This video has become more and more important in these times we're living in. Thank you both so much for sharing and taking the time to do it right! The nerd in me is happy for the detailed tests!
I'm doing research into solar and USB charging options during a power outage and found this to be a very informative video! Thank you for educating people on the power of the sun and how to harness it for their needs.
Excellent video. Helped me make my solar panel decision. Wished you had noted if each panel was waterproof or not. Bluetti SP200 not waterproof but Baldr 120W is. A real deal breaker for me as where I camp afternoon storms can come by any day I'd be out hiking and not able to run back to camp to get panel out of the rain. Also, grommets are important to me as I'm worried someone will steal my panel while I'm hiking and wanted a way to attach panel to some object that wouldn't shade the panel. I haven't seen any reviewers address this concern and give suggestions on how best to prevent theft so maybe its not a problem or maybe there just isn't any way to prevent theft. I disburse camp so it's extremely rare for someone to come across my rig but just wanted it anchored for peace of mind. Thanks again
Hi. Like you I've also been thinking about it getting stolen. I live in a built up town in Scotland where the houses are joint together in like 5 house in a row and I was thinking how can I charge the panel and leave the panel and say for talking sake I bought the best bluetti or Jacory generator and spent maybe a thousand pounds or more on both items, do you just leave them lying outside and whats to stop someone else from stealing it.
After viewing all the videos, I went with the Rockpals 082. Thanks for all the help. Now I have the whole setup-VL45, FFpower 505 and the Rockpals. Can't wait to get out camping!
Thank you! Those of us that buy the batt. Units it's because there easy plug and play but no one shows exactly how to connect the panel to the unit and I didn't get a manual with my eb70. So it was nice to actually see it done.
Thank you both for your time and effort in this in-depth review. I've been meaning to get some portable solar panels or going the full Jackery route (100w panel and 518Wh) this really helps and very much appreciated.
Thanks for stopping by the channel and sharing your thoughts. I wanted to check your channel out as well. Good stuff here in this video. Looking forward to finishing this video and seeing the results.
Over qualified. I was about to ask if you could think of anyone worse to fill the overwhelmingly vacant spot. Immediately faces started popping up in my mind. For the Democrat party and there aggressive agenda of which none of them really know what all that entails aside from Trump bad, China good, Free candy and more masks, i would hate to see someone fill the absence with any ideas and a pen in hand. I'll tell you what, I'll give up my guns if you give up your pens.
I am a novice. Thank you for this video; all the comments and answers too. This video helps me to understand the solar field and I will watch others. I live in a coastal West African country where there is salty air, heavy rainstorms and constant equatorial heat even on cloudy days and nights; all conspiring to deteriorate our electrical, electronic, metal equipment among other things. Do you have any particular advice on which equipment will stand up to the conditions in my particular paradise or any precautions I can take to make solar work for me. Power outages occur often here.
Thanks for watching! With those conditions it's probably best to stick with Glass rigid panels for the best durability. They are cheaper than these portable panels but they are just bigger and bulkier. Not an issue with you aren't packing them around each day. Hope that info helps!
My boys think I'm crazy working very hard cutting down 52 trees on my land raised garden boxes built & a couple bought planted fruit trees every kind of berry grapes 50 squash & pumpkin just working sun rise to 11pm then I cook for my son with crones all night. Exhausted cant think this solar stuff rattles me lol. 2 hrs sleep a night since he got sick. Bought a new powersaw & electric dirt sifter & 3 1000 liter water tanks & many 55gal barrels. My boys will thank me if shit hits the fan.
Perfect! I just ordered the older version of the RockPals this afternoon, then saw this video tonight. Feel like I did the right thing. This is my first solar panel/battery I've ordered. Guess Amazon's clearing the old ones out as it was $179. 😊👍
@@judichristopher4604 I bought Rockpals foldable 100w solar panel. The older model does not have the stand things on the back so it must be leaned up against something, or laid flat. The battery I purchased was the Togo 330w. ✌❤
@@NYCHFAN Thank you for the information... I have found out that since I'm going to be using the Solar Panels everyday, I will be living in the travel trailer... that I should get the "Fixed. Rigid, or Glass" panels, so they can be fixed on top of my Travel Trailer. They can handle the HEAT and weather more...
I am a new subscriber. Would like to take this opportunity to thank you both for the consumer review on the panels. I am ready to experience the efficiency and economical values attached to investing in the panels. Again thank you guys for your hardwork and for sharing.
I contacted 4 big name solar panel sellers recently for some advice on which panel to buy for my needs. I called & emailed each of them. NOT ONE of them responded. NONE OF THEM ARE ON YOUR LIST so I'll leave it at that. I did talk to Signature Solar. They were very helpful. Before I buy anything I will also review your suggestions. Thanks for the video.
Newpowa has a good support group. I've had a bad experience with Renogy but most people like them. Most rigid panels you won't have any issues about performance or quality, folding panels have a higher risk of issues.
I like the Togo best since everything stores away quickly and it can be deployed with little effort. Cheap portable power in the wild is built for the outdoorsman or someone in need during a power outage.
Thanks for the great videos and all the hard work you guys put into these. I Aldo love how you edit time stamps in the video so I can go directly to what I want to see
Thanks for video.. saving for my bluetti and also a solar panel. Spent all my money on the Van. But don’t have a payment. I will watch this over and over.
Most of those units have fire issues haha, I'll look into some options and see what I can do. I have some awesome videos coming out here soon in the coming months. Stay tuned!
Thanks for the video. I like your reviews here. Lots of reviewers don't state they are getting their products or not from the suppliers. I like that you guys do and hope you continue to do so. I have a noob question here 😅 I'm not really following why the power goes to zero on your description of the power curve at :52.
Really like this video. The fridge comparison video is one of my favorites and I've referred back to it a few times. I have some heavy aluminum suitcase panels and some of the light ones too. I live in the Southwest and the winds are fierce. When camping it's hard to keep the lightweight panels in place so for someone like me, the aluminum framed panels are the best fit. Mine weigh 36 lbs but the wind doesn't budge them much.
This is my favorite lightweight (about 7lbs) portable panel whenever I'm away from home, on Amazon: amzn.to/3wBPke7 You can also read the review here: vpsolarpanels.com/best-portable-solar-panel/
Cheers gents for the informative and layman friendly exploration into solar and their respective battery units charge controller and MPPT functions. I have learned a lot in one half hour. Wish I had found you before. However, I am excited to receive my new EcoFlow river mini and 110W solar panel tomorrow and apply my new found knowledge. Great excuse to be in the sun! Keep up the great work. Subscribed!
I love this! I'm now shopping for better folding solar panel as my Acopower 105 watt has much diminished power after less than a year. Thanks for all your time and work for this video!
For something completely waterproof check out the Sunpower Flex 50. If you want some great output for the cost the BALDR 120 panel is a great option! I have many other videos about solar on my channel. Thanks for commenting!
This video is like so sweet because the dad is like the geek and knows all the electronics and stuff and the young son is like the new age video tech person it's so sweet the dad is sort of not as video friendly at first but he knows all the stuff and makes all the stuff right I'm just cracking up this is what makes a great team
I love working on projects, but I can never seem to finish them with cases or enclosures to make them look nice. This was made by someone with a lot of practice. Nice work. 23:47
Most panels do not perform will in shade. I have not tested all of them to see which one performs best in partial shading, might have to try to do a video for that in the future.
@@Jasonoid thanks. I was just wondering because I’ve seen the new Bluetti 200w panel does well if partially shaded because each panel is ran in parallel and just wondering if some of the other cheaper panels work this way.
Thank you ,still,learning about what’s available as you pointed out a panel from 2 or 3 yrs ago may not be as good as a new Solar Pnl . Both you guys doing a great service for us . A lot of reviews on Amazon not great to totally useless. …People who get on there and say well I didn’t test this much yet but it looks nice. 😂 a lot of them are biased. Never Happy with little credibility. Good JOB Thanks
Thanks for this format of comparison. I am back watching again a third time as I am narrowing my choice of portable solar panel for portable ham radio. I am leaning toward BALDR or Rockpals.
I've asked him to do videos in the past, he isn't interested haha. He does like to be in my videos on occasion. I will include his projects on the channel when possible. He's currently building a custom power meter board using sophisticated electronics to track power on our future DIY 100ah LiFepo4 builds. Should be a fun project!
Great video. So few people actually test the power a panel produces vs it's rating, so refreshing to see people who know what they're doing. I'm amazed at the performance figures you measured. I've bought and tested many friends panels in Australia and I'm flat out getting 100w from a 200w panel and don't get me started on 300w panels. Do you think your test unit has anything to do with this? I've used Victron mppt charge controllers and watt meters and never get the 80%+ values you are measuring. Most my testing has been 200w or larger folder panels, blankets and light weight varieties and I'm constantly disappointed with 50% performance figures. Maybe we just get junk panels down under?
Thanks for watching Ryan. I was surprised to only get 168watts out of that $550 bluetti 200w panel.... Ouch! Jeff's panel testor has been very accurate so I don't think there is an issue with that. Many times temperature lessens the output, same with high clouds that aren't very visible. Hard to get perfect conditions everyday.
Great comparison. On the question about outside durability. Some of the competitors state (in the fine print) that they are not waterproof. They can only be “splashed “ with water. I just bought 2 140 watt Ecoflow panels which are going with my 1800 watt (it can handle up to 3 panels) Ecoflow Delta solar battery pack. The panels can be submerged in water for 30 mins and still functional afterwards. They fold in four sections, and come in a handled portfolio carrying case. Would be nice to see them reviewed in an updated video. thanks for all the time it took for this review (and the one on refrigerators
So portable panels aren't near as durable as the rigid glass ones. They claim waterproof levels but sometimes I doubt the claims. There are trade offs between the two. Portable are about mobility and convenience. Rigid panels are for durability and long term output/water proof. There are different situations where you need BOTH types of panels :D
Man you're right, I can't find anyone who has showed or used the sp200 in the wild. This one guy got all the way to the end with an ac200 and was like "I can't see the watts" I wanted to be like are you freakin kidding me. Lol
I saw that video! Lol....on that video he just ended it right after he couldn't see the watts! He said the voltage right before lol.... So funny! Well my video is going to have the real world performance, I tested it yesterday. Still filming up stuff.
Great info. Thanks for clearing up the process on recharging the different battery packs. I watched your DIY battery pack and priced it out. Looks like it will cost under $400 for a 100 aH LiPO. Not bad. Short term goal is to get the VL45 fridge and maybe the Sunpower panel. Want to keep it as minimal and cheap as possible. Just want fresh food and top of the phone batteries so I don't need an inverter.
That's a good plan, most camping gadgets just need 12volts anyways, including 12v fridges 👍🏻 Just choose a solar charge controller that will support Lifepo4 batteries and you'll be set! Thanks for your comment!
Thanks for these comparisons of folding solar panels. Most viewers here are thinking along the lines of using folding solar panels for camping. The application that concerns me is charging a micro-EV (5 kWh battery) that sits most of the time in my sunny parking lot. It is charged by a standard wall-plug cable. If I put one of these folding solar panels on the car's roof, what would I need to connect its output to the car's charging cable, i.e., standard wall plug?
You'd want to make sure you use an ETFE based solar panel for the most durability. In order to get the solar panel power over to AC wall power youd need a battery and an inverter rated at how fast the EV charges.
Do you notice a difference between how much the flexible panels can achieve compared to their rating and the rigid ones? That final Newpowa seems to do quite well and is very good value. Not a good option for portability though as it is quite heavy but the flexible panels can cost twice as much.
There are three types of panels, glass rigid, portable folding, and flexible panels. Rigid panels have the best pricing and also last much longer(years and years). They can handle most any weather condition. The only downside is that they aren't as portable. Etfe portable panels are pretty water resistant and some are even waterproof rated. They output good power, check out my XTAR sp100 review. I don't recommend portable panels coated in PET. Flexible panels are in a weird area, they are waterproof but will degrade quickly especially if they are outside in the sun all the time mounted to the top of an RV or van conversion. They are good for a lightweight occasional use (they are able to slightly bend... Not by much)
If you were going to go with a 120watt panel, save yourself $100 and pick up the BALDR 120 or the Elecaenta 120. I have videos on both of them. The Bluetti SP120 is a decent panel, it's just pretty expensive for what you get.
The Poly- & Mono-crystalline panels & cells ARE better than they used to be, but I'm an Amorphous-cell/panel person, since the crystalline types usually DO have a little more efficiency at 100% sunlight on them, but if the available light drops from passing clouds or similar, the output typically drops to almost nothing (in my limited testing), while the Amorphous cells & panels may have a little less output at 100% light, but they have a much more, "almost linear" output drop which follows the decrease in available light, & as many people have said, "I'd rather have a little of something, than nothing of anything". Have you had any thoughts of doing comparisons on Poly- & Mono-crystalline vs. Amorphous cells & panels, in addition to protective materials?, since my panels are glass-faced & I'm usually in the upper-southwest area of the USA "Tornado Alley", and when there IS the very occasional hail pinging off of everything, it's nice to know your investment in panels is protected by a "least-loss" material. Also, any thoughts of comparing various protective after-market protective materials, such as "Lexan", ("Lexan" is a copyrighted brand-name, property of the respective holder of record), or other coatings, panels, or other protective materials? (BTW, hats off to the use of the same "load-bank", connectors, & watt-meter to measure the different panels; it gives us a good idea of "real-world conditions" load-handing.) Well done!
Just ordered the Baldr based on how much Jeff said he liked them. Great price on Amazon with the $30 off coupon! By the way, people say it comes with adapters for MC-4 and barrel connections too!
Great video. Are you able to calculate how long it would take to charge any given portable batteries? Also, it looks pretty sunny there but in Scotland we don’t get much sun - what would you recommend for cloudy environments that are prone to rain?
If you know the watt hour rating for the battery, you can divide that number by the wattage you are getting from your solar panel and that will give you an estimate of hours. For example, 1000wh battery / charging at 100 watts from a solar panel will take 10 hours to charge. For rain and clouds you can always over panel your setup by adding more solar panels than needed to compensate for the lack of sun. You just need to stay within the voltage requirements of your charge controller.
I have been trying to find a testing jig for panels for quite a while. using a MPPT controller does not really do the job entirely. I thought about building one. Do you guys have a parts list and schematic for that fixture?
I ordered up and got one of the Baldr 120W panels. I have very little knowledge as to the different types of connectors and what they are for. The panel came with a connector that has 4 different ends and I don't know what in the world they even go to. Where can I go to learn about what the different connectors are for and how to use them. It won't do me much good if I don't know how to use and what to use the connectors for when it comes down to the time when I need to use them. Please send me in the correct direction if you can. It would be amazing if you could do a video on "connectors"!!!
The closed back on the panels will heat up and drop the efficiency, the ecoworthy will stay cooler and it’s efficiency will stay higher over the long run. Be careful on hot days if you need a 100 watts then buy a 125-150 watt panel. Test them over time and you will see a big difference. Instantaneously testing panels will give you a false reading you have to let them heat up and then test them. The closed back panels will drop watts like a rock when they get hot.
Very true, I haven't seen huge losses in power on these portable panels but I usually have the kickstands up or on a slight angle with a 2x4. I have measured 170F degrees in my panels before..... Ouch!
Best videos on this topic I have seen. Answered a lot of questions. I have an EcoFlow River 600 and a Goal Zero 200w. Do you think I am better off with the Rockpals RP082 or SP003 for connectivity. Thanks. P.S. Some people say the Rockpals 8mm connector included with the RP082 doesn't fit in all the way. Would that cause a problem. like a short?
Ive heard that Goal Zero uses a "longer" 8mm connector, you might need to purchase a special "Goal Zero" adapter from them to get a third party solar panel to work with it.
That is very true, I talk about that here in this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-9qcj7MgP0Bs.html This is an excellent option for a great price.
Great video. It’s unfortunate you haven’t covered the Dokio which seems to be quite popular on Amazon and good price/performance (at least on paper as I have yet to try one). Would be great if you could do a video on one)
Question what happens to the electricity when you have a solar panel outside in the sun without anything connected to it and does it ruin anything? Does it just not make energy at that time but it would have to write? So what does it go?
I think you did a great job for what you had. Too bad you didn’t have any merlin panels. They’re more expensive by quite a bit. But they are the best. It’s too bad the manufacturers won’t send someone all the panels and let them all be tested like you did. Then you could compare apples to apples and oranges to oranges. The battery things you’re showing that’s a tough thing it changes so much. None of them have more than a 3000 W inverter. Soon they’ll make one that will run an air conditioner. Problem with inverters is the 5 to 7 AM draw no matter what you do you’re going to have this. I’ve built in all 24 V system. Was expensive but very well worth it. Don’t have the inverter loss. Have plenty of power for a couple of days running in AC. Keep up the nice work guys
Thanks Joe, one day I will build a 24v house backup system. Then I can run appliances without pulling 200amps LOL... Just gotta save up quite a bit of money for that as you know.
@@Jasonoid that’s hard to say. I’m always interested in solar generators, purchased or DIY. Also, anything camping/overlanding related. It sort of runs the gamut for me - for example, I’ve been digging deep lately on kayaks, but the other month it was bed racks and roof top tents.
Great overview! Curious, my power station says max 100w input for solar. Will a 120w hurt? On best case scenario it will push 20watts more than 100w Just curious.
120w panel will not hurt the power station, it will just limit the power to 100w. Most 120w panels you'll get right around 95 watts so that will work great.
I was hoping you would test the Jackery panel because that is what I use and I have been very pleased. After seeing the reviews, I like the rock port. Thank You for sharing your videos and knowledge.
Great Info. Requests: 1. Weather survivability (in case it was left in the rain). 2. Most efficient Power Point: Meaning: the Voltage / Current at various solar intensity / vs current load.
Most of these smaller panels are very similar in power output vs voltage. It's up to the MPPT charge controller to get the most power out of the panel. If you went with a higher quality charge controller it would do it's job for you. Most weather proof would be the sunpower 50 watts flex panels seen in the video, or a normal rigid glass panel.
Good question about outside durability. Some of the competitors state (in the fine print) that they are not waterproof. They can only be “splashed “ with water. I just bought 2 140 watt Ecoflow panels which are going with my 1800 watt Ecoflow Delta solar battery pack. The panels can be submerged in water for 30 mins and still functional afterwards. The fold in four sections, and come in a handled portfolio carrying case. Would be nice to see them reviewed in an updated video. Great video
