For most Pure users the answer is no. Firstly, charging only occurs when the system is not in operation, so charging via solar while motoring on the water is not an option at this time. Secondly, while it is possible to charge the Pure Outboard system via solar by connecting the charger to the solar panel system, in practical terms that requires an inordinately large number of solar panels to provide adequate power to Pure’s 8.8kWh battery packs. In most cases, it is more effective to install the solar charging system on land and recuperate some of the costs by feeding power back to the electricity grid.
By way of example, to charge the highly energy dense Pure battery pack at 120V 15amp AC, a solar setup would need to produce around 15kWh per day. Depending on the available sunlight and location, such a system would typically require between 10-18 panels in order to charge two battery packs.
In the case of charging multiple Pure battery packs on 240V 50amp AC, a solar setup would need to produce approximately 53kWh with 5 hours of available sun. With the average solar panel shape of 65 inches x 39 inches, such a system would require approximately 48 panels. Arranged in a 10 x 5 panel array, that would yield a 11m x 9m footprint. This size of array is only feasible on a slow, displacement style craft as the entire system could add up to 2,000lbs to the boat.