver Duo, which are specifically designed to charge two battery banks from one solar array.

The Benefits Of Efficiency Aboard

Boats & yachts can offer significant opportunities to improve efficiency. In turn, this reduces the load on the battery bank, which is easier and less costly than generating more power. Therefore, efficiency improvements are normally the first stage of any power system upgrades.

Through careful choice of the devices to be powered, dramatic savings can be made in the average daily energy demand.

We recommend using high efficiency appliances such as LCD TV's, T-Class Stereo Amplifiers and trying to minimise the use of AC power inverters with the use of DC power.

Efficient lighting technologies such as ultra bright LED and 12v CFL lights can make substantial reductions to the lighting load. Modern LED navigation lights also make a big difference as they can often run for long hours on a night passage.

On many older boats, halogen mini-spot lights are used for internal lighting. These can use from 5 to 50 watts of power. In most situations, clients have been able to replace these bulbs with LED clusters with a power draw of 1.5w to 3w.

That adds up to a huge saving in power. For the same amount of energy, the LEDs will provide approximately 15 hrs of light, compared to 1 hour of light using standard halogen bulbs.

A high efficiency power strategy, in turn, requires a far smaller battery bank, less bulky solar panels, smaller wind turbines, smaller cables, and far less total system weight.

Solar & Wind Power Products For Marine Applications

Here we list some of the products we would recommend for use on a boat or yacht. Surprisingly, although of excellent quality and one of our most popular brands, Kyocera solar pv modules are not warrantied for marine applications.

Marine Solar PV Panels

Marine Wind Generators

Rutland 504 - popular small marine wind turbine with a distinctive safety ring - 60w max.

Rutland 913 - probably the most popular small marine wind generator in the world - 300w max.

Leading Edge LE300 - small, light, powerful - 300w.

Leading Edge LE600 - the latest evolution of small wind turbines - 700w max.

Custom Designed Marine Power Kits

Our system design engineers can design a power system to your exact criteria. We are also happy to work from an early stage with your boatbuilders or marine engineers.

When contacting us please include details such as available installation space, planned cruising area, number of battery banks and average daily power requirements. Please see the information section of our site for guidance on how to establish your average daily energy needs.

Related Pages

• How to wire multiple batteries in parallel - the correct way.
• Cable sizing calculator.