SunPower install gallery
We're always adding to this page when we receive updates from our customers that have installed their SunPower E-flex or fixed frame solar panels. We hope you might find it useful to see the different install methods, how many panels are going on each boat, what controllers they are using, wired in series or parallel. We will provide as many details as we can but please ask us questions if you are looking at a particular install.
Have you recently installed your SunPower solar panels? Help us share your install photo & show others how you have gone solar with SunPower. Please email us your photos or tag us on Facebook and Instagram @sunpoweredyachts
Custom teardrop trailer
1x 170W
Many of our customers have RV's, campers, tiny homes etc. Bill recently installed 1x170W SunPower E-flex solar panel on his custom teardrop trailer. With his family they plan a bunch of roadtrips. The flex panels are lightweight & have a low profile which means less drag and more MPG on the road!
Albin 27 FC
2x 110W
2x110W SunPower flex panels wired to a Victron 100|20 MPPT charge controller provide plenty of power for this family cruiser. The Bird-B-Gone had to be added to prevent the pesky birds from leaving presents on the panels! Check our blog post for more details.
1x 50W
You could see up to around 16 amp hours a day from a SunPower 50W flexible solar panel. Nice amount of power to keep your 12V battery bank topped up whilst on a mooring. Pair it with a Victron 75|10 MPPT charge controller. With built-in bluetooth you can monitor the system from the VictronConnect app on your phone or tablet.
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Bill & Grace sail Calico Skies, a Sabre 36, and are in Mexico installing 3x410W SunPower fixed frame solar panels as part of a major upgrade to their arch/davit system.
Check out their YouTube episodes including #177 to see how they are getting on adding 1,230W (or 1.23kW) of SunPower solar panels.
"We made 7.2kWh yesterday out of our panels, what an upgrade!"
Bill & Grace
SV Delos was on the hard in Mexico and installed 3x410W SunPower fixed frame panels (YouTube Ep.407)
Combined with their SunPower E-flex panels, which have been aboard for 2.5 years (YouTube Ep.262) they will now have 2,010W of solar ready to head into the Pacific - awesome!
"Love our new 410W panels and they're the same size as the old 300W ones - woohoo!"
Brian & Karin
Sailing Zephyr sail a 2010 Beneteau Oceanis 43 and were looking for more power to head from Florida into the Caribbean. They removed their existing panels and installed 2x410W SunPower panels - almost a 64% increase in their solar system in the same footprint. Watch their YouTube episode #166 to learn more
"The panels are cranking, thank you for changing our lives" James & Nat
Beneteau Figaro3
1x 110W
Charlie at NAOS Yachts ocean tested a SunPower 110W aboard his foiling Figaro3 on the TransPac 2019. Needless to say it was a wet and bumpy ride from LA-Hawaii & the 110W powered all their items on the 2,200NM crossing. Read our blog post for more details.
Alibi 54'
14x 170W
Harry is cruising the remote islands of French Polynesia with over 2,380W (2.38kW) of high efficiency SunPower flex panels aboard his Alibi 54'. With few options for plugging into shore power he can really disconnect from the dock!
Bennington pontoon
6x 170W
Dirk installed 6x 170W SunPower flexible solar panels on his bimini to charge a 48V battery bank and power his Elco EP-20 electric outboard. He's now quietly cruising the lakes all day and returning to the dock with full batteries.
Jeanneau 43'
4x 110W
We met Ed at the Big Bay Boat Show in January 2019 and he went on to install his 2x110W SunPower flex panels aboard his 43' Jeanneau and put together a great write up on the installation process. Wired in parallel to a Victron 100|30 this allowed Ed room for expanding his solar array, which he did with 2 more 110W panels. Read his case study in our news feed.
Off-road!
2x 110W
Explore further! With 2x110W panels Scott is able to explore more remote parts of the Baja peninsular and stay out camping for longer. He uses solar to power his Dometic cooler aswell as laptop, phones etc By using a 50' PV extension cable he can park in the shade and run the panels out into the sun and move them during the day to capture more sun.
Beneteau 50'
4x 100W
An install in Turkey by Yes Enerji of 4x 100W SunPower E-flex panels on a Beneteau 50. Very tidy velcro pocket install running the wires from each panel under a small 'flap' and then in the zipper that runs under the bimini.
Kelly Peterson 46
2x 110W
Q&M Travels rocking their 2x110W flex panels aboard their charter boat in the Bay Area. Sail with Quincey & Mitchell and enjoy those silent sunsets aboard. Check out their website www.qmtravels.com
Catana 471
8x 110W
880W of renewable power aboard a Catana 471 with SunPower flexible solar panels. That's a lot of clean & quiet power aboard, nice! Install by Patrick & his team at Marine Electric Systems in Annapolis, MD.
16' Swampscott Dory
1x 50W
Team 'Funky Dory' had a SunPower 50W flex panel aboard when they took on the Race To Alaska (R2AK) raising money & awareness for Pacific Wild. Hats off it would have been a wet ride!
Dufour 382
1x 170W
We installed a 170W (4x12) on our Dufour 382 in Corsica. During our week aboard in 2019 we took down the bimini and had a sailmaker in Bonefacio add a velcro 'pocket'. This will help reduce the number of engine hours just for charging & have happier charter guests - nobody likes a noisy engine. We oversized our controller (Victron 100|50) as we plan to add more panels later.
Gozzard 36'
2x 170W
On his Gozzard 36' Rich created a super tidy, custom aluminum frame & polycarbonate backing sheet to support the 2x170W flex panels. This ties into their bimini frame & provides discreet & quiet power aboard. Paired with a Victron 100|30 SmartSolar MPPT charge controller.
Beneteau
2x 100W
"l did the sewing myself using my Sailrite LSZ-1". Cathy added 2x 100W SunPower flexible solar panels with LOXX stainless steel fasteners & now enjoying discreet, silent power aboard. 2x100W panels will provide around 66Amp hours each day to their 12V battery bank.
RVwithTito
1x 170W
Brian from RVwithTito has been installing & experimenting with solar on his RV for many years. He recently added a SunPower 170W with a neat method that meant zero holes in his roof! Check out his website www.rvwithtito.com or search his YouTube channel for more details on his projects.
Camping
1x 100W
Why not hook up your 100W panel to an Ecoflow River and camp longer? These are solar generators, large lithium ion battery banks, that can be charged with solar power and provide DC power aswell as invert to 110V AC power. Check them out www.ecoflow.com
Your install?
1x 110W
Have you recently installed your SunPower E-flex solar panels? Email us your photo so that we can share it or post it online and tag us on social media
@sunpoweredyachts
Beneteau 50'
2x 170W
2x170W SunPower E-flex panels will produce an expected daily yield of around 113 Amp hours for the 12V battery bank aboard this Beneteau 50'. Paired with a Victron 100|30 that's plenty of clean & silent power aboard. The canvas person fabricated a clean & tidy custom install on the bimini adding extra fasteners.
Endeavour 42'
4x 110W
Stephen installed 4x 110W SunPower flexible solar panels using two Victron MPPT controllers. A 100|30 for the panels on the bimini and a 100|20 for the panel on the dodger. LOXX fasteners were used to attach to the bimini for easier removal of the panels.
Fountaine Pajot 41'
4x 110W
Whilst at the Big Bay Boatshow in San Diego the owner of an FP 41' stopped by our booth and asked if we could install some panels before they left for Ensenada in the morning! Brian at Upgrade Marine set to work and removed 3x 5yr old 100W flex panels and replaced them with 4x110W SunPower panels. With 46% more power in less space they were off to cruise Mexico the next day!
Blue Jacket 40
1x 170W
With 1x170W on the hardtop the owners of this Island Packet can expect around 57amp hours a day on their 12V system. Paired with a Victron 75|15 MPPT charge controller which can be monitored via bluetooth and the free VictronConnect app on your phone or tablet.
Custom bike trailer
1x 170W
Rob was our very first customer to pre-order the 170W panel to use on his very unique project for a custom electric recumbent trike trailer! Watch the YouTube video by Electric Bike Review and read more in our news story from January 16th 2020
Amel Super Maramu
4x 170W
Neat install that used a kind of bolt rope to slide the panels into place on the brand new extended bimini top. A total of 680W of SunPower flex panels added aboard an Amel Super Maramu. Read Paul's blog post about it all here
Outremer 51'
4x 100W
Archer is home to Seth, Elizabeth & their 3 boys as they sail around the world. We met them over Christmas in French Polynesia and they were bound for New Zealand. They added 4x100W to their existing array and lay them on the tramp when on anchor. Check their website www.the-sailing-family.com
Amel Super Maramu
5x 100W
Grab your January issue of SAIL magazine to read the full article on Kelly's install aboard her Amel Super Maramu. 5x 100W flex panels attached with LOXX fasteners on the bimini. Each panel is wired to their own Genasun boost controller to charge a 24V battery bank.
'Carodon'
3x 110W
If you're looking for a charter boat in the Bay Area then chat with Captain Heather. She offers trips aboard a custom classic racing yacht 'Carodon'. She installed 3x110W wired in parallel to a Victron 100|30 and saw her power production more than double from her old panels. For more info visit her website www.finedayforsailing.com
Sail Clarity
7x 170W
Sail Clarity, a Leopard 46', is home to Nick & Megan and is their fourth boat. They've set up plenty of solar systems in their time and now have 4x327W SunPower fixed frame and 7x170W SunPower flex solar panels. They have a new YouTube video on the 2.4kW SunPower solar system aboard. www.sailclarity.com
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SV Delos
2x 170W & 4x 110W
Brian & Karin from SV Delos had to remove one of their fixed frame panels to make space for their internet dome. To replace the lost power they added 780W of SunPower flexible solar panels. They have a 24V battery bank so wired the panels in series to increase the voltage. Watch their YouTube video and check out www.svddelos.com
Hanse 531
4x 170W
Zenon runs adventure sailing trips in the Pacific North West aboard his Hanse 531. They installed 4x 170W SunPower flex panels on their bimini, that's around 225 amp hours a day at 12V - plenty of power for the charter guests. For more info visit their website www.zensailingadventures.com
30' Sloop
1x 110W
With not a lot of 'roof space' available to install a solar panel Dave fabricated a custom racking/support mounted to the pushpit of his 30' wooden sloop. This is easily collapsible (or removable) and the 110W panel is paired with a Victron 75|10 charge controller.
Winnebago View
6x 110W
Many of our customers have RV's, campers, tiny homes etc. Frank recently installed 6x110W SunPower E-flex solar panels on his Class C Winnebago View. With his young family they plan a summer of fun adventures with no more noisy generator upsetting the neighbors. Also the flex panels are lightweight & have a low profile which means less drag and more MPG on the road!
Beneteau 41
4x 170W
Robert contacted us and was looking for advice on how to go solar aboard his Beneteau 41. We were able to answer his questions about the setup & help him on his way to having 340W of SunPower flex panels. They did a great job with the install and are very happy with their new panels. Robert kindly left us a very positive Google review
Sabre 402
1x 170W
Neat & tidy install of a SunPower 170W flex on a Sabre 402 dodger from the guys at Flat Island Boatworks. Check them out if you are looking to go solar in/around Pensacola, FL. More details on his installs on their website www.flatislandboatworks.com
Tartan 37
2x 110W
Discreet, silent power with 2x110W SunPower E-flex panels on top of the bimini attached with LOXX fasteners. Panels are wired in parallel to a Victron 100|20 for a 12V battery bank. Expected daily yield around 75 amp hours.
Lance Trailer
2x 170W
Mark made a custom, removable rack for his 2x170W panels so that for the most part they are on the front of his Lance trailer but if needed he could move the panels out into the sun on a long extension cable. 2x170W in parallel can be paired with a Victron 100|30 for a 12V battery bank.