How Much Solar Does Your Boat Need? Lessons From Seven Years Afloat

Before adding more solar panels, weigh your daily energy use, battery capacity and seasonal sunlight to find the right balance between generating power and storing it.

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Life aboard Sudana taught us a lot about solar power—including how much we really need. (Photo/ Pippa Shaw)

When we first moved aboard Sudana, our 29-ft. Thames Mirage fiberglass sailboat, our electrical demands were pretty modest. We had a fridge, laptops and phones, lights, navigation equipment, and a VHF. We installed two 100W solar panels, giving us 200W of solar generation, and a 120 amp hr LiFePO4 battery. Over time, we added a television and, much later, a diesel heater. It sounds like a fairly small system, and it is. But for how we used the boat, it turned out surprisingly capable.

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Pippa Shaw
Pippa is a marine writer, editor, and storyteller who has lived aboard her 29ft sailing yacht with her partner and Opie the boat cat since 2018. She is currently refitting a 45ft aluminium offshore cruiser, with plans to complete her UK circumnavigation before setting her sights on longer-distance adventures. Combining hands-on cruising experience, refit knowledge, and years of marine industry insight, Pippa specialises in exploring the stories, design decisions, and details that make every boat unique.