FAILED! Positionable Solar Hatch for an Alberg 30 and what went wrong!
Hello Friends,
I made this video to show my viewers a project that didn’t work out. I bought a small 50 watt solar panel that I wanted to install someplace out of the way and decided to try and remake my aft hatch into a solar hatch. I knew that 50 watts doesn’t do much for charging your batteries and is more of a trickle charger than anything but I wanted something to keep juice in the batteries when at anchor or if the power went out at the dock. We plan on adding solar to our quarter rails so this would have just been the first small panel in the set up.
I designed the hatch to be positionable using RAM mounts on either side allowing the panel to be adjusted and pointed towards the sun in various directions. I also installed a rubber latch aft so any breaking waves over the stern wouldn’t rip the panel off the hinged base.
I took the wood structure to the boat to test fit it and made a critical error during my test fit. I didn’t screw the hinges into the new hatch as it would be mounted on the final install. Instead I simply opened it as I would with the regular hatch and it appeared I still had plenty of room to access the lazarette. In doing so I was pivoting the hatch on the lower part of the panel housing and not where the hinges mount to.
In the end I thought the design was a good idea so I wanted to make this video to share with everyone in case this sort of idea can be implemented onto your boat or project in some way.
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Enjoy,
James
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Meet Sailor James Frederick: A solo voyager redefining the Alberg 30 legacy with technical grit, from a rudderless Hawaii crossing to his current 2026 refit in Thailand.
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