A Photo & Discussion Forum for Wharram Design Enthusiasts

solar.

We have had unseasonal rain here on the east coast of oz which has me wondering about the sun.As my build nears it's completion I need to look at power for the boat.I have no idea about how to set this up so am looking for advice.I want a fairly basic system to power the following-

mast tricolor led

interior led x2

laptop

handheld gps

compass light

vhf

interior fans x2

bilge pumps x2

deck light

How many house batteries would this set up require what size solar panels?

thank you in advance.

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Permalink Reply by Jay Bennett on March 13, 2014 at 2:01am

here is an article about changing a boat to LED lighting and the change in power consumption.

http://www.j120.org/j120cled.htm

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Permalink Reply by Galway Bay on March 27, 2014 at 5:34am

It is not just lighting that is getting better. Some laptops are light on power as well. I was very happy to find that mine draws only 12 watts. This is comparable to a large fixed GPS. Smaller GPS draw as little as 3 - 4 watts. If your laptop has good battery life of 4 - 5 hours then it is probably similar to mine. Remember 12 watts is 1 amp per hour.