Solar powered Generators

[Tenring]

Just started looking into getting something for camping and emergency. I have only used gas powered in the past and know nothing about solar/generators. Do anyone have any recommendations, good brands, ones to stay away from? Started looking at this one but no experience with one.

https://www.amazon.com/Jackery-Generator-Explorer-SolarSaga-Emergency/dp/B08P2Q83BY/ref=sr_1_5?crid=3UZWZ3DUXB8XK&dchild=1&keywords=solar+panels+portable&qid=1627784087&sprefix=solar+panels+%2Caps%2C294&sr=8-5

 

[QuietM4]

It all depends on what you want to power.

Simple stuff, like recharging cell phones, lights, laptops...that's easy. One 250w generator along with a 100w solar panel will keep you happy.

How much do you want to spend? $300 will get you a basic batter/solar panel setup for simple stuff. If you want to spend $3000, you can run a refrigerator.

In general, I'd stay away from Goal Zero. Everything they have is proprietary, so you get forced into using all their products, which aren't always the best or most affordable. Their products are well made, but if you buy one of their batteries, you are kind of forced into also getting their solar panels, cables, etc.

I use a Jackery 160 for camping. It's smaller, but I only want it to recharge cell phone, camera batteries, laptop, some camping lights for a 3-5 days. Paired up with a 100w solar panel, and it stays fully charged and ready.

I run 2 Tesla Powerwalls and 8.2kw of solar on my roof, so I don't worry about emergencies.

 

[Tenring]

Thank you for your reply, my current housing situation will not allow me to add exterior panels, so I am limited to portable.

One of the Jackery units seem like a reasonable option, just need to define as you mentioned, what we want to use it for. thanks again

 

[QuietM4]

You can get foldable, easily transportable solar panels. Just lay them out in your backyard/lawn/porch, anywhere you can get full sun, no need to put them on a roof. Without a means to recharge them, they are just very expensive batteries.

 

[javelinadave]

Subscribed

 

[thom]

That is really nice javelinadave. I am marking this for future reference.

 

[xerts1191]

Yes very ingenious

 

[campinginaz]

I know this is an old thread but I just started looking into these. I've also heard the Jackery ones are good. Is there any other brands you guys are using?

I'm thinking of starting out with something portable that can charge the following:

1. Rechargeable batteries AA, AAA and such.

2. Cell phones

3. Handheld radios

4. Power a fan or 2

5. Flashlights

6. Other small electronics

Let me know if you guys have any ideas please.

 

[Epic_Ed]

It's important to consider the battery technology. I'd strongly recommend buying a LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) rather than a regular lithium-ion battery system. The LiFePO4 batteries are lighter and have an 8-10x longer battery life cycle advantage over the lithium-ion batteries. For me, that excludes the entire current Jackery and Goal Zero lineup. I have a Bluetti EB70S and an Anker 757 Powerstation. Both have been excellent for my needs when out camping and could be used in conjunction with the solar panels for longterm offgrid power for a small number of critical devices - like radios, phones, and other comms.

 

[campinginaz]

It's important to consider the battery technology. I'd strongly recommend buying a LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) rather than a regular lithium-ion battery system. The LiFePO4 batteries are lighter and have an 8-10x longer battery life cycle advantage over the lithium-ion batteries. For me, that excludes the entire current Jackery and Goal Zero lineup. I have a Bluetti EB70S and an Anker 757 Powerstation. Both have been excellent for my needs when out camping and could be used in conjunction with the solar panels for longterm offgrid power for a small number of critical devices - like radios, phones, and other comms.

I'll have to look into those. I bought a Jackery on Cyber Monday. It's just a starter one for me. It's a 300 with a 100 watt solar panel. One day I want something that will hold more but this should work for camping and the basic things I want to be able to charge for now. I got it for $419 plus tax (normally $600) and free shipping. I also got $65 off since I had some Amazon gift money from work lol.

For the Bluetti EB70S and an Anker 757 Powerstation can you throw in a link to the solar panels you use for them? I'm pretty new at this, so I got the Jackery cause it was plug and play.

 

[Epic_Ed]

It's important to consider the battery technology. I'd strongly recommend buying a LiFePO4 (lithium iron phosphate) rather than a regular lithium-ion battery system. The LiFePO4 batteries are lighter and have an 8-10x longer battery life cycle advantage over the lithium-ion batteries. For me, that excludes the entire current Jackery and Goal Zero lineup. I have a Bluetti EB70S and an Anker 757 Powerstation. Both have been excellent for my needs when out camping and could be used in conjunction with the solar panels for longterm offgrid power for a small number of critical devices - like radios, phones, and other comms.

I'll have to look into those. I bought a Jackery on Cyber Monday. It's just a starter one for me. It's a 300 with a 100 watt solar panel. One day I want something that will hold more but this should work for camping and the basic things I want to be able to charge for now. I got it for $419 plus tax (normally $600) and free shipping. I also got $65 off since I had some Amazon gift money from work lol.

For the Bluetti EB70S and an Anker 757 Powerstation can you throw in a link to the solar panels you use for them? I'm pretty new at this, so I got the Jackery cause it was plug and play.

I have the Bluetti PV200 solar panels. The DC adapter they use isn't proprietary. Should work with nearly all current solar panels and vice versa.

https://www.bluettipower.com/products/bluetti-pv200-200w-solar-panel

 

[blasternaz]

I recently picked up a Bluetti 70S. Came with a partial charge and several options for charging. I have a 100 watt solar panel for my portable fridge and the panel connectors are standardized. It's the the terminal end that plugs into the device that is subject to the whims of the brand. Looks good, appears to work, just sitting around, staying topped up by what little sun we've had lately.

 

[Abbey]

I bought this 3kW one with 600w of solar when they were running a deal at Costco a couple years ago:

https://lionenergy.com/products/lion-safari-me-standard-kit?variant=39774652104806

Just for fun, I used it to convert my home office to purely run off of solar/battery for a month or so. It really makes you appreciate how much power you use and how much we benefit from modern utilities. But constantly running out to keep moving the panels around to stay in the sun was a bit of a pain so now I mostly just keep it for backup during outages (which is why I bought it to begin with).

The fan is a bit loud when charging when you are indoors and it's sitting right next to your desk. But that wouldn't be a problem for garage or outdoor use. Just a minor annoyance.

Bonus, it has Anderson power poles, so I run my radio stuff directly off of it when I'm messing around with amateur radio.

Nothing magical about "solar generators". It's just a battery. Much like boaters & RV'ers have known for decades, it's just a matter of monitoring & managing your power draw. Figure out what kind of load you need, then size your battery & generation capacity accordingly.

 

[Dauph]

Has anyone tried or know anything about this setup from 4 Patriots?

https://4patriots.com/collections/power-solar/products/super-charged-2-for-1-solar-generator-bundle


From the site

Superior Engineering
Inside your solar generator, there’s a powerful lithium-iron-phosphate battery famous for its stability. You’ll love the reliability and strength of this advanced engineering.
More Power & Storage than Before
Compared to the previous model, your Patriot Power Generator 1800 now has a continuous output of 1,800 watts, with 3,048 peak. And it can hold 768 Wh of power (60 Ah).

 

[Matwell]

I'm currently living completely off grid - solar power (Never used a backup generator until this past week with clouds 4/5 days.
Regardless of a small solar gen or a complete system the rules of battery life are the same.
It really is about power management. The small solar generators are no different. I have a Victron 48v system with (16) 100 amp/hr 12v batteries. With absolutely no sunshine we have 4 days of power if we manage it right.
Creating or removing heat uses the most energy by far. That being said, we currently have an electric clothes dryer, it is the biggest draw we have. Management means doing laundry or turning on the A/C on during the middle of the day. Our panels (3600 watts) generally produce more than we're using at the time, even drying clothes. It's pretty cool, and to be honest pretty simple to build.

When I look at "solar generators" like 4patriots as above, I see a single 60amp/hr battery with 100 watt panel for $3k. A 100 amp/hr Battle Born Lithium Battery, 100 watt solar panel, a small inverter, and solar controller can be done for not much over $1500. Completely Maintenance free! Put it all inside a small battery box and you're set. (Solar panel may not be foldable, but hey). 40% more battery for 1/2 the cost.

And my 0.02, regardless of your route, don't even dream of using any battery type other than Lithium (LiFePO4).

Matt