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Originally Posted by AmyJohnson
Good morning, all.
Well I've never done a forum before, but I am considering a Solar Stik for my boat (Hunter 27) and of course doing research on the web. (So please take it easy on me until I get a little experience at this!) There are several forums active about this thing, but this one seems to be the most active, hence my subsequent joining and participation.
The article I posted came from a disk I got with their info packet (picked it up at the boat show in MD). I only posted a portion of it because the rest was certainly an "advertisement" but I thought the "physics lesson" was worth the read. Having seen it first-hand on a boat (deck mounting version) and discussing it with him, here is what he told me: The numbers are actually close to what they preach, but "real world conditions" in Mexico were more favorable than here in the states. He cruised his Morgan down to Panama and back over the last 7 months.
What he did with his stik was mount a small wind gen on the top (didn't get the make/model) as well as several antennas.
So far I am inclined to buy it. I have seen several prices (as little as $3225 with boat show pricing to as much as $4,700 on some websites) so I guess it pays to shop around. They don't seem to sell it directly except at boat shows. I hope it is not an infringement to say this, but there is another "forum site" that has a chandlery listing for the Solar Stik at $3,450.
My biggest problem installing a solar system is that I am still stuck on mounting. I own a Hunter 27 and don't have much canvas room or transom space (arch) for a more traditional mounting system, so it APPEARS as though this will at least save me some space. I would like to have a solar resolution on my boat by May.
Sorry! I am sounding like an Ad myself. I'll go now...
Thanks for all the great info, everybody!
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Welcome aboard Amy,
I would say do whatever works best for your particular situation and budget.
My H23.5 at the lake has a small Sunsei panel that sits in the cockpit and a Sunsei controller. But that is all it needs for it's two 12V batteries.
I have also seen boats that do not have a spot to even mount a SolarStik.
Whatever you do needs to work best for you. Best of luck.