Are these the best/cheapest solar panels available?

[Fearnoevil]

So I've been scouring the Internets to find the best price on solar panels, including every reference I could find on this and a couple of other boards, when I came across this site, Altestore.com. So far it has the best prices I've seen BY FAR, an example is their Solarworld Sunmodule Pro SW250 Poly 250 Watt Solar Panel which sells for $245 which works out to $0.98 per watt. They have another model which is a monocrystalline panel, 275 watts for $295, not only a great price, but there's also a video which shows them putting these panels through some incredible endurance tests that blew me away. Here's the Youtube vid for those who may not have seen this:
[video=youtube]
Incredibly, they stood up to golf-ball size hail at over 200 mph and they even drive a Toyota Tundra pickup onto them (gotta be like at least 1,200 lbs per panel) without any problem. Of course I don't know what other solar panel manufacturers claim for their products, but this is the first I've seen demonstrated so dramatically.

One thing I'm not sure of is whether this is true of all the Solarworld products or just certain models - for instance the 250 watt model didn't have the video on it's page so idk?

Now again, I have no xp buying these yet, but one offsetting factor could be the shipping cost which seems pretty high at $257 to my location in Iowa , but on the plus side, it was only $46 more to have 8 shipped Again, no xp so does anyone know if that sounds reasonable?

Another thing I like about this site is their mission statement, here's an excerpt:
"altE® was founded in 1999 by three impassioned engineers focused on bringing renewable energy to the web and to the DIY enthusiast by reducing the costs of green energy systems and revealing the truths of how home based solar and wind energy systems can be designed and installed. They set out to build an online community and support that community with extensive, free educational materials, competitive pricing, knowledgeable staff and unbounded enthusiasm."
Sounds good, but has anyone purchased panels from this company, and if so what's your opinion of their products?

 

[Bela's Mom]

You might check out Renogy. They have a 250 watt monocrystalline panel for $240.00 (minimum order of 2) and free shipping to the lower 48.

I have two of their panels (smaller) and they operate to specs. No problems. Tech will call you back the same day if you have any questions.

 

[kyonu]

For those interested in the Renogy 250w for 240, here's the link:

https://www.renogy-store.com/250W-Mono-p/rng-250d-bk.htm

That's actually a pretty incredible deal. I may need to pick up 3 at that price!

 

[TucsonAZ]

Firstly, Renogy charges shipping on their larger panels so you will be no better off going with them and they are made in China. Normally I would just say to go with the best price per watt however, SolarWorld panels are US made and a German company, also, they are a better panel in terms of build quality. For under $1 a watt there is no reason to go with something else because even if they're of the same quality I would still rather support them. Sunelec had the Chaori panels at $0.69 a watt and they normally have something at a deal along those lines but again, I would much rather have the SolarWorld panels.

I got mine (SolarWorld) locally for $0.69 a watt because they were 230w panels which they've stopped using in the grid tie world hence the overstock of 16 panels and the lower price. Call local installers, somebody will cut you a deal, I'm certain of it.

 

[Fearnoevil]

Wow, the added benefit of supporting American workers, I think it's a done deal, thank you for that info Tucson ;?D

Now looking at the products on their list, those Solarworld 275 & 250 watt panels for instance, are rated 20v, rather than 12v or 24v, which seems odd. So if I were to start with 4 of the 275 watters, could I tie them together in the following manner: two serial strings of 40v/275 watts each; all together in a single 80v/275 watt string; in two parallel 20v/550 watts strings or all together in a single parallel string of 20v/1100 watts; or all singly, is that right? And if so, which would be the best? As I understand it, one of the first two options would be best because with high volts/low watts the wires can be smaller gauge... hmm, wait a sec, am I confusing watts and amps, does it actually work that way... arrgghh.

---

So looking at the spec chart I'm kinda lost with all the different numbers, so not sure which amp rating to go with, but maximum power point current (as opposed to short circuit current) has a rating of 8.94 amp (then there's maximum reverse current 16 A:s). So is that the number I need to plug in instead of watts???

And let's say I went with the two strings of 40v, and 8 - 6v 225 ah golf cart batteries, what would be the best way to connect those (and can you suggest a best inverter for the money ;?). Appreciate the help guys

 

[DC Fuse]

A 12 volt solar panel...... their is no such thing. In order to recharge a 12 volt battery to full charge (12.7) you are going to need sustained voltage in the 15 volt range (bulk rate). That's why you use a charge controler because that panel is putting out 17+ volts when hooked to your cc. A panel hooked to nothing is putting out 21 volts. This is called a open circuit.

For every volt you take out 1.25 volts have to go back in to effectively charge your battery bank

 

[TucsonAZ]

Wow, the added benefit of supporting American workers, I think it's a done deal, thank you for that info Tucson ;?D

Now looking at the products on their list, those Solarworld 275 & 250 watt panels for instance, are rated 20v, rather than 12v or 24v, which seems odd. So if I were to start with 4 of the 275 watters, could I tie them together in the following manner: two serial strings of 40v/275 watts each; all together in a single 80v/275 watt string; in two parallel 20v/550 watts strings or all together in a single parallel string of 20v/1100 watts; or all singly, is that right? And if so, which would be the best? As I understand it, one of the first two options would be best because with high volts/low watts the wires can be smaller gauge... hmm, wait a sec, am I confusing watts and amps, does it actually work that way... arrgghh.

---

So looking at the spec chart I'm kinda lost with all the different numbers, so not sure which amp rating to go with, but maximum power point current (as opposed to short circuit current) has a rating of 8.94 amp (then there's maximum reverse current 16 A:s). So is that the number I need to plug in instead of watts???

And let's say I went with the two strings of 40v, and 8 - 6v 225 ah golf cart batteries, what would be the best way to connect those (and can you suggest a best inverter for the money ;?). Appreciate the help guys

---

The only issue with the 20v is you couldn't run them in parallel to charge a 24v bank and would need at least two panels in series. But you want to avoid parallel connections anyway, if you had four of them in parallel and you got shade on one corner of one panel, even a small amount like the size of a baseball, you would drop your output of all the panels substantially instead of it being limited to that panel or string. You will have to run that into a combiner box, I did each string to a breaker that also acts like a switch for each string.

The higher voltage is better in a non-mobile situation where you know there will be no shade but it's really a non-issue for your situation and not something I would give much thought to. Either way, you want to go one step up in panel voltage/battery, you wouldn't want to do say a 72v to 24v system, better to do 72v to 48v.

If you had 8 of the 6v batteries I would do two 24v banks in parallel. For an inverter, hands down, the best value you will find if they still have them is the Cotek SK-1500 in 24v from ABC electronics in Minnesota. I paid $220 shipped for a new one, should have bought two of them for that price honestly.

 

[DC Fuse]

EDIT post #6. That should say for every amp/hr. pulled from battery 1.25 amps need to go back in.

 

[Fearnoevil]

Thanks Ionfu that's a great source on pricing, very useful!

Btw, in case you haven't read my post :dodgy: DON'T Buy From Civic Solar, I will just say that those guys are not running their online biz on the up-and-up, so their prices listed in that link are NOT what you're going to get if you order from them. Read my post for more details, just wanted to make sure no one on these boards gets taken advantage of by another bad online site.:dodgy:
;?D

 

[sushidog]

Though I've never dealt with them, Sun Electronics has Sharp 245w panels (made in Europe) for $172.80. (70.4cents/watt)!!!
http://sunelec.com/shop/solar-panels/sharp-240w-module-1608631608.html

Sounds too good to be true.

Chip

 

[Fearnoevil]

There are so many shady stores online, seems like you just can't trust anyone unless you get some solid referrals or they've been in biz a long time and have a good rep with the BBB. Yeah, shady mo-fo's are the pond scum of life

 

[akrvbob]

I've bought from sunelec before and they are a good outfit. BUT!!! They are huge and they mostly deal with huge orders so as a little guy you get lost in the shuffle. I've had bad luck dealing with them over the internet.They have an office in Phoenix so we call and place the order and then go and pick it up directly and that has never been a problem.

I just put one of those Sharp panels in the cart and tried to go to checkout and it said they were either out of stock or not available at that quantity. My guess is that price is only by the pallet or truckload. Yes, they sell panels by the truckload!!

Solar is BIG in Arizona and they are the biggest player in a very big pond.

If you want the very best price, they are the ones, but call them and deal person to person, not over the net.
Bob

 

[RogueRV2]

Renology has a 100 watt panel that is $150 to your door. That's only $1.50/watt. Check on Amazon for their panels. Mine works good.

 

[VanLifeCrisis]

Yeah..I've found cheaper but not once shipping gets involved.

My bro in law is pretty tough n savvy guy, some people did scam him when he ran a biz once. He tracked down the specific girl he dealt with to her home address, then google earthed it. When he started telling her real accurate info about her home the guys behind it asked him to back off and sent him a money order for what they ripped him for lol

 

[george warner]

This is for MR. TucsonAZ, Frist you need to do more research ,before you put your mouth in gear... Renogy solar panels are not cheap china made junk... and yes Solar world is a german company . that makes its own solar cells to shipout and to make there own panels . the cells are made in germany by germans . they have a assembly plant in the us that has america empolyees.. There is only 15 companys in the US that make solar CELLS. and only 6 of those make poly or mono. cells the rest make GaAs cells . so all these other name panels are either imported here .or have assembly plants here. Renogy are very good reliable panels had mine for a year now with no problems .and very good customer service... 400 watt kit for $560. and free shipping .. enough said You have a nice day making ice cubes with you household freezer and 24 volt system .....

 

[Fearnoevil]

Renology has a 100 watt panel that is $150 to your door. That's only $1.50/watt. Check on Amazon for their panels. Mine works good.

Not a bad price, but if you check you can find panels for much less per watt, as in $0.85 to $1.00 per watt range. I found a 100 watt panel for like $50 bucks somewhere, but can't remember the url cuz I didn't save the link because they were just too big for their wattage (nearly same size as the 250 w panels I was looking at). They were a heavy duty design built for things like weather monitoring stations and such, which I thought was a plus but I just didn't understand the size thing, unless they were perhaps constructed with an older generation cell, that might explain the big size and low price, idk, maybe someone else has run across these and has the skinny on em.
;?D

 

[TucsonAZ]

What I said:

they are made in China.

What you read:

cheap china made junk...

Have we dated before?

 

[Ken in Anaheim]

I hate to state the obvious...but....you should avoid dealing with a shady solar company !! (Sorry, couldn't stop myself).
KinA

 

[akrvbob]

Fearno evil, you're right the price for the Renology is high, but it includes shipping so it isn't as bad as it sounds.

As you have found out, the big panels (200 watts and over) are much cheaper per watt, but the shipping on them is very, very high. The reason is they are so large they can't go by UPS or FedEx, they have to go by Freight and Freight is MUCH more.

So you have to figure out the price per watt AT YOUR DOOR! Take the cost per panel, add shipping and divide by watts.

You can still probably beat $1.50 per watt, but not by as much as you think.
Bob

 

[Fearnoevil]

Ken, lol, good one ;?D

Bob, thanks for pointing that out, so much to figure out before commiting to buying, good thing I'm still pretty far out from that decision. I'll do my best to factor in all costs before jumping to conclusions (something I'm not very good at, lol) ;?D