2/17/2019 - The Importance of Solar Cell Quality - Not All 100 Watt Solar Panels Are Created Equal
High quality high performance solar cells will produce more power at various sun angles than lower quality solar cells; up to 30% more power. An important consideration in determining how much solar power you need is how many watt hours or amp hours of power you can expect to generate in a 24 hour period. Let's say you cruise in an area that receives an average of 5 hours of full sun a day. The average is computed based on the seasonal sun angle and the sun angle from morning through evening. A 100 watt solar panel with average efficiency solar cells may produce 100 watts x 5 hours or 500 watt hours of power in a day. At 13 volts that's about 38 amp hours in a day. A 100 watt panel with high efficiency solar cells will produce up to 30% more power in a day or 100 watts x 6.5 effective hours or 650 watt hours of power in a day. At 13 volts, that's about 50 amp hours in a day. 38 amp hours vs. 50 amp hours in a day is significant on a boat. Add more panels in the mix, say 400 watts and we see 152 amp hours vs.200 amp hours, a difference of 48 amp hours. This simple analysis does not take into consideration the impact of clouds or shading both of which will make the disparity even greater. Clearly, the higher the quality of the solar cells the more power produced over time.
High quality high performance solar cells will produce more power at various sun angles than lower quality solar cells; up to 30% more power. An important consideration in determining how much solar power you need is how many watt hours or amp hours of power you can expect to generate in a 24 hour period. Let's say you cruise in an area that receives an average of 5 hours of full sun a day. The average is computed based on the seasonal sun angle and the sun angle from morning through evening. A 100 watt solar panel with average efficiency solar cells may produce 100 watts x 5 hours or 500 watt hours of power in a day. At 13 volts that's about 38 amp hours in a day. A 100 watt panel with high efficiency solar cells will produce up to 30% more power in a day or 100 watts x 6.5 effective hours or 650 watt hours of power in a day. At 13 volts, that's about 50 amp hours in a day. 38 amp hours vs. 50 amp hours in a day is significant on a boat. Add more panels in the mix, say 400 watts and we see 152 amp hours vs.200 amp hours, a difference of 48 amp hours. This simple analysis does not take into consideration the impact of clouds or shading both of which will make the disparity even greater. Clearly, the higher the quality of the solar cells the more power produced over time.
12/15/2018 - A CRUISER’s Guide to Selecting and Sizing a Solar Charging System
Adding solar to your boat doesn’t have to be an intimidating process…check out our step-by-step guide to designing a solar charging system for your boat. We include a worksheet to calculate your energy usage, determine how many/what size panels you need, and what size battery bank is appropriate. We also sort out solar panel types and grades and tell you how to select the proper charge controller. Everything you need to make confident decisions about adding solar to your boat is all in one place. Click on the title above to read the guide.
Adding solar to your boat doesn’t have to be an intimidating process…check out our step-by-step guide to designing a solar charging system for your boat. We include a worksheet to calculate your energy usage, determine how many/what size panels you need, and what size battery bank is appropriate. We also sort out solar panel types and grades and tell you how to select the proper charge controller. Everything you need to make confident decisions about adding solar to your boat is all in one place. Click on the title above to read the guide.
10/18/2018 - New 140 Watt Marine Rigid Solar Panel with SunPower Cells
With new advancements in solar cell performance, our very popular 120 watt rigid marine solar panel is now available as a 140 watt solar panel. It is the same size as our 120 watt panel but contains a new higher power SunPower solar cell. Our 140 and 175 watt marine solar panels have the highest output per square inch of any marine solar panels on the market that we are aware of. That's good news for us boaters who have limited space for solar.
9/29/2018 - LiFePO4 Marine Batteries are Now Available on our Website -
Now that testing has been completed and our new LiFePo4 batteries passed with flying colors, we are offering them on our website under our PRODUCTS section. We are excited to make these batteries available to our customers. They have out performed our expectations and we are offering them at a discounted price to get more out there in the field (on the water). Learn about LiFePO4 marine batteries in our product section and see how they performed during testing on our Blog.
9/17/2018 - New Tariffs and Duties on Solar Panels -
There are new tariffs placed on solar panels manufactured offshore. Some of our panels are assembled offshore using USA components. We anticipated these tariffs and duties and have absorbed any and all tariffs into our pricing structure so there are no additional charges on our solar panel orders.
9/14/2018 - Solar Cells Used in Our Solar Panels -
Many of our marine solar panels contain premium SunPower solar cells. We use only the highest quality SunPower cells Grade A+ Maxeon) in our panels so our customers receive the highest output per surface area possible. The higher the quality of the cells the higher the solar panel output in all weather conditions. Panels may look similar but the materials used to manufacture them may be quite different. SunPower sells four grades of solar cells.
9/12/2018 -Blog Updates -
LiFePo4 Batteries - We are in the process of researching LiFePo4 battery technology with the intent of offering this amazing new battery technology to our customers. These batteries integrate well with our solar systems. We have completed our first phase of testing marine LiFePo4 batteries manufactured to our specification. The test results very impressive and are posted on our blog.
New 175 watt SunPower Cell Solar Panel - We tested our new pole mounted 175 watt marine solar panel during a six week cruise in the North Channel in northern Lake Huron. The results of this test are posted on our blog. This panel was equipped with our second generation radiant energy water heating system.
9/01/2018 - Solar Panels on Sale -
We are offering all of our high performance Bosch and Qcell marine solar panels at 30% off through the end of the month. These marine panels offer high output per square surface area and are built to our marine specification. Call for some great deals on our clearance solar panels.
8/15/2018 - Semi-flexible Marine Solar Panels with ETFE Laminates -
CMP has announced that all marine grade semi-flexible solar panels now contain ETFE laminates. ETFE is a material that will not turn cloudy due to absorption of moisture, is UV resistant, is scratch resistant and allows the maximum spectrum of the sun's light to pass through onto the solar cell. The result is a highly durable, high efficiency (greater than 22%), high output solar panel. TPT and TCP laminates initially look the same as ETFE but tend to degrade in a relatively short period of time.
8/4/2018 - New 150/160 Watt Semi-flexible Solar Panel Now Available -
CMP has announced the availability of a powerful 150 watt solar panel that outperforms its rating to 160 watts. This new panel measures roughly 21 x 58 inches. It is well suited for mounting on both canvas bimini tops and hard top surfaces. Premium SunPower solar cells are used in the manufacture of this high performance ETFE laminate panel.
With new advancements in solar cell performance, our very popular 120 watt rigid marine solar panel is now available as a 140 watt solar panel. It is the same size as our 120 watt panel but contains a new higher power SunPower solar cell. Our 140 and 175 watt marine solar panels have the highest output per square inch of any marine solar panels on the market that we are aware of. That's good news for us boaters who have limited space for solar.
9/29/2018 - LiFePO4 Marine Batteries are Now Available on our Website -
Now that testing has been completed and our new LiFePo4 batteries passed with flying colors, we are offering them on our website under our PRODUCTS section. We are excited to make these batteries available to our customers. They have out performed our expectations and we are offering them at a discounted price to get more out there in the field (on the water). Learn about LiFePO4 marine batteries in our product section and see how they performed during testing on our Blog.
9/17/2018 - New Tariffs and Duties on Solar Panels -
There are new tariffs placed on solar panels manufactured offshore. Some of our panels are assembled offshore using USA components. We anticipated these tariffs and duties and have absorbed any and all tariffs into our pricing structure so there are no additional charges on our solar panel orders.
9/14/2018 - Solar Cells Used in Our Solar Panels -
Many of our marine solar panels contain premium SunPower solar cells. We use only the highest quality SunPower cells Grade A+ Maxeon) in our panels so our customers receive the highest output per surface area possible. The higher the quality of the cells the higher the solar panel output in all weather conditions. Panels may look similar but the materials used to manufacture them may be quite different. SunPower sells four grades of solar cells.
9/12/2018 -Blog Updates -
LiFePo4 Batteries - We are in the process of researching LiFePo4 battery technology with the intent of offering this amazing new battery technology to our customers. These batteries integrate well with our solar systems. We have completed our first phase of testing marine LiFePo4 batteries manufactured to our specification. The test results very impressive and are posted on our blog.
New 175 watt SunPower Cell Solar Panel - We tested our new pole mounted 175 watt marine solar panel during a six week cruise in the North Channel in northern Lake Huron. The results of this test are posted on our blog. This panel was equipped with our second generation radiant energy water heating system.
9/01/2018 - Solar Panels on Sale -
We are offering all of our high performance Bosch and Qcell marine solar panels at 30% off through the end of the month. These marine panels offer high output per square surface area and are built to our marine specification. Call for some great deals on our clearance solar panels.
8/15/2018 - Semi-flexible Marine Solar Panels with ETFE Laminates -
CMP has announced that all marine grade semi-flexible solar panels now contain ETFE laminates. ETFE is a material that will not turn cloudy due to absorption of moisture, is UV resistant, is scratch resistant and allows the maximum spectrum of the sun's light to pass through onto the solar cell. The result is a highly durable, high efficiency (greater than 22%), high output solar panel. TPT and TCP laminates initially look the same as ETFE but tend to degrade in a relatively short period of time.
8/4/2018 - New 150/160 Watt Semi-flexible Solar Panel Now Available -
CMP has announced the availability of a powerful 150 watt solar panel that outperforms its rating to 160 watts. This new panel measures roughly 21 x 58 inches. It is well suited for mounting on both canvas bimini tops and hard top surfaces. Premium SunPower solar cells are used in the manufacture of this high performance ETFE laminate panel.