Solar panel lifespan...

[Fresno_Tundra_D]

So my question is two fold. Do solar panels age/degrade while in storage the same as if they are in constant use? We camp maybe 25-30 days/year and the rest of the time the panels would be inside my dark garage so will they loose the same .5-1%/year efficiency as panels in constant use?
Secondly, I'm looking at the Renogy suitcase(Two 50 watt panels)with 20 amp charger controller and the alligator clips. Do any of you fellow campers have experience with this company or product good or bad? All I'm really hoping to do with this is assist with my two group 27 battery charging needs...

[Johnny_G1]

time2roll wrote:

Johnny G1 wrote:
15 yr. old 120 watt Keyocera,s still putting out the same, 4 of them have been under a carport roof since new and 2 out in all weather, checked 1 on the fw yesterday in the shade, over 17 - 18 volts to check a meter that was going bad, broken cable.

Do you remember what was paid back then for the 480 watts of solar?

Yes I remember quite well, $620.00 a panel and that was in Arizona in 2004.

[time2roll]

Johnny G1 wrote:
15 yr. old 120 watt Keyocera,s still putting out the same, 4 of them have been under a carport roof since new and 2 out in all weather, checked 1 on the fw yesterday in the shade, over 17 - 18 volts to check a meter that was going bad, broken cable.

Do you remember what was paid back then for the 480 watts of solar?

[RambleOnNW]

Have the Renogy 100 watt suitcase. Supplements our generator runs and sometimes don’t need to run the generator. More efficient than flat mounted roof panels with the suitcase tilt and can track the sun. We usually park in the shade so have mc4 long cable extensions to reach the sun.
The best we have seen was 25Ah in a day but that was not optimal conditions. That was enough charge to not run the generator that day since we are not heavy energy users.
Have not used it long enough to notice degradation.

[wa8yxm]

Johnny G1 wrote:
15 yr. old 120 watt Keyocera,s still putting out the same, 4 of them have been under a carport roof since new and 2 out in all weather, checked 1 on the fw yesterday in the shade, over 17 - 18 volts to check a meter that was going bad, broken cable.

Now that.. IS a very useful answer.. I do not (yet) have solar and I really do not have "room" for it (Overweight as it is) so...

But if I ever park for good. I'm going solar. NOt so much for "Green" but.. Well.. the older I get the flakier the power companies are and if I'm going to have to pay for a back up power system... SOLAR.

[Johnny_G1]

15 yr. old 120 watt Keyocera,s still putting out the same, 4 of them have been under a carport roof since new and 2 out in all weather, checked 1 on the fw yesterday in the shade, over 17 - 18 volts to check a meter that was going bad, broken cable.

[Fresno_Tundra_D]

Thank you all for the replies. Several good points were made. I know 100 watts isn’t much but I’m really just looking to offset my daily drawdown. I’ll keep my Honda generator handy but have come to realize I really don’t like running it all that much especially if it's
mostly to charge my batteries. Thanks again...

[time2roll]

I believe solar panels will degrade slower when out of the direct sun.
However by the time it matters the panels will probably be obsolete and new panels half the cost.

[naturist]

Answer depends. Everything degrades just due to time, the entropy of the universe at work and all. I doubt solar panels would degrade as fast in the dark as in sunlight, but know of no studies on that.

For what it is worth, Renogy seems to have a good reputation. But 100 watts is likely going to prove too little for as much battery as the OP has. If he has more battery than he actually uses, it might be plenty. If he routinely draws his batteries down maximally, he’d do better with 400 watts or so.

[CA_Traveler]

I'm not sure it matters since panels like mine have a 25 year performance guarantee and because they will likely be obsolete due to advancing technology.

In 2014 24V panel production ramped up for homes, business, etc and they became half the price of 12V panels with less footprint. My 2014 cost with an expensive MPPT controller was only $100 more than the equivalent 12V panel watts. For me the choice was a no brainer. Since then there are many more lower cost MPPT controllers.

But I'd guess that if your garage isn't destroyed by fire or earthquakes they will last longer especially if you never use them!

The point being 10 years from now current panels will work and be obsolete and statistics indicate I won't be around when my panels are 25 years old.

[2oldman]

I can't directly address the shade v. sun issue. I can tell you I've had one panel 'burn out', that is, develop hot spots in the foil and burn through. I've had another lose about 50% capacity for reasons unknown. This was at about 8 years and 15 years, respectively. BP lived up to its guarantee and replaced panel 1. Just let the other one go. My panels were hardly ever in shade.

100 watts isn't really much solar if you do any serious power use.

[GordonThree]

Fresno Tundra Driver wrote:
So my question is two fold. Do solar panels age/degrade while in storage the same as if they are in constant use? We camp maybe 25-30 days/year and the rest of the time the panels would be inside my dark garage so will they loose the same .5-1%/year efficiency as panels in constant use?
Secondly, I'm looking at the Renogy suitcase(Two 50 watt panels)with 20 amp charger controller and the alligator clips. Do any of you fellow campers have experience with this company or product good or bad? All I'm really hoping to do with this is assist with my two group 27 battery charging needs...

Depends on the construction.

The semiconductors won't degrade in storage, since they're not being bombarded with radiation.

Some of the plasticy materials may yellow or fog, with or without sun. I have a 10w panel stored in my back shed, out of the sun, been there for years. I notice the plastic is yellowing already, and becoming less clear. I also have a much older mostly glass and metal panel, 5 watt, and it looks brand new.

[Sandia_Man]

We have solar panels on our RV roof but we did purchase a Renogy 100 watt suitcase 5 years ago as we often find ourselves in shaded sites. Our Renogy solar suitcase is solidly built and has endured all kinds of extreme weather over the years, although the original controller gave up the ghost during a monsoonal downpour a couple of summers back. It was not water proof, went to their website and purchased another controller from Renogy with water resistance capabilities.

Can not comment on solar panel efficiency degradation while in use versus stored, we use our Renogy solar suitcase sporadically as well, have not noticed much deviation in panel performance as it pertains to output voltage or amperage. Does a great job supplementing our rooftop solar, or all by itself as we can track the sun all day for maximum efficiency. Lent solar suitcase out to a few friends and family members, they were impressed and have since purchased their own.

[Lwiddis]

Portable solar...set them up every morning. My roof mounted panels are already working. Move them as necessary and watch for theft. Take them in for lunch in town. Mine keep working. Return from lunch and set up panels again. Move them as necessary and watch for theft. Sundown, store panels. Repeat tomorrow and all that for two, three times the cost of roof mounted panels.