My First Solar Powered Boat Project

[dudevato]

kind of related to all that's been posted on this thread

I just bought a replacement blade for my MK 30 trolling motor from Walmart. A bit under $20. The packaging said it would replace the prop on my motor.

Turns out this one is Just short of 10" dia while the one that came with my motor is Just short of 9"

I'll play with these 2 different sizes and see how the motor reacts as to the amps it draws. Heck I might get another of these 10"ers and use the 9's as spares

Surely no one here but many 'at the lake' will ask, " why don't you just get a battery"
I've got about $1,800 in panels, I could get a battery for $200, uh? but it wouldn't be fun.
Heck, I could spend $50,000 on a houseboat and not skip a step, but again it wouldn't be fun
It's a shame only you people here can understand that.
Thank God I'm not alone, uh?

[TomCat58]

[QUOTE=dudevato;

""Surely no one here but many 'at the lake' will ask, " why don't you just get a battery"
I've got about $1,800 in panels, I could get a battery for $200, uh? but it wouldn't be fun.
Heck, I could spend $50,000 on a houseboat and not skip a step, but again it wouldn't be fun
It's a shame only you people here can understand that.
Thank God I'm not alone, uh? [/QUOTE]""

Hey its your build so go with it.... My only concern is that when the sun goes down your motor stops running. I have one of these "{Power Packs" and it works great backup power to run the trolling motor if really needed, Charges any device that plugs into a USB, Built in DC to AC inverter, emergency light, jumps cars, has a 12 volt power point plug in, Charges off my solar panels or ac 120. I watched my small tv ac/dc built in DVD for 4 hours of movies to check it out and it worked great. It even has a air pump for those flat tires events !

I now use it to power my campsite while on the river and 200 or so feet in from the canoe. Then plug in back in the next day and charge it back up with my solar panels.

So if I was running on just solar panels like you then this is all I would need for those Murphy's Laws events http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

But to each his own on what they need and don't need. In a small lake you could just paddle back to shore too.

TomCat58

https://sites.google.com/site/serenitysolarcanoe/

[dudevato]

nothing to do with 'solar' but some pretty neat canoe footage

saw this on U Tube, shows some 5 well packed up canoes on a 5 nighter in Utah. Real pretty scenery, but it looks like they got little direct sun during the day

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlMdHPRxfPg

I turned the volume down and put on some Pink Floyd

I just got back from Walmart, having bought another of those larger Minn Kota props. As it's not raining here today I'm going to go out and put them both on and 'pretend' later

[dudevato]

something that Does have to do with solar

here's a product Walmart sells that is Very close to what I bought for $10 a number of times in the past and most recently today.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Westinghouse-Solar-Spotlights-Set-of-2/27436336

It's one of those 'stick it in the grass next to your sidewalk' things that light up.

That's what most people do with them and that's why they make light for 45 minutes or so. They were put straight up, vertical, next to the sidewalk, where it looks nice, not where they'd get the brightest, longest amount of sun.

What I've done twice in the past is to take the little solar panel off, which is some 3" x 3", using a screwdriver. You cut the wires and splice in 5' of a light gauge wire. I used some car speaker wire I had on hand.

Then I put the solar panel in a position to get the most sun from the day. This was at the peak of my conventionally roofed tract home. I then fed the wiring into and down my bathroom's skylight shaft where I mounted the 'circuitry/battery/LED bulb & reflector' It's been about a year and it works Very well, providing some 10 hours of light each evening.

You're not going to read the news paper with it but anything you do in the bathroom short of reading or shaving this thing will have you covered.

Having just bought one more of these things for the bathroom I'm using these days I figured I'd let you know about it, as it would be a simple to mount this thing on a canoe then pull it off and take it into the camp.

If mounted 6 or 8' above the ground and shinning 10 feet away you get a well let 15' dia glow of lit area. You are not going to read the newspaper but you'd see enough to not trip over stuff.

Maybe it's just me always cutting something up or in half or rigging up some kind of adapter kit

[dudevato]

did a bit o work on my Solar canoe today - outrigger related

I have guy wires running between the 'bend' above the surfboard and the 'panel framework' that lets turnbuckles tighten them up a bit as to take out the 'slop'

What needs to be done next is to fasten the outrigger tubing to the surfboard. At this point the short vertical sections of tubing above the outrigger have been left longer than necessary. When everything is mounted, secured, etc and 'on the water' I can lay a level across the gunnels and cut down those 'verticals' an inch or so at a time until the canoe is level.

There will be 6 panels' 130 watts each, that I recall weigh like 25-30 lbs each. I remember the canoe weighs 65 lbs. before the 1" emt tubing that I have like 35 or 40 feet of.

The rig will breakdown into 'outrigger' '2 outrigger support tubes' and the 'canoe/panels/motors' Ought to take 5 minutes of setup at the boat ramp.

81-30.JPG82-30.JPG84-30.JPG85-30.JPG

[dudevato]

some pics of my boating speedometers

I made up this first one using a kid's 12" bicycle wheel, some fender washers and a $12 Walmart digital bicycle speedometer. Those things read to the 1/10 of a mile per hour so you can see small speed changes that are made by sun and wind, etc.

The instructions show you how to calibrate the unit by measuring the circumference of your bicycle wheel. At a future point I'll get a hold of a gps and get the home made unit reading 'spot on'

I can tell you this about my first speedo: It was very loud and very splashy! Hated both of these traits.

This second try ought to fix everything. It's based on a lawn mower wheel with more fender washers glued into well placed slots made with a jig saw, then enclosed in sheet metal.

I still need to mount the sensor and magnet and then figure out some mounting on the canoe itself. Surely a variable depth setup.

'always something to do, thank God, as I love this stuff


speedo fixed.JPGnew speedo 1.JPGnew speedo 2.JPGnew speedo 3.JPGnew speedo 4.JPG

[dudevato]

got my steering linkage part in the mail yesterday

This was my second shipment from the company. I'm using 2 of these units to tie my 2 trolling motors together. This 3rd one will connect my length of push/pull PVC pipe to the trolling motors.

Turns out the $15 price tag is for 2 pieces, as I've come to learn after receiving 2 packages in the mail.

This piece has 5/16" fine threads, 'all I could find locally, in the auto parts stores was basically the same thing using 1/4" threads. I liked the idea of the larger size. Also this one has a spring loaded 'quick disconnect' which I might be happy to have at some point.

Looks pretty dry outside so I ought to get out there, uh?

http://www.amazon.com/Quick-Disconne...ts+-+5%2F16-24steering linkage.jpg

[TomCat58]

This was my second shipment from the company. I'm using 2 of these units to tie my 2 trolling motors together. This 3rd one will connect my length of push/pull PVC pipe to the trolling motors.

Turns out the $15 price tag is for 2 pieces, as I've come to learn after receiving 2 packages in the mail.

This piece has 5/16" fine threads, 'all I could find locally, in the auto parts stores was basically the same thing using 1/4" threads. I liked the idea of the larger size. Also this one has a spring loaded 'quick disconnect' which I might be happy to have at some point.

Looks pretty dry outside so I ought to get out there, uh?

http://www.amazon.com/Quick-Disconne...ts+-+5%2F16-24[ATTACH=CONFIG]3990[/ATTACH]

Yes it sure helps to enjoy your work as there will be some failures in the learning curve and this type of project can be discouraging if you don't enjoy the work.

Tommy

[TomCat58]

Test out new actuator steering and new pontoon design.

I guess I should share my progress report on the new actuator and new frame and pontoon design. Making the pontoons adjustable in width from 8 feet (highway legal on trailer) to 10 feet and at its widest stance 12 feet. I found that at least on my first on the lake test with the pontoons set to 12 feet wide made the canoe very very stable. I had designed the pontoons this time to contact the water on the very ends of the pontoons to reduce drag. They then would contact the water with more surface as the stability was needed. Waves, wind or loads moving about the canoe. With the wider stance it looks like the canoe would have to tilt a noticeable amount for the pontoons to be in the water providing stability. BUT as the pontoons are 12 feet apart it did not take much canoe movement for the pontoons to go into action The pontoons easily reduced drag when not needed on calm water therefore less amps needed to maintain speed. The pontoon first test was a success

The new actuator survived a major 3 day down pour so it was time to test for real on the lake. Close to perfect The actuator is slow but that made it possible to adjust a straight course with ease

Video of a little bit of those two new systems on the lake for the first time....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Zo4djZLpHQ&feature=youtu.be

Tommy

[SolarCanoe]

You guys are making me jealous especially with that video! We still have a foot or more of snow on the ground up here in "The Great White North". At least the temperature is going to be above freezing for the next week or two.

TomCat: that steering mechanism works well, eh! It looks like you used a fairly small switch. I was thinking that you could extend the toggle with a short piece of small diameter tube that you could slide over the toggle lever. I was also wondering how many watts of solar panels you have on your canoe?

I have not been able to do much on the solar canoes. I did find some nice folding 100W solar panels that come with a small waterproof charge controller. I ordered two panels and one 20A controller. The smaller 14ft canoe will have it's canopy and pontoons designed to be very quick and easy to setup. This is for quick breakdown and transport. The 100w folding panels are long and narrow so they will lay lengthwise on top of the canopy. I plan to mount the motor on the front of the canoe and use the rope around the inside of the canoe type of steering. I will put the controls on a pendant so it can be driven from the front or back.

The larger cargo canoe will also have a canopy and pontoons that can be removed and broken down for transport but it will not be as light or easy to do. It will be more practical to take somewhere like a cottage and set it up for use over a week or two. In the long run I will probably get a small trailer for it but right now I have nowhere to keep a trailer so everything hast to break down and get stored in a small single car garage.

I just wish I could get outside and get to work on these two projects.

[TomCat58]

You guys are making me jealous especially with that video! We still have a foot or more of snow on the ground up here in "The Great White North". At least the temperature is going to be above freezing for the next week or two.

TomCat: that steering mechanism works well, eh! It looks like you used a fairly small switch. I was thinking that you could extend the toggle with a short piece of small diameter tube that you could slide over the toggle lever. I was also wondering how many watts of solar panels you have on your canoe?



I just wish I could get outside and get to work on these two projects.

Its just in the last week that spring has sprung here so I know what you mean about the "Great White Frozen North" It was really nice to get back on the water and looking forward to the new "Serenity Canoe" season. I hope you defrost soon up north ? I look forward to your progress reports. There are 3 of us now going in 3 different directions so its interesting to see how one systems works to another and make a comparison.....

The switch is tucked away there for a reason. 1 Dry location, 2 ease of access while facing forward in the seat and 3 my seat swivels 360 and I keep getting caught up in water bottles, fishing gear and other items I place around the seat. Its location seems pretty good to me as I rest my right arm down and sits on top of the switch no problems.

I might add a bit of length to the toggle later but it won't be much more then a inch.

How much are my panels putting out ? Good question. I added a simi flexible panel up front that just velcro's down to the front cover and has 2 small pockets the plus minus cables run down to the electrical system. Sooooooo it easily unplugs and pops off so I can get the grand kids in the boat for a few hours of exploring and fishing without them being cramped into one seat.

It will take some testing in different conditions to see what I am producing in amps with 2 panels and then with 3 panels !

I watched the meters and on the lake in real world conditions in that last video and I was as low as 4.5 amps with the sun behind a rain cloud and as high as 18.6 amps when the sun hit the panels at a pretty good angle. In a perfect world the 3 panels should get about 21 amps. BUT in the real world I need to do some more testing and also watch the difference of amps going into my new MPPT controller and amps coming out of the MPPT controller to the Battery.

My hull speed was around 5-6 miles a hour and the trolling motor at 3/4 speed sucking 13-15 amps. BUT now I have really reduced the pontoon drag so I have to get back to you on anymore details of how many watts I might have reduced by doing the new pontoon design.

Short story is I will do some more test and share with you soon I have high hopes I can run 3/4 motor throttle in fair sun conditions with just the amps being produced from the panels. Time will tell if that is a fact or a wish. From what I saw on the last test......I think I am close to that goal ? lol

"Come on spring" Its been a long winter..... enough already... lol

Tommy

[SolarCanoe]

How much are my panels putting out ? Good question.

I was just wondering what the total panel wattage rating is. For example I am going to have 12 50 watt panels on the big canoe for a total of 600 watts. On the smaller canoe I will have 2 x 100 watts. So I was just wondering what the total wattage rating was.

Tommy it occurred to me that it probably looked like you were having trouble finding and operating the switch because you were using the video camera at the same time. Here are the type of switches I purchased for the linear actuators:

toggle_small.jpg

They have a waterproof boot over the toggle lever and because they are momentary when you let go the actuator stops. These actuators are capable of hundreds of pounds of force so I thought it best that I am forced to pay attention when operating them.

[TomCat58]

I was just wondering what the total panel wattage rating is. For example I am going to have 12 50 watt panels on the big canoe for a total of 600 watts. On the smaller canoe I will have 2 x 100 watts. So I was just wondering what the total wattage rating was.

Tommy it occurred to me that it probably looked like you were having trouble finding and operating the switch because you were using the video camera at the same time. Here are the type of switches I purchased for the linear actuators:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]3994[/ATTACH]

They have a waterproof boot over the toggle lever and because they are momentary when you let go the actuator stops. These actuators are capable of hundreds of pounds of force so I thought it best that I am forced to pay attention when operating them.

3 panels= 380 total watts (in parallel) right now its a 12 volt system. That is the exact switch I have ! The boot screws on after the mounting nut is installed. I just didn't have the boot on yet when the sun came out and I made a mad dash for the water

Tommy

[dudevato]

Solar Boat related

I just started a Yahoo Group called LittleSolarBoats 'cause of all the time I spend looking at these things on the Internet and messing with them in real life and thinking about them.

In the next few days I'll go through the U Tube videos relating to Trolling Motors and Solar Kayaks and such and see if I can put together a site for like minded people.

I just posted a few pics of a 1 panel kayak I rigged up a while ago. I never mentioned this before here. Boy, was It uncomfortable steering that thing! It was too small in relation to my 200 lbs but I got it for $100 with a pretty nice trolling motor so what the hell, uh?

Anyways see if this link works and check out the pics.

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/LittleSolarBoats/conversations/messages

I did get some work done on my current canoe today. I cut out a piece of maybe 16 ga. sheet metal to 4" x 8" I think it was, then drilled 3/16" holes in the correct spots then welded on a short length of pipe.

This was fastened to the windsurfboard outrigger via the factory installed 'nut plates' One length of my outrigger tubing will slip over this and then I slide a pin through a hole and clip on a clip. 'make sense?

Well, it turned out very nice and next time I get out there I'll work on something about the same for the 'front mount'

[Naptown]

I have some concerns about the use of EMT in a structural application.
You could have some serious moment on that considering the buoyancy of the surfboard and the potential stress of the wind in a side on scenario.