Solar Panels (Type & Positioning)

I settled on the Sunpower 170, which is partially flexible, and 1153x810mm in size. It is NOT designed for walking on. Such panels tend to be even more expensive!

I chose this location because: (i) we do not spend too much time at the bow, and (ii) it seemed less of a hassle to have these installed on the bimini, which we do put up and take down quite often depending on the day. Thus, removing and re-installing a panel on the bimini would require additional setup and takedown work, which we decided against.

Regarding shading: I was quite impressed about the panel's output when partially shaded by a line. Monocrystalline cells are better at handling partial shading than multicrystaline cells, so this is nice. 120W+ is typical, so it seems to address my modest needs quite well.

I hope this helps!

And some details on the wiring, connecting the panel wiring from the outside to the inside, running through the cable tube located at the base of the mast. The cable is hidden in a cable run that I attached to the front bulkhead before I was able to route it behind the couch...