Genny v solar

[bigcol]

I have been lucky enough to be able to get my hands on a

Mastervolt diesel 4kva silent diesel generator, which still has made a big dent in my pocket.

 

What I want to know, is now I have purchased said Genny, which gives me all the 240 I need.

Thinking do I need the solar panels that I installed only 2 months ago

By selling these on the forum, will help to offset the cost of the generator, which hurt.

 

Any thoughts I know solar power is free, but if using the genny re washing machine/ wife's hair dryer, why the genny is on, it will be charging my battery's as like on shore power.

The solar will be redundant is battery's are fully charged

 

So why the need for solar as well??

 

Could be complete set up and fitting advice masive 490 watts set up with everything including the display mtr, controller, mountings cable and plugs including instructions could be up for sale soon

 

Col

Edited August 4, 2014 by bigcol

[GoodGurl]

the solar will give you free power all summer and the genny will give you the power you need in winter, we never run the genny in summer but use it in winter when its most needed, i would keep both unless you really need the money from sale of the solar.

[Robbo]

I would keep them both, genny is good for winter, solar is good for summer. Solar will pay for itself within around 3-5 years in diesel costs alone.

[Phil Ambrose]

Yes keep them both, deffo.

Phil

[Paul C]

You're the guy that sold the smartgauge and regretted it? I think it would be the same for the solar panels. Genny and solar panels do different things - solar is good for low power but all day, genny is good for higher power items (eg washing machine) but can also be used all day for low power items eg battery charging to reach 100% SoC in winter time.

[bigcol]

The problem for us, is that it does take a big chunk of roof space,

And yes it's Free power, but at the mo re goodGurls post

It seems a waste when the wife be having the genny on every morning for hairdryer anyway

Which in turn will charge the battery's.

 

Col

[matty40s]

I love Bigcols smart gauge.

 

Keep the solar, there is nothing better than being in the middle of the countryside and hearing nothing at all besides what nature intended And...... something.... is still charging your battery bank

 

I was up Tring summit and the end of the Wendover arm when the Icelandic ash cloud stopped all flights. The silence was deafening.

[Ex- Member]

The problem for us, is that it does take a big chunk of roof space,

And yes it's Free power, but at the mo re goodGurls post

It seems a waste when the wife be having the genny on every morning for hairdryer anyway

Which in turn will charge the battery's.

 

Col

 

Blimey how big is the hair drier LOL. We have so much energy from solar that running a hair drier makes little impact on batteries especially when the sun is shining. We can even run our washing machine without generator or engine if we pre fill it with warm/hot water.

 

We try not to have to use a generator at all and haven't needed to since end Feb, but generally have to use it most days through winter, however it's just a 1kve Honda running a 20a charger but will also run the boats 240v electrics. You clearly use more power than us, but I would keep both because the value of the trickle charging ability from solar is far superior at doing this and free of charge in comparison to a 4kva generator.

[KJT]

Another vote for keep the solar. We very rarely have to run our 3.5kva built in genny. When it does run it consumes about a litre an hour of diesel and, although cocooned and water cooled the noise and vibration is noticeable and there is a slight smell of exhaust fumes when the wind is in the wrong direction. There is no such thing as a 'silent' genny. Except when it's switched off!

 

Ken

[matty40s]

The problem for us, is that it does take a big chunk of roof space, HOW OFTEN DO YOU USE THIS SPACE? ?

It seems a waste when the wife be having the genny on every morning for hairdryer anyway

Which in turn will charge the battery's.

I WOULD SAY YOU NEED TO HAVE ANOTHER LOOK AT YOUR BATTERIES COL, WITH THE SOLAR AT THIS TIME OF YEAR, IT SHOULD SUFFICE.

Col

sorry for caps, on phone.

[GoodGurl]

i agree col should be able to run the hairdryer on solar, yes it will drain them a little but it will soon regain it.

i run my washer off solar after i have heated the water via immersion from solar.

[bottle]

Another vote to keep them, we came at it the other way have 7Kw generator and then fitted 400 watts of solar, best thing we ever did.

 

For instance today, batteries at 52% SOC this morning, went out for the day panels left flat on the roof, usually angle them, came back at about 17:00 hrs batteries reading 99% SOC, Fridge and freezer running all day. Had it been winter would probably had to run generator for about three hours, so today have saved about £4 in diesel.

 

I know the weather has been kind, about to change but over the last few weeks generator running has been a rare occurrence, only used when absolutely necessary for high load equipment and timed to coincide for the best time to charge the batteries..

 

ps. fully electric boat.

[matty40s]

Another vote to keep them, we came at it the other way have 7Kw generator and then fitted 400 watts of solar, best thing we ever did.

 

For instance today, batteries at 52% SOC this morning, went out for the day panels left flat on the roof, usually angle them, came back at about 17:00 hrs batteries reading 99% SOC, Fridge and freezer running all day. Had it been winter would probably had to run generator for about three hours, so today have saved about £4 in diesel.

 

I know the weather has been kind, about to change but over the last few weeks generator running has been a rare occurrence, only used when absolutely necessary for high load equipment and timed to coincide for the best time to charge the batteries..

 

ps. fully electric boat.

I last ran my engine for power this year on March 16th.

[bigcol]

Hi All

 

Matty Pleased your happy with the smart gauge lol, and winding me up lol

 

You've been lucky enough to have played with my set up, and the panels being front of the boat, stops me or the wife getting on the roof, to put up or down the wheelhouse roof.

 

The front roof is nearly half the height, as the sides, so will defo be safer for sharon and myself.

May be just remove one panel, so as to give me more room to get on the top.

 

I imagine that removing one panel, will 1/2 the imput.

 

Another point, is is really true that running a hairdryer on the inverter will not do any harm to the battery's??

 

Are we saying that buying the genny, is over the top!

Looking back, it seems a lot of money I've invested lately in electrics lol

 

Confused.col

Edited August 4, 2014 by bigcol

[Nightwatch]

Nah! Everyone is wrong. Sell the solar lock stock and barrel. No doubt.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If anyone is looking to sell their newly fitted solar system, I may be interested.

 

Martyn

[Ex- Member]

Hi All

 

Matty Pleased your happy with the smart gauge lol, and winding me up lol

 

You've been lucky enough to have played with my set up, and the panels being front of the boat, stops me or the wife getting on the roof, to put up or down the wheelhouse roof.

 

The front roof is nearly half the height, as the sides, so will defo be safer for sharon and myself.

May be just remove one panel, so as to give me more room to get on the top.

 

I imagine that removing one panel, will 1/2 the imput.

 

Another point, is is really true that running a hairdryer on the inverter will not do any harm to the battery's??

 

Are we saying that buying the genny, is over the top!

Looking back, it seems a lot of money I've invested lately in electrics lol

 

Confused.col

 

We have a 3kw inverter it runs our washing machine 2.2kw no problem, it's designed for that purpose after all and has been used for running all sorts of 240v equipment for over the past 9 years now. Lyyn's hair drier is 1500 watts. It only takes a few minutes to dry her hair. As long as your batteries are at a decent state of charge there should be no problem. If she uses it when the batteries are pretty full and sun shining you hardly notice any drop at all.

 

We're actually adding 2/300 watts of solar for the 4 winter months, probably a fraction of the cost of that 4kva generator. We plan to hang them from the side of the boat to glean more energy from a low winter sun. IMO your money would have been much better spent on adding more solar even to side panels rather than dish out loads of dosh not just on a generator but on expensive fuel now and in the future, and let alone noise hassle and pollution.

 

Using generators or engine running for energy is a backward step unless you cruise daily for 6 hours or so.

 

If you have a wheel house, can't you put solar on it's roof?

 

Just a thought

Edited August 4, 2014 by Julynian

[bigcol]

Okay it was just a thought today

The genny cost £1200 all tested and working

It was a good deal

If the roof was solid, and I was on the Thames, meaning rare to have to take the wheel house down, as much as being on the canals

I would have the panels on the roof.

 

Putting this post on the forum, for me is sounding out if I'm about to make a big mistake, or not

Advice is a good thing, and yes I do listen,really do, to all of your advice.

 

Which is why I'm here in the first place lol

 

 

Col

Edited August 4, 2014 by bigcol

[peterboat]

Sorry Col I have 900 watts of solar and have not run my wispergen since march I think, I do have flexible panels so I can walk on them but I cant believe that you are even considering getting rid of those cheap green panels. At least when my wispergen runs I get electric hot rads and hot water so it is efficient

 

Peter

[bottle]

Another point, is is really true that running a hairdryer on the inverter will not do any harm to the battery's??

 

Yes.... but the battery bank has to have enough SOC and the inverter big enough, you will replace the used power over the day with the solar panels.

 

Depending on battery bank size and power required by the hairdryer it will be a very small amount of power being taken out of the battery bank.

 

I know our electric kettle (incoming flak) uses 2% of our battery bank when it boils approximately 0.6 ltr of water. Soon recovered with the panels or the generator.

 

Another way to save energy would be for the other half to have shorter hair, towel dry and/or have a lower wattage hair dryer.

 

I am now going to hide before she reads this.

[Paul's Nulife4-2]

Hi ya Col,

Well as I've said many times before, I truly believe that the more ways you have of producing power the better, it really is that simple.

Twin Alternator's.

Solar.

Wind.

Generator.

If you can afford them, Store, Use or manage the power they provide efficiently, for your style of cruising, then youve cracked it matey.

So I'm very much in the 'Keep Them' camp.

Catch you later Col.

[Lady Muck]

If you can, its really good to have more than one option on a boat incase anything breaks. So keep it all!

[leeco]

If you have money to burn sell the solar and in a year you will have put what you got for it in the genny or keep the solar and in a year you will have the perfect set up for free.

 

I have just fit 750w of solar to my boat and by dinner time my batteries are in float. My mate who is power hungry used to go through diesel like water and I just fitted 750w solar to his boat 6 days ago and he hasn't used his genny since.

 

In fact why not think of adding to the solar.

Edited August 5, 2014 by leeco

[bigcol]

Yep, I've come to the conclusion that yes I will be stupid not to keep solar.

But at the moment I have 2x large panels at the front 2 x 247 watts stopping access to the roof from the front of boat which is a lot easier for wife and I to get on the roof.

 

Do I really need the 2 panels?, just keep one, or could I sell these and get flexible ones, ( can flexible ones be walked on?)

 

Folks that have silent Gennys, what wattage solar do you have please

 

Thanks for your patience, I do listen sometimes, and value advice

 

Col

Edited August 5, 2014 by bigcol

[Phil Ambrose]

4kva inboard genny which I never use plus 300watts PVA. Keep all your solar.

Phil

[leeco]

The more panels the better.

 

Why not think of getting some storage boxes made and fit them into the tops then you have extra storage and if you get the right boxes you can tilt the panels as you get a lot more amps of the panels if you can tilt them to the sun even in summer.

Edited August 5, 2014 by leeco