Lucia 40: Solar and Lucia 40

[Falbala60]

Originally Posted by Terbonium

I would have say 1 8/16" But I'll measure again tonight to be sure.

Ha Ha ... A designer like you should have a Mitutoyo

[Terbonium]

Originally Posted by Falbala60

Ha Ha ... A designer like you should have a Mitutoyo

Lol, I'll take donations I need to make another HarborF run and pick up a cheap pair.. Measured the diameter quick tonight.. 1 13/16".. So? 1 1/2" diameter for sure.. I'm pretty sure the flanges are a standard part. The flanges were welded at the shop. Welds to the vertical were done onsite as well as all the support posts on the beam. They were drilled at attached before even welding. It's the only way all that could line up without creating lots of jigging.

I am very happy with all the welds. I'm not sure if I lucked out, or if that's just what can be done by marine fabricators. (our first boat)

26 1/2" from the aft vertical plane of the square upright to the centerline of where the support interfaces with the coach roof.

[Falbala60]

This is an other option for those wanting to add the support brackets of the bimini on the reinforcement rib rather than parallel with the cat axis.

The problem is that need a very good workmanship to make those complex angles ... difficult to make in a shop and install properly maybe better to prepare in the shop and weld in place.

[Oliver66]

Originally Posted by Terbonium

Yep, wiring thru the traveler will be easy.. Getting the wires thru the cockpit area will require a little finesse and a hammer.

After ripping down the fabric center piece I had clips installed so it could be quickly removed in the future. if needed. (ie rope lighting addition)

Terbonium another question : where does the black tubular tube end in the boat ? down in the maestro cabin in the "wire cabinet " or somewhere else ??
thanks again in advance !!

[Terbonium]

Originally Posted by Oliver66

Terbonium another question : where does the black tubular tube end in the boat ? down in the maestro cabin in the "wire cabinet " or somewhere else ??
thanks again in advance !!

It ends shortly after turning to starboard. And the end was filled with silicone. It took some work to force the wire snake from the outside in and thru the silicone calk. There is no pre-run chase after that. You access this area from a panel in the ceiling of the cabinet above the fridge. If you have a freezer you will need to remove the freezer to get to this area.

[Oliver66]

Originally Posted by Terbonium

It ends shortly after turning to starboard. And the end was filled with silicone. It took some work to force the wire snake from the outside in and thru the silicone calk. There is no pre-run chase after that. You access this area from a panel in the ceiling of the cabinet above the fridge. If you have a freezer you will need to remove the freezer to get to this area.

thanks again Terbonium.
It looks clear to my eyes...
a good wire snake will help soo , and chance i don't have the freezer.
installing wires from panels situation to MPPT will be my next work aboard .
After that I will only have to fix the panels...

[MKB53]

In response to Steve's questions:

The usable space behind the traveller if you do not want to extend over the edge is 1480 x 700 odd. here is a bit more than 700 but not enough for a bigger panel format! Most panels are deeper than the 700 available (900 plus) but you can get some 160w panels that will fit 3 across ( I sourced them, 150 when I bought them, from ev-power online).

I would not go for semi flex, speaking from experience. You will only get 3x100w in the tray. The lack of cooling air under the panel limits the performance. I went from 300w semi flex to 450w rigid and nearly doubled my output with the same solar reg. (Victron). On a good day I get between 2.5 and 3 KwH.

If you stay within the area you can also fit mountings directly on the roof top. If you go over you need a s/s frame.

[Falbala60]

Originally Posted by Cotemar

Try
Ross Solar
38 Beaver Brook Rd,
Danbury, CT 06810
Phone: (203) 512-4500

This is where I just purchased 3 of the X21-345 SunPower panels.

They had a 40 foot trailer cuck full of them.

Thank you Cotemar... I am waiting for a reply fromt them

A NEW INFO for South-East sailors.

Seems there are no official Sunpower distributors in this region... only small resellers that, from my seraches, do not want to sell only 3 panels.

From the official Sunpower distributor list I found
SunPower by South Coast Solar
1219 Bluff Rd, Columbia, SC 29201
803-626-0552
in South Carolina that accept to sell 3 unit X22-360 12VDC panels.

The technician I spoke to is himself a sailor !

Waiting a proposal from them with the Invisimount components.

[Falbala60]

Also Terbonium suggested me ...

Alternative Energy Services, Inc.
1417 Chaffee Drive
Suite 1, Titusville, FL 32780
Office: 407-379-1710
Fax: 407-379-1711

YES they are very "boat friendly" as they offered me to provide also inverters, MPPT ... and even do installation.

Good reference !

[A TEN]

Hello fellow Lucia owners! I know this is an old thread but I’ve gotten so much from it (especially thanks to Terbonium and Falbala), now it’s time for me to give back to the community. I recently completed a solar install on my 2020 Lucia: 880w from 8 Sunpower flexible panels and victron 150/70 controller. Much discussion with the fledgling company in Boston that did the install with this thread at the forefront. After seeing Terboniums ordeal tearing apart the cockpit ceiling and routing wires through the salon (would have been worse for me since I have a freezer and a/c to work around), I elected to go down the ss bimini post and covered the exposed 2’ of wire in the owners cabin with some conduit. The metal artist built an aluminum rack for the panels and bracketed it to the aft of the traveler and we used Falbala’s idea of 2 bimini supports canted inwards to hit the fiberglass bond beam. The system is working like a champ, so far I’ve seen 750w - not bad for October in Boston! Following are some pics, but the ss is not polished yet:

[Terbonium]

TEN - Looking good. Nothing like free power. Glade you were able to work from our experiences.

We are currently located in the Bahamas and typically getting 5-6kwh per day(1080W panels). Combined with about 2 hours of generator time we are able to run 3 AC units from 10pm to Midnight, then run the owners side AC unit until 9AM from the battery. We've easily gone 45 days at anchor and weekly motor/sailing while enjoying all the luxuries that are above and beyond. Once winter sets in I'm sure we won't be running the generator at all.

[A TEN]

Wow T, that’s awesome - a/c w/no genny running! My a/c controllers don’t even come alive without shore power or the genset running. I’m heading to Bermuda then the VI at the end of the month. Never been a fan of a/c but do appreciate it now and then - if just to dry things out every few days. Solar, however, is awesome 🤓, Thanks again!

[A TEN]

One other pic of the Aluminum “rack” for the panels. Note: in this pic, the rack sit’s against the traveler as it’s temporarily clamped to it for support. The finished install has a 2” gap for the wires to sit in. Also, the two aft support feet are not installed yet - these keep it elevated off the bimini by an inch or two but still provide a slight downward slope aft to shed water. This helps keep the “tray” from filling up with water.

[CatNewBee]

Originally Posted by A TEN

One other pic of the Aluminum “rack” for the panels. Note: in this pic, the rack sit’s against the traveler as it’s temporarily clamped to it for support. The finished install has a 2” gap for the wires to sit in. Also, the two aft support feet are not installed yet - these keep it elevated off the bimini by an inch or two but still provide a slight downward slope aft to shed water. This helps keep the “tray” from filling up with water.

Sorry for the question, but why would someone make a heavy massive construction and put weak expensive and short living flexible panels on it? You could have had installed 2 to 3 times the capacity and 5 to 6 time the life expectancy for the same money.

[A TEN]

No worries CatNewBee, thanks for the question! Yes, I’ve read all the negative reviews about flexible panels, but it seems that those comments are all from information gathered several years ago. Panels, like computer memory, advance quite fast and the sunpower flexible panels get great reviews: as efficient as rigid (24%), one of only several that are marine grade, 4 vs 32 pounds, inexpensive ($170) and pretty durable. Of course, the proof is in the pudding and I will be keeping a weary eye out as to their longevity. As far as the structure goes, yes it’s strong: I think FP should commission my welder for the bimini supports - the Lucia should have come from the factory with something to support such a flimsy overhang! I’ve already been through 40g50 winds and nary a thing was out of place. I’m on the hard right now, getting bottom paint and other work and the 880w is more than enough to run my modest electrical needs (although October in RI is getting a bit chilly and I already miss the Dometics🤓!). Heading to the VI at the end of the month to get the chill out of my bones. I expect the solar will perform even better down there.