Solar panel?

bear100

Member
So the time has come to look into solar panels.

As time goes by I find myself with more electronic gadgets and to be honest I like it, so the demand for more power is ever increasing, when I say more I mean longer lasting.

In my Defender I have a yellow and red top Optimas which work really well, but on extended stays I’m running out of juice, with the fridge, lights etc. Which is why I’m here asking about solar panels.
I have googled a fair bit and have come to the assumption I need a folding type set up one I saw which I liked was a Bugout 130.

what do you use and why?
 

Hilldweller

SE Expedition Society
We camp in a teardrop and like to park it in the shade --- so hard-mounting didn't work for us.
I've got a 100w suitcase with a few different length extension cords.
Keeps the two group 27 AGM batteries pretty happy. Running a fridge, lights, Fantastic Fan. In the winter add a 12v electric blanket to that.
 

Dgrenon

New member
I’ve got the bugout 130 from Overland Solar. I’m really impressed. It folds up neatly and I deploy it across my windshield to charge my Dometic plb40, connected to my fridge. I haven’t measured specific inputs but it keeps me topped up easily. One of the selling points for me was the ability to move it from vehicle to vehicle as well as be able to move it around to keep it in the sun.
 

Alloy

Well-known member
I put together a set up for a buddy of mine a couple of weeks ago for a single solar panel and a 50' power cord.

He was parked in the trees and ended up trying the panel in 3-4 places. It ended up on the roof of the trailer tilted but turned 45 degrees to the trailer. He needed to get some help to put 300w panel up/down from the roof.

The panel kept the batteries in absorption but never got into float. For the conditions he could have used another panel.
 

Herbie

Rendezvous Conspirator
I went with a "hybrid" solution - I have a rigid panel mounted on the roof of the van, but it's mounted in a locking frame so that I can pull it out and deploy it on an extension cord if I am parked in the sun (or forced to park such that the sun-angle doesn't play well with the angle of the pop-top - i.e. nose facing south).

I have a 100w Renogy "Slim" panel - it's been good to us, but size-wise is about as big as I would feel comfortable trying to use in this way with being able to remove it from the frame. Any bigger and it would be unwieldy. If I needed more power, I'd get a suitcase-type folding arrangement to supplement, assuming I could find a safe place to transport it. (Our rig is small and space is at a premium.)

The soft and folding panels are great from a size/weight/stowability perspective, but they all seem to suffer eventual failures or loss of efficiency over time. Maybe worth it for the space/weight if you can justify replacement as a "wear" item.
 

Rbertalotto

Explorer
I have three 140w panels on the top of my toy hauler. Recently bought a 120w folding portable panel with a 25' cord I made up. By being able to angle this portable panel to the sun and place it in a better position to capture sunlight, it will produce as many and sometimes much more charging amps than the much larger roof system.
 

dreadlocks

Well-known member
I use a fixed 325W panel on the roof, and a portable 325W panel mounted to the side that can swing out or be dismounted and moved to the sun.. for 650W total w/a 100AH LFP
IMG_20190602_193407 (1).jpgIMG_20200701_192007 (1).jpg

Got a spool of marine tinned wire for remote paneling:
IMG_20190514_193629 (3).jpg
 

rruff

Explorer
Fixed on the roof, as much as you can fit. Set and forget.

I don't like it on the roof... or anything on the roof. Too many trails have low hanging branches.

I wonder why more people don't use the hood...

For the OP a deployable is probably the way to go. The good ones that last have a glass cover but are kinda heavy. The light ones will maybe last a few years.

One thing to note is that high voltage will reduce the size of wire you need for a remote panel. You can wire the panel(s) for 24V+ and use an MPPT controller to charge your 12v batteries.
 

dreadlocks

Well-known member
There is absolutely zero point in fix mounting a panel anywhere it gets shaded by the thing its mounted on.. so naturally the roof is one of the better locations, as long as other crap on the roof dont shade it.. if your aircon/spare tire/power vents or any of that are higher than your panel then might as well make it portable.

My fixed panel has taken a ton of branch impacts and is fine, they are more durable than you give em credit for.. they designed to survive hurricanes and concussion sized hail.. anything big enough to take out the solar panel is big enough to otherwise damage the roof so those things gotta be taken down one way or another. Having em on the roof is super nice when on the go, Ive had a crock pot running in the trailer and showed up at camp with a full battery and a cooked dinner, my tow vehicle does almost nothing for charging.

Hybrid solution with both fixed and portable is really the best of both worlds, fixed always gives you power from in transit, in storage, long term parking if you go on foot/bike, etc.. and portable lets you chase the sun around when you dont wanna or cant park in the sun.
 
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