WHAT PORTABLE BRAND DO YOU USE? GOOD//BAD & UGLY TRUTH

[JuanKnucklehead]

This is a question asked everyday,,1000x everyday,,Answered 1000x different everyday "WHAT KIND OF SOLAR DO I NEED?? HOW MANY xx WILL IT CHARGE MY PHONE/C-CPAP MACHINE/CAN I RUN MY LAWNMOWER WITH 100w??" People go looking with these questions,,3 weeks later I still havent made up my mind what I am going to buy??? 

THEN YOU GOTTA KNOW???
Is it a true "Dweller" doing the review??? or a Backroom scientist using his "VOLT-O-METER 12.000"??? and giving the scientific data as to why unit 1 charges a 1/2hr slower than unit 2 but unit 3 blows everyone away,,,,,If you dont know who is reviewing??? well??? yall get the picture

If you do what 99% of us do, We go to Youtube, Thats no help (see above paragraph) 1000 diff answers from 1000 diff people leaving you more confused than ever before. Just when you think you have made up your mind and set to buy it BLAMMO you learn you better have 27 days of sun to get a full charge (its why it was $99.99) This one over here is AWESOME but the assholes wont let you use others solar panel brands,,,,Leaving the consumer more and more frustrated & when he/she does drop the $2-3-400 and buys it, In their mind they are still going "damn i sure hope I didnt throw my money away??????? 


SO LETS TRY THIS WAY,,,,


If you have a portable Solar Unit??  Tell us about it, Amp/Wh,,How long on a good day does it take to charge? What sux about it,,,would you buy another, if not what would you buy now that you know more.

My angle is (after the wall o words above, lol)  How about some real world users tell us about their units???

 

[highdesertranger]

it really doesn't matter what some one else has, because it might work for you or might not. here's is what you need to do,

1. figure out your daily usage.
2. size your battery(s) according to #1
3. size your solar according to #2

we would be happy to help you along with this so lets start by getting some hard numbers on daily usage.

highdesertranger

 

[JuanKnucklehead]

I have pretty much made up my mind on what i am buying and will post below (although will gladly listen to input about/on something better) 
Thats why i am trying to kinda more go with the angle, Once a person has figured the size and needs out,,NOW,,, People that own portable units tell us what you have,,size and what you like and dont like with your particular brand/model,,,
EXAMPLE,,,,A person has decided he needs 250-300w, Now he is standing there with $500,,Does he buy a more expencive and trusted brand unit and pray he can buy panels,,or go with a lesser known brand, but for sure you can still afford panels (this is where a owner of a cheaper unit can chime in and say yey or nay) 
Basically what I am saying, A person has decided what power he/she needs, Now lets go buy a unit,,,looks around, gets bombarded with "BUY ME NOT THEM" and quickly becomes overwhelmed, Buys something 25% under regular market price from amazon,, and finds out why 3mo later when it quits charging (damn it son, it had good reviews on Amazon) If he had read this thread b4 buying Joe So and So said, he had that one and it sucked monkey balls,,,
I hope this wall of words makes sense cuz now my finger hurts,,lol
.
What I am considering buying??? All math done. Approx a 150w unit would do me fine with extra, That in mind, I would buy a 250w unit so I have enough for that inevitable week of rain & clouds, Most of the time I will be able to keep charged somewhere & i can plug in or 12v driving (but not driving a lot so.....) But when i do have to use the panels, i dont want to sit there all day guarding from thieves (& I cant afford a German Sheppard) So the most important thing to me is CHARGE TIME, 2 days good sun and still only 1/2 charged, the $150.99 deal i thought i was getting was sh*t for me now. 
Well after 3 weeks of looking on my own,,I am going with the new Jackery 300, I know I can only use Jackery panels, But the charge time is amazing, ill will do that trade,,,,AND,,,,They are a Calif based company with impeccable customer service, Buy direct from them and cut all of the middleman out,,,I think its the perfect unit for me, But genuinely open to suggestions,,,
I hope this giant wall of words makes sens, I know I am long winded, I apologies 


[font=Helvetica,]Jackery Explorer 300 Portable Power Station[/font]
[font=Helvetica,]Regular price$ 349.991 review[/font]

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[font=Helvetica,]Description
[size=small][font=Helvetica,]The Jackery Explorer 300 is the ideal power station for short camping trips and power outages because it's compact size and functionality. With 293Wh power capacity, it is capable of powering small appliances and charging up to six smart devices at once.[/font][/font][/size]

• 4.5 Hours to Full Recharge: With 90W charger, Explorer 300 can be charged to 80% in only 4 hours. Also, you can recharge Explorer 300 via a solar panel, car or a generator.
  
• Updated Multifunctional Outputs: 2*AC outputs(300W/peak 500W), 60W PD USB-C, QC3.0 USB-A, USB port & 12V car port. They can definitely meet your demand for different devices and save time for charging.
  
• Professional MPPT technology provides faster solar recharge rates. The Explorer 300 can be quickly recharged from the sun in 5.5 hours with SolarSaga 100W solar panel.
  
• Portable and Durable: With its user-friendly design, small size, and durable handle, the Explorer 300 portable power station is lightweight, stylish, and carry-friendly.
  
• Reliable and Safe Power: With clean lithium-ion technology, Explorer 300 is safe and eco-friendly. Battery Management System (BMS) and pure sine wave inverter protect your sensitive devices from damage.

 

[RVTravel]

Jackery has a pretty good reputation. Look for pricing at $1 per watt hour.

 

[Steveb.]

Hi Juan...yes I get what you are saying in your first post. I've been an electro-mechanical tech since the 80's and I get why the whole solar thing is confusing.....because it is technical, and the amps/volts/watts terms are used interchangeably, often improperly and out of context. I was confused when I first got into it less than a year ago. The average person does not want to spend a year learning basic electronics so that they can build a system that they will use for the next 10 years, in the same way that they don't want to learn the mechanical world so that they can decide on which van is best or how to install a fantastic fan. They just want the bottom line so that they can quickly get it over with, forget it all, and move on to enjoying living. So no matter how much technical data you throw at people, in the end, they'll copy what someone else has.

I bought the Titan system from Point Zero Energy with 500W of flex panels....to go into my Ford econoline.
I generally only need 3 of the 5 panels to charge it up daily. I attach the panels to the side of my van with magnets.
I only use electric cooking. I only use electric heat. I only use electric lighting. I want to be able to park in the shade and still be able to charge with panels. I can carry my generator into a store, or a shop, or a motel, and charge it from the wall.
I want to be able to go for days or a week without having to charge at all. I want to run a 12V. fridge 24/7.
I don't want to have to drill any holes in my van or waste space with an electrical closet.

But to answer your questions.....So far I love it, and yes I'd do it again. I have 2000w available but I'm not going to push my system to the extremes so that is not a realistic number for me. I don't care about watts or amps or volts.....I only care about percentage of battery usage.
I'm never going to drain the system below 25%. When I run a fridge or heater or instant pot I'm only concerned with how much percentage it uses and when and how am I going to recharge to get back up to ~80% or more.

So to be able to accomplish my needs, and maybe not be able to recharge for 3 days, and most importantly--not have to worry ever, I went with an overkill system and went with the Titan.

 

[RvNaut]

We go to Youtube,

This guy... knows what he is doing and is an excellent guide to all you need to know.. he has many videos for beginners and for building various solar systems.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoj6RxIAQq8kmJme-5dnN0Q

 

[Sofisintown]

I'm really not qualified to answer you as I don't live in the van yet, but I know I will use as much power as I can get my hands on, and after I'm under way, it will be hard to make changes.
So I got me a Bluetti AC 200 and 4x 100 watt poly Rich Solar panels to feed it.
Panels on the roof, Bluetti inside.
I might get a 100 ah battery for backup.
I will run Fridge, lights, chargers, computer. Even a cooktop if I figure later that I have enough juice for that.
BTW I bought the bluetti when it was cheaper, before the price went up.
https://www.bluetti.com/products/bluetti-ac200

https://www.ebay.com/itm/RICH-SOLAR...olar-Panel-12V-Battery-Charger-/143055916715?

 

[JuanKnucklehead]

you are absolutley qualified to post here,,for 2 reasons..although not tested, you have said what you have and intentions, that means someone else may come along and see they have the same thing as you, and send you some tips or tell you what to watch for when/if troubleshooting. and 2, now we know what you have and you can update us on how it is working out for you, so others can decide if this is what they need.
This is exactly why i made this thread, So people that own units can tell others about their units and whether its working as expected or warn others it is junk,,,thank you for taking time to contribute

 

[JuanKnucklehead]

This guy... knows what he is doing and is an excellent guide to all you need to know.. he has many videos for beginners and for building various solar systems.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoj6RxIAQq8kmJme-5dnN0Q

yes, i have watched his videos,,,,,great for tech and that is 3/4 of it,,and first thing a person would look for. This is the guy that made me go "what, they charge at diff speeds?" This is also the guy, by the time he got done with one, I was going "what did he say about the other one?" Then the confusion kindling pile starts, lol... But the 25% left over is real world, Will the battery freak out and die if "set" just a little too hard a few times? are the panels road worthy or dont even go there, buy this brand battery and these solar panels, 
thank you for your suggestion

 

[highdesertranger]

a word on portable panels. unless you are into baby sitting solar panels, portables aren't all that great. you must point them at sun every couple hours actually more often if you want to get the most out of them. this means you aren't going anywhere you must stay right there and move your panels all day. this got real old for me and eventually I just laid them flat. at that point you just as well have them mounted flat to your roof. it is much more convenient not having to think about them. highdesertranger

 

[WanderingRose]

I couldn’t justify the expense of putting solar panels on my roof, nor did I want to park in full sun so that I could use them, so went with a 100watt Renogy suitcase, which I have liked very much.

I have a 6’ extension cord, which is invaluable.

I don’t use a huge amount of power, so a few hours every other day recharged my coach battery in full.

 

[JuanKnucklehead]

I went and looked at that, Seems like a really nice option,,You still need to supply your own battery tho, right??

 

[user 423]

My conversion van with mid-high top had a 2'x4' luggage rack already attached at the back of the roof so it was pretty easy to mount a panel there. The curved fiberglass top made it more difficult to mount more panels, so I bought a Renogy 80 watt which I use as a portable.

Usually it sits on top of the large cargo box that I haul on the back of the van and it's pretty easy to periodically tilt the panel to catch more rays. Sometimes when parked in shade I will set it out farther from the van with a 10' cord. 25' would be even better.

One thing about mounting panels on the roof is that you create your own shade. If I could more easily do that with my van, I would definitely add more panels and cover that sucker up.

 

[JuanKnucklehead]

See,,Now I kow to buy a extra cord,,,But somebody just scrolling along might had just been scrolling along and caught this little bit of info & went, "Damn, I never thought of buying more cord",,,,,,,,,slow2day, you might just save someones ass

 

[WanderingRose]

You do have to have your own battery, Juan.

I have an older ClassB, so the solar panel is attached directly to its coach battery.

It may not be perfect, but I like it and it works for me.

If you aren’t going to have a coach battery, there are solar gizmos out there that would provide power for your phone, laptop, etc.

I don’t have them, so can’t advise, but I know others use them.

 

[WanderingRose]

I have a 6’ extension cord, and bought that length because I was told the longer that extension cord the more draw down the cord itself took.

 

[bullfrog]

Direct Current does not like to travel any distance or through skinny wire. Get the thicker gauge extension cord no longer than you will actually need to get the most out of a solar panel.