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dhaavers Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010 Posts: 7733 Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2021 6:23 pm Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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Interesting...I'll be running the provided PWM controller for the foreseeable future,
so I may start looking for 12AWG options, FWIW... Thanks!
- Dave _________________ 86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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Vanuber Samba Member
Joined: February 16, 2020 Posts: 410 Location: Virginia
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2021 8:30 pm Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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dhaavers wrote: |
I have on order one of the quality panels posted above |
What panel did you go with? _________________ '85 Westfalia 1.9L
'72 BMW R75/5
'71 BMW R75/5
'02 Subaru Forester 2.5L |
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dhaavers Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010 Posts: 7733 Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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Vanuber Samba Member
Joined: February 16, 2020 Posts: 410 Location: Virginia
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2021 8:50 pm Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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Nice! I'd love to hear your review if you have the time and inclination. _________________ '85 Westfalia 1.9L
'72 BMW R75/5
'71 BMW R75/5
'02 Subaru Forester 2.5L |
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dhaavers Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010 Posts: 7733 Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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Posted: Tue Mar 02, 2021 8:55 pm Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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Absolutely! I'll post back here when I have anything worth reporting... 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
- Dave _________________ 86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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dhaavers Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010 Posts: 7733 Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2021 9:03 am Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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Lensun panel arrived, although configured somewhat differently than shown on their website...
I was expecting all Anderson 50A connectors, as pictured:
What I got is MC4 connectors from the panel to the controller:
The MC4's would certainly prevent incorrect connections and better for being absolutely waterproof, but I find them
a pain to connect/disconnect, especially as often as I see necessary for temporary portable use.
Any reason NOT to rewire panel>controller connections to the easier-to-deal-with 50A's?
Anyone with pointers/tips to deal with MC4's in this application...???
Other options? ...Anderson powerpole perhaps? ...or just deal with it?
- Dave
PS: Van remains wintering in the garage so I haven't plugged in solar yet, but I'm pleased to find the supplied
PWM controller includes temp sensor/compensation & Bluetooth capability...nice upgrade! _________________ 86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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fxr Samba Member
Joined: December 07, 2014 Posts: 2300 Location: Bay area CA
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Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2021 9:15 am Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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I snip off the clips on the MC4s I frequently connect/disconnect. As long as there's no tension on the wires to separate them they should be just as waterproof. _________________ Jim Crowther
1984 1.9l EJ22 Westy Wolfsburg Edition
Vespa GTS 300 |
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kamzcab86 Samba Moderator
Joined: July 26, 2008 Posts: 7892 Location: Arizona
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dhaavers Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010 Posts: 7733 Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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Posted: Fri Mar 19, 2021 9:44 am Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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I did pick up an MC4 tool but what I got is slightly different size & not compatible...also one more thing for me to lose...
I like the "snip the clip" idea...thanks!
- Dave _________________ 86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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dhaavers Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010 Posts: 7733 Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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Posted: Wed Apr 14, 2021 4:35 pm Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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Hey gurus...a follow up question: The 15' extension cable supplied by Lensun specs out at 14AWG.
I ditched that when I found a nice price on 10/2 cable & I'll be using this for up to 50' extension.
However, the short (~18") leads hard wired to the panel are still the smaller 14AWG.
Is it worth the time and trouble to replace this short piece with larger gauge cable?
Thanks in advance...camping season is coming!
- Dave _________________ 86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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fxr Samba Member
Joined: December 07, 2014 Posts: 2300 Location: Bay area CA
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Posted: Wed Apr 14, 2021 5:10 pm Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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18" of 14 gauge is fine, bugger-all voltage drop. I use 12 awg speaker cable. Cheap and very flexible. _________________ Jim Crowther
1984 1.9l EJ22 Westy Wolfsburg Edition
Vespa GTS 300 |
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dhaavers Samba Member
Joined: March 19, 2010 Posts: 7733 Location: NE MN (tinyurl.com/dhaaverslocation)
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Posted: Thu Apr 15, 2021 3:28 pm Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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Cool...thanks for the reply. I'll go with what I've got...
I had been shopping for 12ga when a buddy offered a deal on a partial roll of 10AWG
speaker wire left over from an audio install....it's heavy, very flexible and was a great price!
I keep trying to tell you guys, I'm CHEAP!
- Dave _________________ 86 White Wolfsburg Westy Weekender
"The WonderVan"
<EDITED TO PROTECT INNOCENT PIXELS> |
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Vanuber Samba Member
Joined: February 16, 2020 Posts: 410 Location: Virginia
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Posted: Thu Sep 23, 2021 6:41 am Post subject: Re: Portable Solar Panel Recommendations |
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I wanted to give an update on my solar panel search. I ended up buying a Bluetti 120W folding panel - https://www.bluettipower.com/products/120w-solar-panel. It has some nice features that won me over:
- Uses Sunpower solar cells
- Has large gauge, 3-meter cable with MC4 connectors (I am also using 20’ WindyNation 10 AWG extension cables)
- Does NOT have superfluous USB ports etc.
- AND it fits under the bench seat (16”x16.8”)
I had a chance to test it recently and it performed really well. At best, I was getting over 100W from the panel with my Victron MPPT putting out 7.5 amps to the house battery. Results varied based on sun angle, cloud cover, etc., but not too shabby!
_________________ '85 Westfalia 1.9L
'72 BMW R75/5
'71 BMW R75/5
'02 Subaru Forester 2.5L |
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