ok so now I have all new solar and wind charging , approx 500 watts of each.
below is a comparison I have recorded of the amps received from both state of charge Over the past 6 months.
hope this can be helpful.
regards

Based on 400 watt wind and 500 watt solar

Clear Blue sky midday sun .........Solar = 24 amps

Wind 0 to 5 knots ................. Silent wind = 1 to 2 amps


Partly cloudy Midday sun...............Solar = 14 to 16 amps

Wind 5 to 10 knots ................Silent wind = 4 to 5 amps


Cloudy Miday sun....................Solar = 8 to 10 amps

Wind 10 to 15 knots .................Silent wind = 5 to 6 amps


Dense cloud no sun ...................Solar = 1 to 2 amps

Wind 15 to 25knots ...................Silent wind = 7 to 10 amps

Wind 25 to 35knots......................Silent wind. 10 to 17 amps

so what your saying is that if you have a lot of sun but no wind the solar cells are better, but if you have no sun but lots of wind the wind generator is better, and if you have lots of sun and lots of wind there about as good as each other, but if you have no wind and no sun your up the proverbial creek and better break out the paddles, or start the engine.

I think Solar is better at the end of the day Because I like to anchor in calm sunny anchorages!
i always have the trusty honda 2kva before the Perkins.

I look at it in a slightly different way I like the add on of the wind as a storm back power source for a autopilot and other items during a storm with the added benefits of adding extra amps to the system on good sailing days . At anchor Id think about pulling the wind gen sideways and stop it But Id be looking for a calm place to anchor just the same
a energy supply mix is not a bad thing

Im a fair wearher sailor ho2 i try not to go sailing in storms prefer to be haulded up in a nice sheltered bay. I havent really turned the wind gen on while sailing so not sure on stats there.

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HG02 said..
I look at it in a slightly different way I like the add on of the wind as a storm back power source for a autopilot and other items during a storm with the added benefits of adding extra amps to the system on good sailing days . At anchor Id think about pulling the wind gen sideways and stop it But Id be looking for a calm place to anchor just the same
a energy supply mix is not a bad thing

Wind generator on a ketch would be a nightmare. Old blokes should be holed up in storms! Wind generators at sea in a storm would be a nightmare, the added whining noise is not going to be very relaxing in an already taxing noisy environment. The windvane steering should be driving in those conditions. The only time I can see an advantage of a wind generator is at anchor at night in a windy place like here at the moment and me home in bed!

You don't have to have a noisy wind generator, there are some that are virtually silent, and although they don't put out a lot of amps they keep charging after sundown, so the amp - hours add up. Even quiet anchorages usually have some wind. But the good ones are not cheap and to get the most out of them you need a sophisticated regulator so that the solar and wind inputs are not mutually exclusive. So if you have the funds, OK, but otherwise maybe not.

I have wind and solar but these short rainy days with no wind I end up running the motor for a while every 2nd or 3rd day. I don't find the wind gen noisy at all.

From what I've ready the Air X 400 watt I have is good but there blades are noise
Mine came with out blades and hub and nose cone so Ive purchasing a kit from E Marine . com The kit has the silent wind carbon fibre blue blades so the Air X should be good to go
Wire it in place is connect via a amp gauge and fuse then direct to a battery post
but not the same battery the solar connected to
it has the controller built into the generator
I've also order new yaw brushes so it should be good for another ten years plus other than accedental blade breaking I hope

When comparing the two it should be remembered that the average solar power is going to be something like half the mid day peak, and then half again over the full 24 hours. So solar comes out at roughly 25% of the peak. You also have the sometimes cloudy times.

So that makes the solar around 4 amp average. Pretty similar to wind at a constant 5 to 10 knot breeze over 24 hours. I also wonder how you manage to fit 500W of solar cells. That is a lot of area.

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McNaughtical said..
I have wind and solar but these short rainy days with no wind I end up running the motor for a while every 2nd or 3rd day. I don't find the wind gen noisy at all.

Hi McN, have you got an MPPT solar regulator?

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Yara said..
When comparing the two it should be remembered that the average solar power is going to be something like half the mid day peak, and then half again over the full 24 hours. So solar comes out at roughly 25% of the peak. You also have the sometimes cloudy times.

So that makes the solar around 4 amp average. Pretty similar to wind at a constant 5 to 10 knot breeze over 24 hours. I also wonder how you manage to fit 500W of solar cells. That is a lot of area.

2 x 140 watt on the davits and 1 x 220 watt in front of my dodger on the cabin top.

I note older panels don't work if partially shaded?
most new solar panels state they work even if partly shaded is there any truth to this statement?

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southace said..
I note older panels don't work if partially shaded?
most new solar panels state they work even if partly shaded is there any truth to this statement?

some panels use diodes to try and make sections of the panel more independent from each other.

even so, depending on the design, even a small amount of shade in the wrong spot can be enough to drastically reduce the output.

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fishmonkey said..

southace said..
I note older panels don't work if partially shaded?
most new solar panels state they work even if partly shaded is there any truth to this statement?

some panels use diodes to try and make sections of the panel more independent from each other.

even so, depending on the design, even a small amount of shade in the wrong spot can be enough to drastically reduce the output.

That's why it makes sense to wire your panels in series and use a MPPT controller.

The biggest problem with solar is that here in SE Qld, in winter the sun only gets 40 degrees above the horizon even in the middle of the day, so even at peak power you only have a projected area 60% of optimal - and an average half that over the 10 daylight hours in winter. Panels are rated 12 volts when cool, so take another 10% off cos you need 13.4 to charge a battery and suddenly the wind generator starts to look good.

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PhoenixStar said..

.

The biggest problem with solar is that here in SE Qld, in winter the sun only gets 40 degrees above the horizon even in the middle of the day, so even at peak power you only have a projected area 60% of optimal - and an average half that over the 10 daylight hours in winter. Panels are rated 12 volts when cool, so take another 10% off cos you need 13.4 to charge a battery and suddenly the wind generator starts to look good.

I had no lack of power with my 100 W panel in QLD last winter, but then I wasn't running a frig...that may be the difference.

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nswsailor said..

PhoenixStar said..

.

The biggest problem with solar is that here in SE Qld, in winter the sun only gets 40 degrees above the horizon even in the middle of the day, so even at peak power you only have a projected area 60% of optimal - and an average half that over the 10 daylight hours in winter. Panels are rated 12 volts when cool, so take another 10% off cos you need 13.4 to charge a battery and suddenly the wind generator starts to look good.

I had no lack of power with my 100 W panel in QLD last winter, but then I wasn't running a frig...that may be the difference.

The best of frigs burn 35 amp hours a day - 3.5 amps for 10 hours. That's more than 100 W can cope with.

I bought a LG 300 watt a year or so ago just to work out what sort of power Id need I knew I could not keep it on board but temp fitted it.
After cruising the net I found this panel was pumping power into the batteries even after 5 pm down here.
The panel started selling as a 240 watt january before I bought it LG tweaked it up to 275 then 300 watt.
After reading info from solar installers this was the panel I purchased it also gain extra power from bouncing the sun under the cell increasing it efficiency . And i noted the installers were saying early and late sun powered these panels more than others.




When it was wired in to the boat two 150 amp hour batteries I never ran under 13 .7 volts in my batteries running two Engles drop ins and my lights and sound
I think from memory it was some thing like 37 volts output for a house system and I ran it though a MPPT from ebay . I still use the MPPT
on a semi flexible 60 watt . The semi flexibles don't pump out as much power as the solid panels thats a fact








Without a mizzen I could easily fit this bad boy either on davits or above a bimini long ways and no sunburn
In the middle of the day a semiflexible if glued down on to something solid looses power it over heats they need ventilation under the panel and most are 12 volt,
The house panels work far better as they export high voltage out puts and running a MPPT controller means n mater what voltage the panel is it can reduce it down to a boats 12 or 24 volt system. Thats what Ive read out of everthing

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PhoenixStar said..

nswsailor said..

PhoenixStar said..

.

The biggest problem with solar is that here in SE Qld, in winter the sun only gets 40 degrees above the horizon even in the middle of the day, so even at peak power you only have a projected area 60% of optimal - and an average half that over the 10 daylight hours in winter. Panels are rated 12 volts when cool, so take another 10% off cos you need 13.4 to charge a battery and suddenly the wind generator starts to look good.

I had no lack of power with my 100 W panel in QLD last winter, but then I wasn't running a frig...that may be the difference.

The best of frigs burn 35 amp hours a day - 3.5 amps for 10 hours. That's more than 100 W can cope with.

Spot on Phoenix - I've measured my fridge consumption and it's 36 AH per day (ie 24 hrs)

Regards,
allan

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Trek said..

McNaughtical said..
I have wind and solar but these short rainy days with no wind I end up running the motor for a while every 2nd or 3rd day. I don't find the wind gen noisy at all.

Hi McN, have you got an MPPT solar regulator?

I don't know..... what is one of them....

Incidentally last night when I got home my engine start battery was flat and I was unable to start the engine even with the help of the house batteries. Fortunately a friend has taken the battery ashore to charge and test it today, but I don't know why it suddenly went flat. Nothing was done differently to usual.

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HG02 said..
I bought a LG 300 watt a year or so ago just to work out what sort of power Id need I knew I could not keep it on board but temp fitted it.
After cruising the net I found this panel was pumping power into the batteries even after 5 pm down here.
The panel started selling as a 240 watt january before I bought it LG tweaked it up to 275 then 300 watt.
After reading info from solar installers this was the panel I purchased it also gain extra power from bouncing the sun under the cell increasing it efficiency . And i noted the installers were saying early and late sun powered these panels more than others.




When it was wired in to the boat two 150 amp hour batteries I never ran under 13 .7 volts in my batteries running two Engles drop ins and my lights and sound
I think from memory it was some thing like 37 volts output for a house system and I ran it though a MPPT from ebay . I still use the MPPT
on a semi flexible 60 watt . The semi flexibles don't pump out as much power as the solid panels thats a fact








Without a mizzen I could easily fit this bad boy either on davits or above a bimini long ways and no sunburn
In the middle of the day a semiflexible if glued down on to something solid looses power it over heats they need ventilation under the panel and most are 12 volt,
The house panels work far better as they export high voltage out puts and running a MPPT controller means n mater what voltage the panel is it can reduce it down to a boats 12 or 24 volt system. Thats what Ive read out of everthing

HGO2 Do you happen to have the dimensions of the LG 300W Solar panel?

off the top of my pea brain
it's around 1.4 meters long and One meter wide
I'll find a link for you tonight

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McNaughtical said..

Trek said..

McNaughtical said..
I have wind and solar but these short rainy days with no wind I end up running the motor for a while every 2nd or 3rd day. I don't find the wind gen noisy at all.

Hi McN, have you got an MPPT solar regulator?

I don't know..... what is one of them....

Incidentally last night when I got home my engine start battery was flat and I was unable to start the engine even with the help of the house batteries. Fortunately a friend has taken the battery ashore to charge and test it today, but I don't know why it suddenly went flat. Nothing was done differently to usual.

Select to expand quote

Bruski068 said..

HG02 said..
I bought a LG 300 watt a year or so ago just to work out what sort of power Id need I knew I could not keep it on board but temp fitted it.
After cruising the net I found this panel was pumping power into the batteries even after 5 pm down here.
The panel started selling as a 240 watt january before I bought it LG tweaked it up to 275 then 300 watt.
After reading info from solar installers this was the panel I purchased it also gain extra power from bouncing the sun under the cell increasing it efficiency . And i noted the installers were saying early and late sun powered these panels more than others.




When it was wired in to the boat two 150 amp hour batteries I never ran under 13 .7 volts in my batteries running two Engles drop ins and my lights and sound
I think from memory it was some thing like 37 volts output for a house system and I ran it though a MPPT from ebay . I still use the MPPT
on a semi flexible 60 watt . The semi flexibles don't pump out as much power as the solid panels thats a fact








Without a mizzen I could easily fit this bad boy either on davits or above a bimini long ways and no sunburn
In the middle of the day a semiflexible if glued down on to something solid looses power it over heats they need ventilation under the panel and most are 12 volt,
The house panels work far better as they export high voltage out puts and running a MPPT controller means n mater what voltage the panel is it can reduce it down to a boats 12 or 24 volt system. Thats what Ive read out of everthing

HGO2 Do you happen to have the dimensions of the LG 300W Solar panel?

Mc Naughty-
You need to invest in a cheap $20 multimeter, switch off everything, and see if you are loosing amps from the battery. There might be a partial short circuit somewhere. Or maybe your solar controller picked up the vibe you were talking about her, and decided to let you know who is boss.

if you go into a forum called whirlpool . com . au and find the solar section there always a few solar fitters in there
the LG panel was called Exxon or some thing like that but they would have better cells by now

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Yara said..

McNaughtical said..

Trek said..

McNaughtical said..
I have wind and solar but these short rainy days with no wind I end up running the motor for a while every 2nd or 3rd day. I don't find the wind gen noisy at all.

Hi McN, have you got an MPPT solar regulator?

I don't know..... what is one of them....

Incidentally last night when I got home my engine start battery was flat and I was unable to start the engine even with the help of the house batteries. Fortunately a friend has taken the battery ashore to charge and test it today, but I don't know why it suddenly went flat. Nothing was done differently to usual.

Bruski068 said..

HG02 said..
I bought a LG 300 watt a year or so ago just to work out what sort of power Id need I knew I could not keep it on board but temp fitted it.
After cruising the net I found this panel was pumping power into the batteries even after 5 pm down here.
The panel started selling as a 240 watt january before I bought it LG tweaked it up to 275 then 300 watt.
After reading info from solar installers this was the panel I purchased it also gain extra power from bouncing the sun under the cell increasing it efficiency . And i noted the installers were saying early and late sun powered these panels more than others.




When it was wired in to the boat two 150 amp hour batteries I never ran under 13 .7 volts in my batteries running two Engles drop ins and my lights and sound
I think from memory it was some thing like 37 volts output for a house system and I ran it though a MPPT from ebay . I still use the MPPT
on a semi flexible 60 watt . The semi flexibles don't pump out as much power as the solid panels thats a fact








Without a mizzen I could easily fit this bad boy either on davits or above a bimini long ways and no sunburn
In the middle of the day a semiflexible if glued down on to something solid looses power it over heats they need ventilation under the panel and most are 12 volt,
The house panels work far better as they export high voltage out puts and running a MPPT controller means n mater what voltage the panel is it can reduce it down to a boats 12 or 24 volt system. Thats what Ive read out of everthing

HGO2 Do you happen to have the dimensions of the LG 300W Solar panel?

Mc Naughty-
You need to invest in a cheap $20 multimeter, switch off everything, and see if you are loosing amps from the battery. There might be a partial short circuit somewhere. Or maybe your solar controller picked up the vibe you were talking about her, and decided to let you know who is boss.

Thanks Yara,

I have a multimeter.... at the risk of appearing even more blond than I am, I can say that I know how to turn it on, which place to switch it to, but am still a bit vague about what the numbers mean when I join the dots. Still struggling with getting my head around electrical stuff. The multimeter is mostly useful when someone comes on board that knows how to use it...lol....

I have been running the motor in the mornings for 15 to 30 minutes in the mornings the last few days while I've been getting ready for work. Would the umph needed to start the motor be not replaced for that short amount of run time? I know the solution is to get a gen set, which I am working on.

I know. ...I'm a kiss type but what did they do a hundred years ago?

What do you need to power on board?

I cook with gas and candles supply light.

p.s I think my answer to the threads question is if you need it....can afford it. ...get both

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ChopesBro said..
I know. ...I'm a kiss type but what did they do a hundred years ago?

What do you need to power on board?

I cook with gas and candles supply light.

p.s I think my answer to the threads question is if you need it....can afford it. ...get both

a simple solar garden light works a treat in the cockpit

www.bunnings.com.au/our-range/lighting-electrical/lighting/solar

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HG02 said..

ChopesBro said..
I know. ...I'm a kiss type but what did they do a hundred years ago?

What do you need to power on board?

I cook with gas and candles supply light.

p.s I think my answer to the threads question is if you need it....can afford it. ...get both

a simple solar garden light works a treat in the cockpit

www.bunnings.com.au/our-range/lighting-electrical/lighting/solar

If mrs chopsbro wants to get decrative
https://www.target.com.au/p/pack-of-1-solar-string-lights-white/58306406?utm_term=58306406&utm_content=pack-of-1-solar-string-lights-white&utm_source=google&utm_medium=merchant-site&utm_campaign=merchant-site&gclid=CjwKEAjw7qi7BRCvsr3N58GvsTkSJAA3UzLvpYRFVE8pqrxQYmZrrVA0pyehKGpJpPcglfnMRdu3URoC7_Hw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds&dclid=CKzVxp2wu80CFQwYvAod1iEC8g

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HG02 said..
if you go into a forum called whirlpool . com . au and find the solar section there always a few solar fitters in there
the LG panel was called Exxon or some thing like that but they would have better cells by now

Thanks HGO2 been looking for a website like this