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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Loft bed custom built in the Arkansas Razorbacks.

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Get to know more about the trip! Check our website in the bio.

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Lagoon 450 from 2013 which is found in excellent condition with only 1500 hours on the engines. High specification throughout with comfort in mind. A well maintained and cared for Lagoon which is available now. This is the 3 cabin Owners version with the main cabin in the Starboard hull. New sail and stack pack 2021 plus lots of maintenance spend. All bills available. Lying: Turkey Price: €440,000. Email: sales@yachtbrokersworld.com

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► Full test in Multihulls World N°195: https://www.multihulls-world.com/review/catamaran/new-windelo-50-still-just-as-eco-responsible-but-much-more-attractive ► Almost two years after the launch of the first Windelo - a 50 Adventure that we tested in MW Special Edition #16 - the builders, based at Canet-en-Roussillon in the South of France, are already seeing their initial concept validated: their high-performance and eco-responsible catamarans currently enjoy an order book that’s full through 2025... The time has therefore come for Windelo to increase their production capacity (soon 6 units per year). A process which implies in the long term the need to increase the size of the premises and in the immediate future to have deck molds much less greedy in parts (3 as opposed to 21!). The opportunity is therefore perfect to restyle their first two models, the 50 (that will be on show at Cannes) and 54. This mission was logically entrusted to the Barreau/Neuman team, assisted by Charlotte Schiffer. The main idea was to use the wave theme already present on the sides of the hull for the deck. Beyond the cosmetic alterations, the coachroof has been revised to improve drainage and to moderate its square appearance: the forward face has been reworked with two hatches slightly angled aft and inversed. The top of the coachroof now has a “cap” appearance, all the more evident with it now being extended aft. The rear platform and the sugarscoops are also more elegant. The forward cockpit dedicated to sailing maneuvers has been improved. As for the interior, this now respects well-defined color options. ► TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS Builder: Windelo Length: 50’ (15.24 m) Beam: 26’1” (7.95 m) Light displacement: 24,700 lbs (11.2 t) Draft: 5’2” (1.58 m) or 3’5” / 7’7” (1.03/2.32 m) Mainsail: 990 sq ft (92 m²) Genoa: 462 sq ft (43 m²) Fuel: 132 US gal (500 l) Water: 105 US gal (400 l) Berths: 12 Engines: 2 x 20 kW ► Become a FREE SUBSCRIBER to Multihulls World's YouTube page now - https://www.youtube.com/c/MultihullsWorld ► Log on to our website to discover over 500 multihulls tests! Subscribe to our newsletter to take advantage of our promotions and boat show invitations! https://www.multihulls-world.com/ ► Follow us on Facebook! https://m.facebook.com/MultihullsWorldMag/?locale2=fr_FR ► Discover us on Instagram! https://www.instagram.com/multihulls_world/ ► Follow our multihulls news on X - https://twitter.com/multihullsworld?lang=fr ► Let’s talk about business on Linkedin https://www.linkedin.com/company/multicoques-mag-multihulls-world/ ► Like us on TikTok! https://www.tiktok.com/@multihullsworldmag @windelocatamaran #multihullsworld #multihull #multicoquesmag #catamaran #cannesyachtingfestival #forevergreen #emmanuelvandeth #julierosieres #windelo50

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