Solar arch baby! (Patreon)

Hi guys :)

This week was fantastic! I've spent a lot of time designing the arch, and it was a big relief to see it mounted on the boat. Granted, it was only a test fit, but it looks perfect. Just what I was picturing :) Now there are only the last few details to work out ... well, that and about an eternity worth of polishing ;) 

Speaking of polishing. The bulk of that is going to be the end caps for the toe rail. I think it's going to look amazing! I'm looking into what (if any) coating I should apply to the wood. I'm considering three options: 1) do nothing, 2) oil, and 3) coelan (https://www.premapro.com/products/coelan-boat-coating ). Coelan is supposed to be extremely durable and look good for a long time. I have no experience with it! If you do, I'd love to hear about it :) 

The CIGS vs. traditional panels didn't turn out quite the way I had hoped. We tested on a day with a lot of clouds - pretty much an overcast day. CIGS panels are supposed to do better in those conditions. They performed a tiny bit worse (10Wh over the day) than the traditional panel. I didn't go into more detail in this video because I want to do a bit more testing. There are a couple of drawbacks to the CIGS panels. One is cost, and the other is that they're flexible (although you can get rigid CIGS panels too). I don't know if I trust the lifespan of the CIGS panels (UV vs. plastic), and I'd prefer not to have to build a roof for the solar arch to mount the flexible panels. To be continued :) 

I'm off to polish! Oh, glorious polishing! This is a marathon, not a sprint. Finishing one or two end caps per day is the way to get through this. The vibrations from the angle grinder can mess up your fingers and hands - I learned that the last time I polished stainless ;) Sticking to a few hours a day is properly the best approach.

I'll be back later to reply to comments :) I hope you've had a fantastic weekend :) Thank you so much for your support! Stay safe :)