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mlts22's avatar
mlts22
Explorer
Mar 23, 2016

Roll-up solar panels?

At the festival I volunteer for, one person has three roll-up solar panels, about 18 inches in width, about 10-15 feet long. They are staked into the ground.

Even though because they are not angled, there is loss, because of the square footage taken up, I would guess there would be 150-250 watts of solar coming in.

Anyone know of a good roll-up brand of solar panels, as next season, this is something I plan to do. I can use a charge controller and have this charge my current TT's batteries on weekdays, or if/when I move to a class "B" and a cargo trailer, use it with a battery box and inverter for a low-wattage power source.
  • Almot's avatar
    Almot
    Explorer III
    EsoxLucius wrote:
    Put rigid solar panels on top of your TT and cargo trailer.

    I think he doesn't want to put it on TT because will be moving to Class B.

    Get a rigid panel and make it portable for now. Lean it against the trailer wall or prop with a chair. After you've moved to Class B, you'll mount it permanent on the roof. 120W or 140W, with 15A controller. With this size you'll find a room for it on the roof of Class B.
  • Almot's avatar
    Almot
    Explorer III
    mlts22 wrote:
    10-15 feet long. They are staked into the ground.

    Even though because they are not angled, there is loss, because of the square footage taken up, I would guess there would be 150-250 watts of solar coming in.

    At this length I would say it's more like 150W "nominal". Not "coming in". Low watts per sq.ft.
    mlts22 wrote:

    Anyone know of a good roll-up brand of solar panels

    No, unless criteria of "good" don't include good efficiency in W/sq.ft.

    They are amorphous panels without glass cover. Don't know about Reno-gi. Unisolar was a major player and got out of this business, so you can get good deals on those. Keep in mind that with 24V panel you need either MPPT controller or 24V battery bank.
  • I picked up a 145W Unisolar from Ebay, a tear off from some ones roof for $65. I found these which are also used but a more real world price. If they have the glue still on, I used alcohol and tinfoil to keep it from evaporating.

    Unisolar
  • Unisolar used to make them but they went out of business long ago. You may still be able to find some on the used market. They are often called solar laminates.
  • These have been pretty much discontinued but I believe Renorgy has a flexable panel. You will need to use caution here as in the past the panels had a lot of problems.

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