*100% best **Generater.Systems** I have used. A test for hurricane prep here in Louisiana: three AC units, 5000, 5000 & 8000, 3 fridges, 2 device power setups, 4 flat screens....AND I had 40% of the power meter to spare.*
We have used the ru-vid.comUgkxOTeIs0vv4_9B5hsmnLsk9r930uDQLu_Y for probably 30 hours with our camper and it’s been great! The noise level is really only noticeable when running the AC and other appliances like the microwave, hair dryer, or coffee pot. It’s not huge like other ones and it has wheels so even at 90lbs, I can move it!
I bought this and I am happy to report that Lensun took your suggestion and added grommets to the blanket. Mine arrive with grommets intact and ready to hang. Thanks for reviewing this.
This is my favorite 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/
I visited the LENSUN website and according to them the MPPT controller IS compatible with lithium batteries, BUT it is default set for gel cells. That leads me to believe that there is a way to change the battery type settings. Maybe you could read the instructions and do a follow up video, if it turns out that it WILL work with lithium. Or maybe your unit is defective. It would be a big no-go for most people if this very expensive setup didn't accommodate lithium.
FANTASTIC idea and great timing. My house sold yesterday!!! I'm that much closer to full time RV living. This is a good option IF they fix the loops on the sides. Thanks for sharing.
hello from the Ozarks!!! how do you keep your solar blanket from growing legs!!! I carry a elecrict portable fence that goes around my camper to keep critters away. cheers!!
That's what I was thinking too. I'll have to look into that further. I couldn't find any references for the controller blinking indicator light either.
It should have charged the Lithium battery initially as the charge controller just “sees” voltage and a load. It doesn’t know what chemistry it’s connected to. The Lithium battery might be fully charged so the bms is not connecting to the charge controller.
@@paulbaker3144 That's possible. But I don't know for sure. Lensun is sending me a different controller suitable for Lithium batteries. So I'll give that a test.
Thanks, Brian! Great timing, we’re starting to research solar options for truck camping so we can do more boondocking. I like the ability to move and hang it from a variety of surfaces. Great video. We appreciate your knowledge!
Hey Brain, I was searching the internet for information on a 100 to 200 watt emergency solar power system as a backup on RU-vid when I came across your video! I looked two three times at the video and couldn't believe it was you, my cousin Brian! I then saw 'RV with Tito' and I knew it for sure! Really great thorough review so I went ahead and purchase the 200watt kit through your link! Anyway hope you all are doing well. Thanks Brian for the info and keep up the great work! Eddie S.
Hey! I did a double take when I saw your comment pop-up. Is that...!? Yup 😊. My next thought was the fact that Cousin Eddie from the Christmas Vacation movie is a legendary figure in the RV world. Too funny. Great to hear from you and glad the review helped you out. Take it easy! Brian.
Great review! For under $300.00 it would be a worthy consideration but at the current price point, absolutely no way!!!!!! The use of 50 amp power-pole connectors is overkill for a 200 watt panel. They would have been better served with the smaller and much less expensive 30/40 amp connectors. I recently purchased 2 E-bikes even though I was not in the market for them because the company came in at at a price point 50% below other similar bikes. At the low price point, Lectric XP bikes sold 6000 bikes in 5 months, many to RVers while their competitors were selling 2-3 a week at double the price.
I just stumble onto ur foldable solar system. Thank u for taking the time to shoot the video. Informative and love the suction cup idea. I'll be buying some for other usage. The Lensun foldable solar system has the potential for great concept and usage. However the price is to much for what u r getting. The mppt is low end tech. And Amazon reviewers 4 out of 9 say didn't work, hot spot or failed after some time. I would be interested in buying the connectors. They look to be great quality! To bad the panels have poor reviews and high cost. I would buy it if not for that and the item is no longer in Amazon at this time.
Only issue that concerns me with with this is how easy it would be to steal. Grommets strategically placed MAY be a better design so that at least a cable could be used to keep passer-by from walking off with it. LOVE the portability!
Hi, Brian. I just watched your video on the Lensun 200 Watt Foldable Solar Panel with MPPT controller. It was a very good video, and it is intriguing to be because of the size and low weight. I was not able to find the 200 Watt using the Amazon link provided. Is Amazon not offering the 200 Watt anymore? Just wondering since this video is a few months old if you were able to find any other benefits or faults in this solar panel? Initially, I thought that this would be a deal breaker for me as I just installed Lithium (LiFePO4) batteries, but I saw on Lexsun website that this has been added to the controller. I would jump on this right away if the cost was closer to $300-350.
Mr. Brian , I am soooo thankful for all the amazing and helpful information. It was thoroughly explained and you have a great tone of voice that makes it easy to pay attention to your description video. Thanks Angelina
@@RVwithTito you may laugh, but I have a chains and padlocks on my spare tire, step support and surge suppressor. When parked at the storage yard, I have a chains and padlocks on my traffic cones! The cones developed feet and moved one space over! Yes, the storage yard is in a cheaper part of town.
@@slister45 It's actually a good question. Yes, you *can* affix panels to the roof safely with high-strength tape and people do it that way sometimes. The bigger question is whether or not it's a good idea from the panel's point of view. Reasoning: panel temperature affects panel power output, so cooler panels make more power than hotter ones. This is why framed (mounted in hard frames) panels are mounted with an airgap under them; cooling breezes pass under the panel and remove excess heat. Surface mounting either prevents this cooling, or transfers the heat into your van.
Who else is here in 2024, still looking for this kind of alternative to the super heavy, bulky portable suitcase (400W) panels that go with the Ecoflow products? Im in a conversion van with a funky roof that won't accommodate any panels up top. 🤷♀️
Nice unit and I like the way it handles partial shade. But you have to wonder why they chose those giant Anderson connectors. Big overkill for 11 or 12 amps. .
Very neat, I like the fact that it has everything you need included, but can also just link into your existing system easily either. I have a 160W framed kit and its very heavy and bulky to store. A good spot for it might be to hang it from the cab overhang and down onto the bonnet using your suction cups. It would shade the cab then too and give quite a good angle to the sun.
Nice review Brian! As I was watching how you were mounting the panel, I was thinking that you could probably make an adjustable frame out of PVC pipe that would be easy to maneuver and easy to set up and take down. Does the controller quit sending current to the battery once the battery is fully charged?
The battery will eventually stop accepting a charge. When that happens, there is no load to draw any current at which point, the solar stops producing current (even in full sun).
I didn't see any UV data. All I know is the ETFE top layer which holds up well. There's also a fiberglass backing on each of the 12 sub panels for strength.
Looks like you had fun doing all this testing. Curious if it would work if you go "solar direct" into a lithium battery. Curious if the battery's BMS will prevent overcharging, overcurrent, overvoltage conditions with an 18v (or 21v) solar panel directly connected to it. Lithium batteries are expensive to "play with" for experiments...would def su*k if it destroyed a perfectly good small lithium battery like yours. Thanks for making this video...always inspiring and helpful for others to DIY solar
Yes, probably not a good idea to bypass a charge controller and use the BMS as a controller. The BMS doesn’t do anything except monitor to see if something goes out of specification. Then it activates and shuts down the loads and charge source.
I am currently I the middle of a warranty claim on a 200w flexible panel from these guys (Lensun Solar) that I had mounted to the roof of my RTT since may2023 (its AUG 2023 @ time of writing). Maybe it will get better but currently I have not been impressed, my issue hasn't been resolved, and the panel just up and quit working. No visible damage. Just stopped working.
Great vid. Nice job. This thing is just too big and impractical. Its either going to be flat on the horizontal or vertical surface. No way to effectively and efficiently angle. Standard 200 watt panel is 50-75% smaller. The sun continually moves...this is just too cumbersome....compact, no....its silly actually
Have you considering CTEK PRODUCT CTEK D250SE- The D250SE is a fully automatic, 5 step charger that supplies up to 20A of power to any 12V lead acid or lithium* service battery from 40-300Ah. It has selectable charge algorithms for AGM and lithium* batteries and can use power through its dual input from alternator, solar panel and wind power. When the service battery is fully charged, the D250SE will automatically redirect maintenance charge power to the starter battery. The D250SE can maintain a stable output up to 20A to vehicles fitted with smart ECU controlled alternators and also has a temperature sensor for optimized charging, regardless of weather conditions. CTEK SMARTPASS 120S- SMARTPASS 120S is a 120A Power Management Solution which distributes, controls and maximizes the available energy from your alternator to power service batteries and consumers. SMARTPASS 120S handles all 12V batteries between 28-800Ah. The SMARTPASS 120S’s Battery Guard function ensures that critical equipment such as radio, emergency lights and n avigation systems always have power and take priority when the voltage on the service battery is low disconnecting non-critical consumers. The unit’s Battery Guard will protect your service battery from total discharge and built in over temperature protection reduces charge current before the battery temperature gets too high. SMARTPASS 120S is compatible with the D250SA and D250SE 20A on board chargers.
Can you help me , please ! IHave a 22 Wh portable Generator (powerstation ) and i want to charge it with a Foldable 5V 14W and 2,33A solar panel , i understand that if i buy a 5 -15 volt step up convertor will work , what do you thynk , will start ? I thank you in Advanced
@@RVwithTito Although most are the 100 watt, there is an entry for the 200. watt.. It appears that you didn't include the Amazon link, or any link for that matter, because of the negative reviews.. Good Bye..!!!
@@pjf7943 You're assumption would be incorrect. I actually published this video by accident without finishing the writeup. My mistake. The links are there now. Cheers...and good bye.
@@RVwithTito Amazingly, you didn't pay any attention to all the other people questioning you as to 'WHERE ARE THE LINKS' to these products.!! LOL! But, it does appear that I am the only person questioning the reliability of these 'LENSUN' products.. !!! Of course 'click bait' is 'click bait' and the product and consumer be damned.. Tostito Puente, I've got your number.. LOL!
@@pjf7943 Yeah. I didn't realize until 5 hours later around 1AM that I messed up and published the video. That's when I responded to the initial comments updated the description and went to bed 😑
How many watts solar to run a small ac? Like 5000btu that uses 500 to 600 watts? And how much battery would you need? Could you do a video on that? Thumbs up handsome!!
UPDATE - CHARGING LITHIUM BATTERIES - Good News! Lensun provided a Lithium compatible MPPT charge controller that charges Lithium/LiFEP04 batteries. I tested it out and it works fine. See the picture I posted in the community section of my channel. GROMMETS: I also added grommets to each side. Those also work fine for hanging the panel and support the weight well. They should last a long time.
I think I have heard of people having to configure the voltage in the controller directly (not auto) to get around that issue. I don't have Li so I am not up on the details.
Thanks for the video Tito, I went to the website and it says that you need to let the company know that you will be using them for lithium batteries so that they can put the correct controller on your order.
@@mv.m5438 What do you have to do if you order this now and upgrade to Lithium later? Any idea whether they would have to send you a new controller or is it a software or setting that needs to be adjusted?
Interesting about solar blanket. Nice taco double cab. What year 01-04. Have two of the toy taco. 00 xtra & 03 double. Always ppreciate your informative videos.
Interesting product. Those Anderson connectors make it easy to interface with other systems. I'd have to make my own extension cables though. Those look a little small and short for our set-up. I agree that grommets would have been a better choice for attachment points. How about heating with a black panel laying directly on the ground or on the RV? Pretty slick though. Nice entry into the folding panel fray. It'll be interesting to see how it holds up. Have fun. Safe travels.
Great review, thanks. What if you get a Renogy 20A MPPT to use with these panels so you can get lithium charging? And then transfer Anderson connectors from Lensun MPPT to Renogy.
Tito like view, wondering if you have any recommendations on a outside security system for rv. Had my catalytic converter stolen last night. But good news the police caught then with a converter in the car, Thanks Rick Ps. At storage yard I do not have outside power source
Get a motion sensing LED light. Also look into a front/rear dashcam that records both to a memory card. Both of those will run off of 12v. So it'll drain your battery unless you have solar to recharge it.
Nice review. Will you be making your own patch connector from the Anderson clip to attach the blanket directly to your existing external fitting to your 3rd Victron MTTP controller or will you continue using the supplied MPPT controller?
I already have an MC4 adapter that connects to my external port. So after connecting the provided Anderson-to-MC4 adapter, I'm good to go. I've already tried it out connecting it to that Victron MPPT via the external fitting. Works like a champ.
@@susie9893 I noticed diminished performance after using it for a few months. Perhaps it got damaged or something leaving it outside. Anyway, I stopped using it. It's a great idea though and they may have made improvements since. I just haven't kept up with it. I made my own portable solar setup for less money that I've been using instead. There are several similar units out there, but I haven't tried them.
Good review, probably not connected in series though the voltage would be higher it’s probably a combo of parallel and series. Remember series is not shade tolerant at all block one panel and you would see very little. Also on the controller that’s not an “auxiliary” it’s a load output for say a light.
Definitely a series/parallel setup. Based on my shading test, I'm thinking each column of three were paralleled from the others. BTW: I don't know anyone who uses those "load" outputs. I don't since you can't charge anything with them.
Thanks Brain another well thought out and executed review, also added an interesting tip of this solar panel not working with my Battle Bourne system. I always look forward to your videos as they always provide great information in a clear concise format.
I used it quite a bit earlier this year in the desert. Since then, I've noticed the performance has dropped quite a bit compared to just using 200W of regular solar panels. So I question it's longevity.
Controller appears to be designed for Lead-Based Batteries. Lensun needs to offer a Charge Controller that has a Microprocessor built into to it to automatically adjust for EITHER Lead, Gel, or LiFePO4 Batteries!
You'll probably see 4 cables connecting the batteries to each other. There should also be two cables leaving the battery bank. One will be from a positive post, the other from a negative post. That's where you connect the alligator clips from the charge controller (red to positive, black to negative). Note: They will probably be coming off of different batteries. Hope that helps.
Thanks Brian. We started full timing last May and we are currently looking for a portable solar solution to keep the batteries up. This blanket looks interesting but I am concerned about the loops breaking and that it doesn’t use a stand to be able to angle it to line up better with the sun. Do you have a favorite, tried and tested 200 watt portable solution? I would love to hear your input.
I don't have a favorite. I've always made my own. I know lots of folks have the Renogy ones though. I like the blanket idea and will experiment with different uses. I'll install grommets on mine though. You could arrange the blanket thing in lots of different ways to maximize solar. I'll probably hang it and move it around as the sun moves.
So your saying it will work with your own charge controller if you have lithium? Do you have an updated video on the status of how well these panels are functioning? Are they waterproof? I'll do my own research. Thanks!
Yes. It will work with your own charge controller. Unfortunately, I've noticed the performance decreasing and have switched back over to my other setup.
Cool video! I have couple questions. Why are you using Anderson connectors istead MC4 connectors ? Cool you have both of them but can you connect the MC4 directly? What is the ETFE coating for? Does it help to take more sun power?
Thanks for the suction cup mounting. I'm going to apply that to two Renogy 160w panels on a Lance 2285. I can then park as desired / needed and point the panels to the sun. Solar power will go into a EF Delta which will feed the RV via the 30 amp socket for a/c power in the trailer. Judicious management REQUIRED!! All up costs about $1,600. . . . I hope.
I go tent camping with panels lie that ,work great. using 2 100 watt briefcase type. It came with basic PWM controller but I got a MPPT controller that cam be set 12/24V 30 amp . and has LFP/ AGM/flooded setting and I paid around 30 USD with shipping from china and works great. I gained 2 amps in full sun at 12.5V . AGM batt. and MPPT had 2 USB outputs. my MPPT is around same size as one in video .Gave me a few ideas for mounting also.
