Flexible roll-out 136w Solar Cell Deal

[Boatycall]

Saw this on Amazon.. Killer deal on a flexible, frameless solar panel. Literally peel and stick. Controller not included, you need a good MPPT controller to drop the voltage and up the amperage. At 24 volts they would only output ~ 5amps, but an MPPT will convert that to ~10amps@12v (in ideal conditions).

The catch - look at the dimensions. But I'm considering getting them because I can easily stick them to the roof of my car trailer in my sig.

Amazon Solar Clearance

[CptnBG]

I was interested at first but, not enough real estate om my roof and not for portable use so...I'm out.

Thanks to the OP though. I can see the panels useful for travel or cargo trailers.

[Bedlam]

These peel and stick panels have my attention. Any suggestions on a MPPT controller? Would it be better to connect two of these in series to minimize power loss and let the controller convert a potential 48VDC to 12VDC?

[sleepy]

joeshmoe wrote:

sleepy wrote:
A very interesting thread...

My Lance 1161 Truck camper is 19'11" on top... plenty of room for the 18' long PVSolar Panel

You have an unobstructed run of 18' up top? Nice.

Yes, between the fridge vent and the air conditioner... and remove the luggage carrier... I'm too old to store stuff up there anyway.

I really prefer the 39.5" X 65" 250W panel... and to use the luggage rack.

I have a similar foot print on the system that I have now... see installation here.

[joeshmoe]

sleepy wrote:
A very interesting thread...

My Lance 1161 Truck camper is 19'11" on top... plenty of room for the 18' long PVSolar Panel

You have an unobstructed run of 18' up top? Nice.

[sleepy]

A very interesting thread...

My Lance 1161 Truck camper is 19'11" on top... plenty of room for the 18' long PVSolar Panel

I really like one I found on one of the links provided a lot better.

See it here It has 250 watts and 24VDC for $199.

It is 39.5" X 65"

The 24 VDC and a MPPT controller will always charge my batteries at 14.8 VDC... the full charge for 12 Volt AGM batteries.
I have had 255 Watts of PVSolar panels for about 6 years on the camper... they have done everything we need since we have all LED lights, and highly efficient replacements for anything that requires electricity.

What I'd really like is 7 of the $199 PVPanels... that would give me 1750 Watts @ 24 VDC for the house.... just to put a dent in the grid power.

[pjay9]

How are you delaing with the length of 18 to 21 feet?
THX for link to MPPT.

[sky_free]

deltabravo wrote:

sky_free wrote:
It's funny, but I heard about this company going bankrupt in 2012.

I fount this about Unisolar

From the link above:

"But unlike Solyndra, Solar Millennium and Solon, all of whom went out of business last year, Unisolar will continue production."

[deltabravo]

sky_free wrote:
It's funny, but I heard about this company going bankrupt in 2012.

I fount this about Unisolar

[deltabravo]

pjay9 wrote:
Since i am new to this solar stuff and am doing a rebuild soon and adding bats and solar...WHAT is a MPPT?

MPPT = Maximum power point tracking

MPPT Explained

[pjay9]

Since i am new to this solar stuff and am doing a rebuild soon and adding bats and solar...WHAT is a MPPT? Do you need one regards lees of panel purcahsed?

BTW, these panels are 18 to 21 feet long, hows that going to fit on a tc roof? IDEAS!

[sky_free]

It's funny, but I heard about this company going bankrupt in 2012 and not making any more panels, and the panels are still being sold widely today.

Forget about portable use unless you stick something to the adhesive that is durable enough to not break down or come apart. The adhesive on the back is like tar and would be impossible to remove. If you get it stuck to the panel top (or anything else) by accident, it's nearly impossible to get it unstuck. Don't ask me how I know this 🙂

I had 3 of the 68W ones on my TT and they worked great. They are more like 50W in actual use, but with 3 of them I had plenty of power. They seem a little less sensitive to shading or less than direct sun than the normal style of solar panels like the one on my TC now.

[joeshmoe]

For a trailer with a FG or AL roof, I can see this working great. But for those of us with a rubber roof, not so much. Not to mention, my overall camper lenght is only 16.2' or something.

Might be a good starter for home solar too.

[dewey02]

My understanding is that these are not meant to be rolled and unrolled repeatedly.
They were designed to be permanently applied to metal roofs, and yes some people have put them on RVs. They come rolledfor shipping. They have peel off paper on the back covering a tar like sticky glue. I'm guessing that won't stay on and you'll have the roll glued to itself. Also, I wonder if the cells themselves wouldhold up to repeated rollings. And thesethings are long...something like 18 feet.

[Fishbreath]

At 17 feet long, it might be a little "unwieldy" to have as a portable. I have used a rectangular 185w panel for years and have no regrets

Good luck

Bill