1) Understanding your energy needs is essential to determine how much solar you need. Start by making an "energy budget". List all your consumers and their daily usage. For example, if your LED lights use 1W per bulb and you have eight bulbs on for 5 hours a day, that would be 8 Watts for 5 hours or (8x5) 40 Wh (Watt hours). I like to use kWh to keep things consistent. 40 Wh = 0.040 kWh. It's a good idea to list what you're using while at anchor and another list of what you're using while underway (for instance, you don't use your autopilot at anchor). Remember to list everything: fridge, freezer, watermaker, autopilot, nav lights, chart plotters, etc. For example, here aboard Athena, with an electric galley, fridge, freezer, watermaker, two computers, etc, we use an average of 5.5 kWh per day. 2) To give you a quick estimate, use https://globalsolaratlas.info/ to find "Global horizontal irradiation" per day for your location. Take your daily energy consumption from step 1 and divide that by the number of solar hours. In the case of Athena, located in the Caribbean, that would be 5.5kWh per day / 5 sun hours = 1.1 kW solar array. Keep in mind that this is a theoretical number that does not take into account the shading or degradation of the panels over time. Let's add 30%. 1.1 x 1.3 = 1.43 kW. You can now divide that number by the panel's Nominal Power output. In the case of Athena, our panels are 400W SunPower panels. 1430W / 400W = 3.6 panels needed to cover our 5.5 kWh per day consumption. 3) Understand that the amount of solar you can install on a small sailboat is limited by the size of the boat and heavily influenced by shading and, of course, the boat's location. The size of the panels might also be defined by the height of your stanchions or the size of an existing solar arch. Figure out where you're able and willing to install panels. That will dictate the size and number of panels. 4) Use Victron Energy's MPPT Calculator to calculate what MPPT is ideally sized for your solar panels and expected output based on location. Based on our experience in the Caribbean, the estimate provided by the guide is reasonable. https://www.victronenergy.com/mppt-calculator. Remember that it's best practice to avoid combining panels with different specs on the same MPPT. #sailboat #sailboatproject #boatwork #saillife #liveaboard #liveaboardlife #saltlife #sailing #sailingadventure #travel ingcouple #livingonaboat #solar #sailboatsolar

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Post Race interview in Daryl Wislang (NZL) of Dongfeng Race Team, after getting second place in Itajaí, at end of Leg 7 from Auckland.

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For more information on the 2008 Cobia 256 Express for Sale with HMY Yachts, visit: https://www.hmy.com/yachts-for-sale/25-cobia-6-express-2008-n-a/ Contact HMY Yacht Sales Professional Tyler Murphy at (561) 676-1828 or tmurphy@hmy.com for questions. The 2008 Cobia 256 Express is a versatile and well-built offshore fishing boat that offers a comfortable and capable platform for serious anglers and families alike. This express-style boat combines a spacious cabin with a functional cockpit, making it suitable for both day trips and overnight stays. With it’s reliable construction and seaworthy design, the Cobia 256 Express delivers an exceptional on-water experience for fishing enthusiasts and boaters seeking adventure. Recent Upgrades: 2023- Garmin 8610XSV New Isinglass New Bottom Paint Upholstery Updates Interior/Exterior Replaced Had Pump Trim Tabs Motors 2020 Nextrail Double Axel Trailer HMY.com: https://www.hmy.com/ Yachts for sale: https://www.hmy.com/yachts-for-sale/ Sell Your Yacht: https://www.hmy.com/sell-your-yacht/ Our social media handles: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HMYYachtSales/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hmyyachts/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/560708/ Website: https://www.hmy.com/

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SKIPPER LARGE POWER COURSE (4.9/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) : https://www.nauticed.org/powerboating-courses/view/skipper-large-power-boat When the wind is blowing from forward, you can ferry your boat to an end tie by angling slightly off the wind and working the throttle and steering wheel to move your boat slowly - ever so slowly sideways to the dock. This and other powerboat docking and trainings are available in NauticEd's Skipper Large Powerboat Online Course at: https://www.nauticed.org/powerboating-courses/view/skipper-large-power-boat

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It brings us great pleasure knowing 1000 kg of plastic waste has been removed from the Adriatic because of our incredible community of change-makers & ocean-enthusiasts. At The Yacht Week, it is very important that we are able to make a difference, even if it is a small one, by sparking positive change no matter where the wind and the waves take us. We sail to some of the world’s most beautiful locations and we aim to keep them that way. Thank you again to Sea Going Green and the other wonderful people that made this event happen, and to Sam McAllister for capturing it all. We can’t wait to do the same next year! www.theyachtweek.com

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