#388 | Watermaker & Solar panel

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   Dear members, ownersHope this message finds you well !
We are thinking about installing a watermaker and something like 1800W solar panels on the bimini, in order to sail around the world.
Does anyone has already done this ?
I can't find anything on the builder ressources.
Kind regards

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Pitxin Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Sub Lieutenant Joined: 10 April 2022 Location: France Status: Offline Points: 6	Post Options Post Reply Quote Pitxin Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Topic: #388 \| Watermaker & Solar panel Posted: 11 April 2024 at 12:48
	Dear members, owners Hope this message finds you well ! We are thinking about installing a watermaker and something like 1800W solar panels on the bimini, in order to sail around the world. Does anyone has already done this ? I can't find anything on the builder ressources. Kind regards

S&J Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Admiral Joined: 30 August 2014 Location: Perth WA / Med Status: Offline Points: 1371	Post Options Post Reply Quote S&J Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 11 April 2024 at 14:03
	That is a lot of solar! I have 220W on the foredeck in front of my jib track and 420W on a steel arch. The arch could easily take double that, but even on mt 458, which has significantly more surface area than a 388, I can't imagine getting more than 1000W. Note that we do fold our Bimini back at times so I wouldn't want to use this, even if I felt it was safe to do so. After using rigid panels on the arch, I probably wouldn't recommend a large investment in semi flexible panels. The water maker is easier and I asked this question about 6 months ago and you'll find several posts, mostly for 455/8 and similar sized boats. I know of a 418 that installed the membranes behind the settee backrests, and there is room in the bilges for the pumps. I considered a Zen30 which is small, modular and has low current draw. You may want to hunt down posts from Interlude, a 385 that sailed from Greifswald to Sydney in 2015/16.
	H458 #159 Primal Mediterranean cruising

Ratbasher Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Vice Admiral Joined: 31 May 2017 Location: Cyprus Status: Offline Points: 818	Post Options Post Reply Quote Ratbasher Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 12 April 2024 at 09:22
	I admire and respect your ambition. However, in planning such a voyage there are a wealth of written and most importantly credentialed resources that will help you fit out your boat. I'm surprised you couldn't find anything about fitting a watermaker as this has been done on thousands of boats. As Stuart wrote above, 1800W is a great deal of solar and I doubt you've enough space on a Bimini to take the necessary panels. Even if you did, you're bound to encounter winds strong enough that you'd need to take that Bimini with its mass of panels down; this will need thinking-through. If, like me, you added an arch big enough to take the much more efficient hard panels, you'd need to take great care with weight distribution; I had to make a lot of compromises elsewhere. Offshore and Ocean sailing are quite different things and you can cause yourself serious problems by putting too much weight in the ends. Please forgive me if I've got this wrong but you seem to be just starting out. If you're seriously planning outfitting your boat for blue-water sailing and you don't yet have a lot of experience, may I respectfully suggest you seek out a Consultant suitably qualified and experienced enough to guide you? France has produced some seriously good sailors and I'm sure there's many who will be glad to assist. Although you'll have to pay a fee, proper guidance on the right equipment, configuration and prioritisation will almost certainly save you far more money and make your boat much more capable - and safer. Good luck!
	H400 (2008) 'Wight Leopard' Gosport, UK

Goat Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Lieutenant Joined: 26 May 2018 Location: UK Status: Offline Points: 48	Post Options Post Reply Quote Goat Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 14 April 2024 at 12:09
	I agree with both posts above. As important as the amount of solar is how good your batteries are. If you've not done so consider changing to lithium batteries and you'll get loads more storage and be able to charge much quicker. Changing to lithium was a game changer for us (460Ah) and means we hardly need to consider other charging options when coastal sailing and inevitably running the engine quite a lot. Goat

Pitxin Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Sub Lieutenant Joined: 10 April 2022 Location: France Status: Offline Points: 6	Post Options Post Reply Quote Pitxin Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 15 April 2024 at 20:06
	Hello Thanks everybody for your answers and your kindness. I understand your point so i will think about less W on the panels. On the watermaker, my question was more on "the boat builder and Hanse tech team did think about the best place where to setup this watermaker", nothing else. We are used to sail with all kind of winds here and we are grabing experience every day of sailing. I've been sailing a lot in my past on big IRC boats and crusing boats also, but even if you are the most experienced you always learn the best things to do practicing. Kind regards

Pitxin Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Sub Lieutenant Joined: 10 April 2022 Location: France Status: Offline Points: 6	Post Options Post Reply Quote Pitxin Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 02 February 2025 at 02:07
	Hello ! Quick update on the project. We would like to setup a « portique » to put the hard solar panels and 500W power. The brocker told us that it is not recommanded to drill holes on the deck, but if we want to do that we need to. Does anyone already setup this ? I saw that we could add some tubes on the Bimini legs to set that up ? Any ideas ? Kind regards

Rhum coco Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Sub Lieutenant Joined: 07 February 2025 Location: Grèce Status: Offline Points: 20	Post Options Post Reply Quote Rhum coco Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 08 February 2025 at 10:47
	https://www.myhanse.com/uploads/8612/IMG-20250117-WA0005.jpg Voici un portique installé sur 385 avec 300w de ps alimentation pour un dessalinateur 60l/h

Pitxin Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Sub Lieutenant Joined: 10 April 2022 Location: France Status: Offline Points: 6	Post Options Post Reply Quote Pitxin Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 08 February 2025 at 12:59
	Merci beaucoup ! C’est bien ce que j’avais en tête.
	Pitxin \| Hanse 388 \| Hull #227



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