What portable power station and solar panels are you running ?

Recently I started to get into off-the-grid stuff as my camping takes me more and more off the beaten path. Curious as to what others are using as their battery power. I looked into a secondary battery on the 4R, but I wanted something also portable. I almost made my own DIY deep-cycle box, but gave up as costs, at least in Canada, do not make any sense. After reading and reading, I had to decide between Jackery 300 and GoLabs 300 (https://www.amazon.ca/GOLABS-Portab...child=1&keywords=golabs&qid=1627440394&sr=8-5). I went with the GoLabs because the have LiFePo as opposed to LiIon and they were a bit cheaper. I have a feeling you pay a bit for the name with Jackery. The 500 is beyond my budget (I know this will come back and bite me one day, but that day is not today).
Next step, solar panels. The Jackery and Go Labs only take about ~65w, so charging is slower and a 100w solar panel is more than sufficient (22v on GoLabs and 30v on Jackery).
What setups are you guys running ? What solar panels are you recommending?
Cheers.

 

I'm running with the Jackery 300 in conjunction to my "DIY" dual battery fabrication project:

 

Not sure what your budget is exactly but Renogy and Goal Zero are some of the better names in the game for having everything you need. That said I have a EcoFlow Delta, more up an coming name but their stuff hasnt let me down yet...
As for solar, also depends on budget. Can get an easy and cheaper solid panel and mount it wherever, or something like a Cascadia hood mounted.

Let us know where you're headed!

 

Ecoflow River Pro and their 160w solar panel. Works great. The app to monitor is pretty slick also.
Have some friends with the Delta. I just don't have the room for the Delta.

 

@iamincrediboy
Cool stuff ! I am going for 2 weeks around this area, about 20 hours straight drive from home
Dropped pin
https://goo.gl/maps/SD3uNLxdJATJVu2H6

 

The problem is that the golabs only can take 65 watts at 22v max, so bigger is not really better in this case. The Jackery is the same, but it goes to 30v. The Bluetti seems to be able to take up to 500w (new ones). But there is also a cost involved. I also opted for the golabs because of the LiFePo battery which fairs much better in the cold, there is no need for a regulator as the battery will maintain ~12v till it’s done to about 10%. So a 100w panel is all I need, 22v max.
This guy is pretty awesome: https://youtu.be/Vv7DXXHKi3g
Prices in Canada are greatly inflated compared to US. Also it seems “buy once cry once” is better. I heard about Renogy and they seem to be the cheaper choice without losing quality. The Jackey 100w panel is over 400$ tax in. Blah.

 

My experience is with:
Jackery e1000, Jackery 500, Rockpals 500w, Jackery 300w, Jackery 240w and a custom build LiFePo4 battery.
For Solar I have folding, flexible and rigid panels. Renogy, TopSolar, ToGo and NuPower panels.

Peronally, I like my LiFePo4 battery cause I can run it harder, and it's 100AH so i's about 1200wh. I put it in a ammo box from Academy so it has a handle and added USB ports and a solar charge controller. Coupled it with a Victron DC DC 18A charger for the vehicle and it's a beast. Thinking of dropping a LiFePo4 into the RV but i'd need another DC DC Charger because attempting to charge off the 7-pin power would likely burn up a wire, stress out the alternator, or something else bad. Plus, integrated batteries with inverters are nice but if a part fails you're in trouble. That, and the NMC batteries aren't nearly as long lived as LiFePo4.

 

I picked up an Energizer branded/licensed 240w unit on Amazon for like $250. Works great. It's LiFePo battery. Small size, too. Solar panels are next.

 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoj6RxIAQq8kmJme-5dnN0Q

 

The guy's name is Will Prowse.

I liked it, it was clever.

 

For Solar I have folding, flexible and rigid panels. Renogy, TopSolar, ToGo and NuPower panels - some from this list https://solwiser.com/am-solar-panel-reviews/

The Jackery 300 specifies that input voltage must be between 12V and 30V. So a solar panel that will have all voltage ratings be under 30V can be used as a solar source for the Jackery 300.
All "12V" solar panels will have a max voltage rating of under 30V. Typically a "12V" solar panel will have a rating of 22-24V to be the highest voltage that can come out of the solar panel.

 

I am running the EcoFlow River Pro and 160w solar panel. Both were purchased from Costco. I am using it to provide power to my Setpower RV45D.

EcoFlow River Pro - $429.99 (included shipping but not tax)

EcoFlow 160W Solar Panel - $299.99 (included shipping but not tax)

Setpower RV45D - $408 (after code I got from a YouTube video. That included shipping and tax)

 

Jackery 1000 w/2 100w panels.

 

I'm using a Jackery 1500. No panels, though. Work bought the Jackery for me (I do a lot of work at remote cell tower sites), I will likely grab some panels myself for those just-in-case moments.

The Jackery is amazing. We can power up our processing system for testing before our electrical service is installed.

 

I have the Jackery 500 to run my 12V fridge, lightweight and it works well. No solar panels, just charging from the inverter in back. That 1500 must be a beast.

 

Yeah.. Still remarkably small, though. Total weight is about 30 lbs, and the size of a decent lunch box.

 

I'm using the GOLABS R500 mainly because it has LifePO4 batteries and will last 2000 cycles minimum. That concept has been well documented and can easily be found online. Anyways, I mainly use it to power my computer, monitor, and lamp every night, but I have perform a stress test on it with an Xbox, big screen tv, powering another generator, and charging two cell phones which brought it up to 400 watts. I let it go for 30 minutes straight and it was just fine. Here's a video https://youtu.be/0iTXlFwXzzM

 

I'm a little into solar and built a cabin kit to use at home. I started with a 200 watt kit but eventually upgraded to 600 watts. It's like adding more power to the 4runner that you just can't stop adding more power to it. Anyways, now my setup consist of a 40 amp charge controller that can charge LifePO4 batteries, 1,000 watt pure sine wave inverter, six 100 watt panels, and three 120 amp hour LifePO4 batteries. With this setup I can power my refrigerator 24/7 ( fridge turns on every 30 minutes on average). Here's a video of my setup https://youtu.be/AKTPWjHZPbo
https://youtu.be/d4mujzdkPAg

 

Using a Bluetti eb150. Its 1500WH and it has a 1000W inverter in it (1500W peak).

I charge it while driving via a 300W pure sine inverter I wired from the 4runner battery.

Works great. Powers my fridge, water pump, lights, etc for 2-3 days before i need to recharge (if we don't use the little heater for the rooftop tent).

I wanted something that was all-in-one and I could take out of the vehicle with my drawer system and was around a thousand bucks.

 

I recently purchased a Bluetti AC200P along with 4 of their PV200 panels. Perhaps overkill for overlanding, but I wanted something for emergency backup due to one having a medical condition at home. My only beef with the AC200P is the minimum voltage input is 35V and optimal is higher for fast charging. Unfortunately the portable panels are double in price than the higher volume fixed panels. The PV200 panels do have a 2 year warrantee.

 

My golabs lost a small portion of the digital display, the 8 is no longer showing 8, but a 9. So I emailed the vendor on how to fix it. I specified I don’t want to return the unit, I love it, how can I fix it. They decided to ship me a new one for free and told me to keep the old one. I see this is a win. Great customer support and I’m a happy camper.
Thinking about getting the 500 one.

 

Got a Jackery 850 and Solar Panel. Powers my fridge and a ton of other stuff. 3 hours of driving tops it off.

 

Anyone interested in the Jackerys, I used this code yesterday and got 10% off.... "ACTIVJACK". I have a 1500W that work paid for, but I wanted my own, so I picked up a 1000W w/ 2 Solar Panels, and ended up getting almost $160 off the price.

not sure how long the code is active for, though.

 

I am using the Big Blue 100 watt portable solar panel because it is waterproof. Yes, waterproof. You can leave it outside 24/7 and it will last 15 years (when left outside 24/7 will last 15 years). It's made out of ETFE material which makes it fireproof, waterproof, and self cleaning. How great is that? It's 4-Runner great! Here is my review video https://youtu.be/2iqHxzZF8hI

 

Wondering if you have tested/reviewed the Big Blue ETFE 100W folding solar panel. How durable would it be with multiple foldings/unfoldings.
https://bigblue-tech.com/products/bigblue-100w-etfe-solar-panel

 

Jackery is have a 12% off sale for the next few days. Scroll to post #72 and 73.

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/jackery-deal-tracker.725373/page-4#post-27051126

 

I’m currently running a Jackery 1000 and Bluetti SP120 solar panels. Jackery is the perfect size for my use and the solar panels provide excellent recharging while folding up nicely and being super portable.

 

Jackery 1000, newpowa 100w panel on gobi rack

 

When I sold the 4R I pulled the battleborn and red arc out before selling. The plan was to put it all in the gladiator but ended up going jackery 1500. The 400 constant w inverter in the back of the gladiator brings the jackery from 50% to 100% in just under 2 hours and we have yet to drop below 50% on it. Last trip was three days running fridge, electric blanket for 8 hours, coffee maker (because I can and wanted to see if it would work) and various lights and camera re charges absolute workhorse.

 

The coffee maker is a no brainer. There is absolutely NO reason to go without morning coffee, EVER! If I can't have my morning coffee, I just won't go. Wherever "it" might be.

Heck, even the C-rats, and later MREs, have plenty of coffee, and a way to make it. Heat tabs and a c-rat can, or canteen cup, instant coffee maker. Not the best coffee in the world, but it IS coffee. And hot, at that.
No worse than whats been sitting in a 30 cup urn, unplugged, over the weekend, when we came in sunday night to open up. A cup full into the microwave, and ta-da! Hot coffee until the new stuff is ready.

Heck, I'll take it IV if I have to, but I WILL have my coffee!

Have fun, all!
Pat☺