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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We Asked Sailors: Best Puppy Boat Name? Top Pick Inside! #boat #sailing #shorts

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On pensait avancer sur le chantier… jusqu’à découvrir que les appareillages électriques n’avaient aucun boîtier étanche. Résultat : corrosion avancée à cause de l’humidité et de l’environnement marin. Sur un bateau, surtout en milieu salin, les appareillages devraient être montés avec des boîtiers adaptés et une protection conforme aux règles de l’art. On a donc : • fabriqué un outil spécifique pour élargir les cloches existantes • installé des boîtiers étanches adaptés • remplacé les appareillages par du matériel plus fiable 👉 Encore une journée de chantier non prévue… mais nécessaire pour sécuriser Horizon. #refit #electricite #catamaran #bateau #chantier #voile #sailinglife #boatprojects #lagoon42 #sailinghorizon

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Why is Dracan Marine the best choice for charter business? 💭 While some boats are designed for families and couples, certain vessels excel at charter operations, and Dracan 42 stands out among them. This amazing power catamaran can comfortably accommodate 8 people for overnight stays, while welcoming up to 16 guests onboard for day charters. 🫂 Whether your clients are planning multi-day adventures or memorable day trips, this vessel delivers the perfect blend of comfort, capacity, and luxury that ensures repeat bookings and satisfied customers. Ready to invest in your charter business success? Contact us today at office@masteryachting.com to learn more about Dracan 42 and how this vessel can transform your charter operations. #MasterYachting #PowerCatamaran #WaterSports #Dracan42 #DracanMarine #MasterYachtingGroup #Multihull #LuxuryCatamaran

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Update Day 3: Both Irish crews through to Gold fleet at Olympic qualifier in Lanzarote. Two race wins today for Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove have moved the pair into third overall. They were heading for a top three result in their second race of the day but were disqualified for being fractionally over the line at the start. However, it was the opening race of the day that offered the biggest thrill for the Irish team as Dickson and Waddilove were chased around the course by team-mates Ryan Seaton and Séafra Guilfoyle who scored two second places plus a tenth and moved from 17th to 10th overall. Both teams will now compete in the Gold Fleet. Ireland face Belgium and Italy in the contest for the final nation slot for the Olympics. “Both Irish crews showed their capabilities on the water and in the results today with well deserved places in the Gold fleet ,” commented James O’Callaghan, Irish Sailing’s Performance Director. “Two top three results for Ryan and Seafrá have got them into the top ten where they can build further towards Friday’s finale - this event will come down to the wire!”

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