Renogy 220W - Portable Solar Panel Review -
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- Опубликовано: 27 июн 2024
- Today we're checking out the 220W portable solar panels from Renogy. These panels are incredibly rugged/durable; something that's usually missing from most "suitcase" style portable panels. Join us as we talk about the specs and applications of these panels as well as a compare them to other popular panels on the market.
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Renogy 220W Portable Solar Suitcase- amzn.to/3VRkrm7
Renogy 220W Compact w/Charge Controller for RV- amzn.to/3RvWBJJ
Power Station Connectors/Adapters-
Renogy MC4 extension- amzn.to/4cunVQC
EcoFlow XT60i- amzn.to/4bdxouE
Jackery/GoalZero etc- amzn.to/4evvN6i
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#renogy #solar #rvsolar #solarpanels #hikertrailer #squaredroptrailer #teardroptrailer #teardropcamper #tinycamper #bushwhacker #freesolo #braxtoncreek #overlanding #camping
I’m going camping next week at Bass Lake California and I’ve been scouring your old videos just as a refresher. Your videos are always informative and basic so I can understand. Thanks for all you do.
Thank you, that's really nice to hear and I appreciate you watching the content!
Brian! You have such a gift for delivering content easily for folks to understand! I do not currently have a solar system but am in the market and your videos have helped me understand this ‘new to me’ world. Would be grateful for a recommendation on a simple panel that can be left outdoors during all weather (I’m in Canada) that would keep my 12v deep cycle trailer battery topped up year round (trailer sitting on bare acreage for recreation)… that’s my first step. Next will be a ‘gizmo’ to charge some cell phones, iPad, etc. Thanks for all you contribute! Best videos around hands down!
Thank you, Dianne. I really appreciate the kind words and encouragement. It means a lot to know that people are getting something from the videos.
I'm gonna post a link to kit that I recommend in your situation.
It's waterproof for being left outside, set up with all the components you need, big enough to charge fast and keep up with your system, even in the future, and priced well. I also went with this brand because you can get it in Canada and they don't charge you 10 times as much. Let me know if this works, or you wanna start with something smaller. I think this is a good size.
amzn.to/4eHtey4
🤣😂 I literally spit my coffee out, all over my iPhone when I watched this: 10:21 - 10:35. You should make that one of your channel's video shorts and call it something like, "The 22v Limit Question - To plug it in or not to plug it in?"
Haha... send it 🤣
I am not sure if it’s your presentation or maybe I just understand you better then other ytubers But I learn more and better information from you Brian. Thank you for a great simple to understand review video
I appreciate that more than you know. It's very motivating to keep making more content, thank you!
The first solar panels I bought were a suitcase style portable, and I still use it to chase that moving 10 square feet of sun hitting the ground around the camper. Well worth the investment.
I know that game very well, the slightest movement goes from 50 W to 80 W!! lol
@@DIYOutdoorLife - dumb question, but are there any little gadgets you can use that help you position (tilt degree wise) your panels based on where the sun is?
@@Jeffrey.1978 there's this device-
amzn.to/3xtTDih
It's funny that you ask, I was just talking about this in a video I was recording today . I just hold a soda can or a Pringles can on top of the panel, you move it until the shadow disappears and you're good!
Hybrid Portable Panel (HPP) - you heard it here first folks!!
Haha... we'll see if I get my royalties
7:49 Imagine a world where the solar panel and portable power station industries finally agree on a universal connector standard! I pray for that day!
Hahaha... don't hold your breath
I am combining MCT to SAE as i did not feel like making custom cables. I was unable to find a cable that offered a MCT connection in the length and size i wanted. From what i gather SAE is good for pack up and go setups, nothing permanent because the connections can corrode. I did Find the SAE 10awg connector could handle 25 amps fine, we are talking just connectors not wire length. I have four SAE connectors setup to charge from my generator with four chargers in parallel when i have no sun. The chargers can be set from 15/25/35 amps, The 35 amp setting was creating too much heat on one of the connectors so i fast charge them at 25ax4=100amps. 800ah LifePO4 Battery's, I use a laser heat sensor to detect thermal issues, HIGHLY recommended.
In my early solar experiments years ago, I was using power poles. Why? I make my own cables, and I can never remember which MC4 connector is positive and which is negative. With powerpoles, the minute you identify the + output, you can crimp a red powerpole on it. These were panels that came with ring terminals. And then when I was installing an MC4 cable gland, I had to verify, by crawling in the camper, which connector was + and which - before making an extension cord.
@@major__kong power poles are the way to go!
@@DIYOutdoorLife For small arrays. Once you get above 48V, it gets painful. The powerpole is open at the back, so you can imagine voltage leaking there if it gets wet. When it's not plugged in, it's easy to touch the front. The MC4 connector is probably more appropriate for safety above 48V.
Love how that door swings right open. Must be camping with a ghost.
Haha... I noticed that ... scary!
I have two of these i hook up to a splitter/combiner with 10awg wire. Very Handy, The brand i have is a bit different but same design. Mine just has big nice carry handles for when its folded. The Y-connection is right at the Victron Solar controller, Two 20ft 10awg lines run from both panels. Some panels try and get you to combine the panels right at the panel location but if you do that the single wire running back to your controller will be overloaded. So to avoid a fire hazard its best to have your combiner right at the Solar controller and run your panel lines separately. Most people are impressed with my setup.
FYI Furion solar ready do have like a 5-10amp charge controllers in the camper. Very Very basic and cheap, Never used mine.
That's always a great way to set things up. DC voltage drop is a real thing, you want to make sure that you're using the proper size wires or running duplicate wires like you did. 10 AWG will carry 30A without heating up, but it's always more efficient to add some more copper like you did!
Thanks for tuning in !
@@DIYOutdoorLife I found the SAE connectors don't like 35amps, which is a setting on my generator charger. I used a Laser Heat sensor to identify any thermal issues. My setup is 100% custom 800ah lifePO4. setting 25 amps is fine so that is what i limit the current to for those connectors. I know they are not the best but they are good for quick setups and pick ups. The 10 awg wire is limited by the SAE connector for sure but i generator charge in parallel anyway. So that's 4x25amp=100amps, Not going to shake a stick at that. Don't worry each charger gets fed into a bus bar on its own isolated line.
When I bought my Bluetti AC200Max, they included a 200W briefcase style portable panel. It is handy, and doesn't take up a lot of space, but I can see from this video, that it is kind of lacking in durability features, as well as not having handles, nor kickstands. Those look like great features to have on a portable, excuse me, Hybrid Panel! One more add-on to the collection of solar fun- always good to have some extra power!
Be careful, solar panels become addictive... lol pretty soon you have to start doing modifications to carry them all
Hah, or have a yard sale to move some of the excess! 😏
Nice shirt!!
You know it, I'm getting excited!
I just purchased the Renogy 400W suitcase array and it came on Monday. Its HUGE but 400W of solar should charge my battery bank up in less than 3 hours with full sun light. Waiting on an SAE cable from Amazon as I didn't have one on hand but I'm excited to add more solar to the system as the 100W rooftop panel just wasn't doing it during cloudy days.
What size charge controller are you running? Are you combining the 400 with the rooftop or using a separate charge controller?
Thank you for watching!
I have to catch up on your videos. Work has kept me very busy. And I've been ignoring my other channel, too, with project videos.
Those small panels on the top of the camper, I would consider those to be a glorified battery maintainer. At 100W, the largest battery it will charge in 1 day is a 50Ah battery. And that's if everything is perfect. I carry at least 100Ah and sometimes 200Ah.
I prefer the soft suitcase/briefcase panels because they're thinner. Space is always at a premium. I can find more places to pack them.
By the way, I have one more little electric project for my camper, then I'm ready to cut a video. Or maybe I'll cut it this weekend and do that as a follow-up. It will have my solar setup in it. When it gets posted, the channel is Little Miami Fab.
I'm glad to hear you're putting out more electrical content, it'll be fun to tune in! Good job with the channel.
The 100 CIGS as a fixed panel has been doing a great job. I've been banking 300 to 400wh a day with it. It's not always oriented perfectly, based on my campsite setup, but that's more WH than I use in an average day. On days that I use the inverter or higher current/longer duration DC items at camp, deploying some portable panels keeps me topped. as you know, one of the goals when building your system is autonomy time, I'm up to ~7 to 10 days without any solar/average loads... makes everything else easy.
Good to hear from you and glad to hear you're making content, thank you as always !
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but on his channel Jasonoid, when he reviewed the 400W version of this solar panel, used the term "hybrid." His review was released April 12th. He did not, however, mention anything about trademarking the term 😄I continue to struggle with the idea of buying something like this as opposed to buying two 100W flexible panels, hooking them up in series, and just propping them up with rocks or logs or something. The relatively new Arch panels from BougeRV look well suited for this kind of application (3.8 lbs.), as do the ShadeStoppers. But for now I have enough solar for my needs; can't just throw bucks at every sexy solar panel that passes by.
I said it three years ago in this video!!! LoL I'll have my lawyers call Jason.
RV Solar 101 : Everything a Beginner Needs to Know !
ruclips.net/video/sG6bErD3ZFA/видео.html
Propping on logs or rocks is a good idea, I'm always surprised how fast you can kill grass when you lay the panels flat. Every year around the solstice, I just start laying my panels flat on the ground. When it's time to leave, like this morning, burn marks all over the ground like a UFO landed... lol
@@DIYOutdoorLife Ya got me there, pal! 🤣
@@DIYOutdoorLife Funny you should mention this. I just took off two 100W flexible panels from my shed roof that I've had permanently installed up there for about three years now because I noticed this spring they didn't seem to be producing power. I checked them with a voltmeter and zero watts. So I laid them on the grass thinking they wouldn't burn the grass. Wrong - two burn marks. It begs the question: why would two panels producing zero watts still leave a burn mark on the grass? And while I'm at it, do you know of any way to recycle solar panels?
@@twloughlin oh boy, hot without a output is not a good thing... lol
I'm tempted to pin this comment because you encountered something that I've seen many many times. When you leave the flexible panels out, they go bad quickly. I don't think this information is readily disseminated.
As for recycling, don't get me going, this thread will go on forever ...
Solar panels are easy to recycle, they separate the materials and they can actually harvest a lot of valuable raw items from them. The industry is so far behind here. my county transfer station has a place that will take them for free. Some solar installers will take them as well. If you do a little homework, there's some companies that will pay you for them. , It is annoying, and unnecessarily cumbersome.... I hope it gets better
Thanks Bryan. Good one to consider when I’m ready to purchase one. Question: the solar ready sticker on the side of my R-Pod says 20 A. Do I have to stick to a 20A controller or can I go with a 30 or 40 A controller?
Don't go above 20a if using it. They are likely indicating that their wire size is 12 AWG or smaller. I would recommend not using it anyway, you could easily just get to the battery and do a better job. Then you could use whatever size you want.
It's Solar-palooza!
Gotta talk about solar near the solstice!
Thanks so much for your help! I was thinking something small that already had a built in controller and could be left unattended on the property year round. Is there such a thing? Lol
Hi Dianne- heres my response on your other comment
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Heres a link to kit that I recommend in your situation.
It's waterproof for being left outside, set up with all the components you need, big enough to charge fast and keep up with your system, even in the future, and priced well. I also went with this brand because you can get it in Canada and they don't charge you 10 times as much. Let me know if this works, or you wanna start with something smaller. I think this is a good size.
amzn.to/4eHtey4
Thanks so much for all your help! I wasn’t sure I needed this large a system to just charge that 12v battery because I also eventually want to get a portable charging system like the Jackery 1000v2😊
Keep the content coming Brian … you are truely helping tons of folks understand stuff that would otherwise be pretty complicated😂
@@diannecampbell3257.200 W is still pretty modest, but it's enough to charge even when conditions aren't perfect. The nice part about it is you can use the same system to charge a portable power station. if you end up getting a power station, let me know and I'll show you how to do it
Thanks again Brian! I will take you up on your generous offer! Beyond an incredible wealth of info you are and such a great help to humanity! Great job!
Quick question. If you have a Goal Zero yeti or a jackery and I am using a renogy solar setup with a charge controller, do I need to cut out the solar panels charge controller since the power pack have them built in? Thanks
Yes, you cannot run through two charge controllers. For use with a PPS, cut right into the solar before it goes through the charge controller and it will work great.
So if a small trailer already has a 200 watt solar system on if from the factory, and you plug this one to the same battery, the two independent systems won't fight over (so to speak) which one is charging the battery? The two charge controllers talk to each other and get along? lol
That is correct. Sometimes we do systems that have as many as five solar charge controllers! I have two on my camper right now, highly recommended.
@@DIYOutdoorLife Thank you. I am buying this 220 watt system today!. :)
I would say it isn't too much of a concern if you are using charge controllers from the same manufacturer. If one is putting out higher voltage than the other, like you might get from different products from different manufacturers, the one putting out lower voltage may not feed the system any current. Why? Because that's how higher and lower voltages work. It gets complicated because the wire runs will drop voltage, too, depending on how much current is in them. Because of the voltage drop over wires, a charge controller should put out at least some current. If the controllers are "talking to each other", it's through the voltages they see at their respective outputs. I had a two-controller setup going this past weekend in my driveway to test a new setup. One set was much further away from the battery than the other. Both sets of panels were cranking out 150W. I was using the Victron 75/15 MPPT solar charge controller for both. YMMV. Edit: I would expect each charge controller, at least the good ones, to increase their output voltage to achieve whatever power it thinks it needs to output. So I don't think you'll ever see the high-low voltage problem. However, there could be some weird dynamics where they are "fighting" each other in increasing battles of voltage. I don't think that would happen since resistance in the system acts like a damper, and the charge controllers, at least the good ones, tend to have smart algorithms.
Great info thanks
Appreciate it, thanks for watching the channel!
Keep em coming.
Do you have a suggested controller to connect my EcoFlow 110w panel to my Go Power! solar port ready 2023 Forest River Flagstaff T12RBST for when we're in a camping spot that blocks our OEM 100w glass rooftop solar panel?
If you can store/use in a waterproof location, a MPPT is the way to go. If you charge control is gonna be left outside and might get rained on, you're better off going with a waterproof PWM.
Anything between 10 and 20 amp will work for your situation .
Let me know exactly how you want to install it and I can see if I can point you in the right direction .
I preface with we're weekend warrior campers on the dry California Central Coast. We avoid camping in the rain like the plague. We'll cancel reservation to avoid camping in the rain. Not our thing, anymore.
Looking for your BRAND name suggestions for:
1) Connect Ecoflow 110w folding solar panels with OEM MC4 connectors (that we can extend with our MC4 extensions) to a 10amp controller (either type will suffice, moderate price and expected longevity preferred). Your suggested/trusted brand name and model # is the request.
2) A connecting cable BRAND NAME and model # to connect the suggested controller to our TT via its OEM Go Solar! solar port.
Sorry if I'm not using the correct vernacular or putting things in linear verbiage. This is why I haven't resolved this issue in over a year of ownership. 🤷🏽♂️
@@CC_Marauder this controller is dynamite, keep it dry though
amzn.to/4bg7t5H
@@CC_Marauder this is a good wire that you could use for your solar on the side. You're going to have to do a little bit to set it up properly though.
Unfortunately, they don't make the perfect plug for this affordably . You're going to want to check the polarity on your camp SAE, use the proper side of this cord, cut the other end off and wire into your MPPT.
If you need help, let me know, happy to provide assistance
amzn.to/3S0laiz
You are indeed very generous with your efforts to assist.
I'm just not DIY savvy enough to get all of this to see it through to fruition. Thats entirely on me.
Thanks again for your personalized effort(s).