50' Gulfstar sloop "B-Hoppy"

[Milka]

I'm buying a boat and know nothing about solar. I'm hoping to build a hardtop over the center cockpit for solar. I'm also planning on it being cheap as possible and work on combination with a Onan Generator and a Perkins diesel.

Draw: I plan on having the standard marine electronics and starlink. The draw will be for 2 people with each owning a TV, laptop, and cell phones.

I acknowledge the use of the Water maker and Air Conditioning will require the generator being turned on.

Hope you guys can help ?

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Link #1 in my signature.

 

[Mark Halvorson]

Sunshine_eggo is correct. You must know what your loads are and how long you want to run those loads on batteries. I am on a boat also, a trawler, my power budget was to power the boat for two weeks, without using the generator. Everyone is different.

 

[Milka]

Sunshine_eggo is correct. You must know what your loads are and how long you want to run those loads on batteries. I am on a boat also, a trawler, my power budget was to power the boat for two weeks, without using the generator. Everyone is different.

My loads are described. I don't know exact numbers. I'm just the money, I'll be paying someone to install but want to make sure they have no reason to stop and wait on parts.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

My loads are described.

Nope. You listed items. Means absolutely nothing.

I don't know exact numbers.

Get off your butt and do the work. It's absurdly simple...

I have X device that uses Y Watts (or Amps * volts) for Z hours every day.

Determine your available solar and download the energy audit spreadsheet from the links in line #1 in my signature and fill in the blanks. It almost designs your system for you.

Failure to do so means one of three things:

1) Get a system that doesn't meet your needs.
2) Pay too much for a system that meets needs you don't have.
3) You get lucky and have a system that perfectly meets your needs. You should have bought a lottery ticket with that luck.

 

[Milka]

Nope. You listed items. Means absolutely nothing.



Get off your butt and do the work. It's absurdly simple...

I have X device that uses Y Watts (or Amps * volts) for Z hours every day.

Determine your available solar and download the energy audit spreadsheet from the links in line #1 in my signature and fill in the blanks. It almost designs your system for you.

Failure to do so means one of three things:

1) Get a system that doesn't meet your needs.
2) Pay too much for a system that meets needs you don't have.
3) You get lucky and have a system that perfectly meets your needs. You should have bought a lottery ticket with that luck.

Well I'm sure somebody here has 2 tvs, 2 laptops, 2 phones, star link, boat electronics (radar, GPS, depth sounder and the likes) and knows exactly what I need to purchase to make it work with solar and a generator.

To much power? Not worried about to much. I know what I want could cost between $5k and $15k.

Im just not sure what is required but I'm sure being rude isn't one of them.

 

[TomC4306]

Well I'm sure somebody here has 2 tvs, 2 laptops, 2 phones, star link, boat electronics (radar, GPS, depth sounder and the likes) and knows exactly what I need to purchase to make it work with solar and a generator.

To much power? Not worried about to much. I know what I want could cost between $5k and $15k.

Im just not sure what is required but I'm sure being rude isn't one of them.

It's a do-it-yourself forum not a do it for you forum. People here are very willing to help but you do have to do some of the work.
Try to quantify your needs and will help you with the math.

 

[sunshine_eggo]

Well I'm sure somebody here has 2 tvs, 2 laptops, 2 phones, star link, boat electronics (radar, GPS, depth sounder and the likes) and knows exactly what I need to purchase to make it work with solar and a generator.

You REALLY think somebody has exactly what you need, has done exactly what you want and can just tell you?

What size TVs?

Chromebooks have dramatically different power needs than gaming laptops.

Older or newer generation starlink? they have notably differernt power consumption.

Do all boats have exactly the same electronics packages made by the same manufacturer that consume exactly the same power, or do some have other equipment that others don't? Is there more than one manufacturer for boat electronics?

To much power? Not worried about to much. I know what I want could cost between $5k and $15k.

Really? So if you spend $5-15K on a system that could have cost only $3K, you're cool with it?

Im just not sure what is required but I'm sure being rude isn't one of them.

To me, laziness is just rudeness displayed by imposing work you don't want to do on others. I've literally given you all the information you need. You just need to spend 15-30 minutes reviewing the resources, maybe another hour or two obtaining information on the desired devices and another 30-60 minutes plugging info into a spreadsheet.

Not being lazy is required.

 

[Mark Halvorson]

Don't forget about your 12 volt loads also on a boat

 

[Sabre36]

As a marine electrician I will give you the same advice I give to all my sailing clients. start with a good quality battery monitor such as a Victron BMV so you have a dataset to build from. You will want to learn as much as you can so you don’t get taken advantage of..

 

[HRTKD]

Milka, even on an RV, no two systems are identical. To get an accurate idea of what your system design needs to be, you have to go through a power audit and fill out the spreadsheet.

I would have no clue how much power a boat requires. I couldn't even ballpark it. RV trailers don't have navigation, depth finders, bilge pumps, etc.

 

[Milka]

As a marine electrician I will give you the same advice I give to all my sailing clients. start with a good quality battery monitor such as a Victron BMV so you have a dataset to build from. You will want to learn as much as you can so you don’t get taken advantage of..

Issue is its basically a bare hull with a mast that im about to buy. So I have no clue what the draw for any item is as items dont currently exist. I'm sure someone has a worst case scenario and I can just buy that. And give it to the boat yard to install.

 

[Milka]

Milka, even on an RV, no two systems are identical. To get an accurate idea of what your system design needs to be, you have to go through a power audit and fill out the spreadsheet.

I would have no clue how much power a boat requires. I couldn't even ballpark it. RV trailers don't have navigation, depth finders, bilge pumps, etc.

Systems don't exist yet to measure. If I over power the boat that's fine.

 

[Milka]

It's a do-it-yourself forum not a do it for you forum. People here are very willing to help but you do have to do some of the work.
Try to quantify your needs and will help you with the math.

Needs dont exist yet and wont for awhile.

 

[Q-Dog]

Contact these folks www.pkys.com and tell them what you want. Boats are their specialty.

 

[wholybee]

Well I'm sure somebody here has 2 tvs, 2 laptops, 2 phones, star link, boat electronics (radar, GPS, depth sounder and the likes) and knows exactly what I need to purchase to make it work with solar and a generator.

To much power? Not worried about to much. I know what I want could cost between $5k and $15k.

Im just not sure what is required but I'm sure being rude isn't one of them.

There is a HUGE difference in power consumption between different TV's and in usage patterns. My solar system might be half of what you need, or twice what you need, just based on the size of TV's and how much you watch them vs. me. And that is just considering the TVs. The same is true for boat electronics, refrigeration (do you have that too?) etc.

You absolutely need to start with a "budget" listing every electric item, its power consumption, and how many hours per day you will use it. You want a "this is what you need answer?" 5000W of solar 2000Ah of Lithium Batteries, and a 10kW generator should do it. But if you are on a budget (you said cheap) the only correct answer is to start with YOUR actual usage, which will certainly come up lower than the numbers I just gave you. I make do with 600W of solar, and I see many boats with 2000W of solar, and a few with 5000W. We all have more or less the same stuff.

 

[Milka]

There is a HUGE difference in power consumption between different TV's and in usage patterns. My solar system might be half of what you need, or twice what you need, just based on the size of TV's and how much you watch them vs. me. And that is just considering the TVs. The same is true for boat electronics, refrigeration (do you have that too?) etc.

You absolutely need to start with a "budget" listing every electric item, its power consumption, and how many hours per day you will use it. You want a "this is what you need answer?" 5000W of solar 2000Ah of Lithium Batteries, and a 10kW generator should do it. But if you are on a budget (you said cheap) the only correct answer is to start with YOUR actual usage, which will certainly come up lower than the numbers I just gave you. I make do with 600W of solar, and I see many boats with 2000W of solar, and a few with 5000W. We all have more or less the same stuff.

Which is why I don't mind if I overpower the boat. Guests come and go and electronics may change

 

[BobR]

I'm buying a boat and know nothing about solar. I'm hoping to build a hardtop over the center cockpit for solar. I'm also planning on it being cheap as possible and work on combination with a Onan Generator and a Perkins diesel.

Draw: I plan on having the standard marine electronics and starlink. The draw will be for 2 people with each owning a TV, laptop, and cell phones.

I acknowledge the use of the Water maker and Air Conditioning will require the generator being turned on.

Hope you guys can help ?

Install all the solar panels that will fit; and a boatload of batteries.

 

[BobR]

I'm buying a boat and know nothing about solar. I'm hoping to build a hardtop over the center cockpit for solar. I'm also planning on it being cheap as possible and work on combination with a Onan Generator and a Perkins diesel.

Draw: I plan on having the standard marine electronics and starlink. The draw will be for 2 people with each owning a TV, laptop, and cell phones.

I acknowledge the use of the Water maker and Air Conditioning will require the generator being turned on.

Hope you guys can help ?

You are going to have a lot of shading from the masts, booms etc. I believe the original sail plan for the Gulfstar 50's were ketch rigged. Has the boat been re-rigged?

Much depends on how you plan to use the boat; in marina, day sails. weeks long cruises, long range voyaging.

 

[Mark Halvorson]

Putting solar panels over the center cockpit is not going to give you much solar gain. Instead have a solar arch built over the stern, past the boom. Have them build the dingy davits into the arch. Make it high, so you can walk under it. You want your dingy to be high out of the water, don't want to caught in trailing seas.