Renogy 200W Solar Panel Kit 12V Solar Off-grid System
Renogy 200W Solar Panel Kit 12V Solar Off-grid System for Campervan, Motorhome: 2 PCS 100W Solar Panel+30A Charge Controller+20FT 10AWG Solar Cable+8FT 10AWG Tray Cable+Z Brackets+Branch Connecto
| Dimensions: | 120.14 x 54.1 x 3.56 cm; 0.28 Grams |
| Model: | KIT-STARTER200D |
| Manufacture: | Renogy |
| Dimensions: | 120.14 x 54.1 x 3.56 cm; 0.28 Grams |
| Origin: | China |
EDIT: over a year later and the batteries are maintained at the same level as previously noted. I do take them indoors and out of of the boat and check monthly or so during winter, and charge occasionally with a 4A Noco de-sulphurization charger .
funciona bien pero no lo probe bien porque estuvo nublado y sacaba pocos w
Product works great, changed it out for another competitor’s flexible solar panel on Amazon and it quit working in 3 days. Go with tried and true.
Figured out where to mount the controller box then hooked up the batteries left the full length of the wire so can put the panel outside . Will leave it like this until I find a permanent place to mount it. The moment I hooked the panel into the controller it showed a charge . Am very happy so fa
Bought this to keep my battery’s on my 5th wheel charged up while dry camping. I followed the instructions and bam nothing worked. My buddy looked at and found I had seated the wires to deep and the set crews were on the insulated cover. Stripped a little more and everything worked like it’s suppose to. My buddy bought one and is gonna install it on his trailer also. I have a small trailer and Ill buy one for that trailer to
I bought this panel to fit to my shed roof. Unfortunately the pre-drilled holes didn’t match the roof bars on my shed which were 75cm apart so I had to drill additional holes. That said if the pre-drilled holes were longer or even better continuous along the length of the panel this would be ideal and very flexible. The panel itself is sturdy and well made. The connectors cables are excellent and plenty length to deal with just about any install location. The Controller is easy to install and use as I have it connected to a 12v battery and 3000w Inverter. Overall a good simple and effective piece of kit. I added a connector splitter (1 to 2) and now have solar connected to Controller and separate connector to Power Station.
ice set up from the company I’ll buy more for theses product’s from Amazon agai
I thought I’d try a DIY Solar addition to my trailer. The hardest part of installation was trying to fish the wires into the trailer to the controller. In addition, the 12v battery terminals included in the kit were too small so I had to buy new ones. The panels have been working well in sunny conditions but definitely struggle to charge the battery on cloudy & overcast days. Having said that, for the price I can live with the product knowing it’s limitations.
I originally ordered the “eco-worthy” brand solar kit, it felt light and cheap, and arrived with one smashed solar panel, and a manufacturing defect on the other. When the renogy kit arrived, the box was way heavier, panels were packaged better, and no damage. I upgraded to their 30A MPPT controller also. Install was fun, and the panels pump out some serious power. Perfect for my RV that we dry camp in all the time. Will be adding the BT-1 module just cause I like gadgets
I love the panel.
The controller wire clamps have no teeth and no matter how hard you clamp them, the wires eventually slip out if you’re moving this around.
Bon kit mais, on s’aperoit vite qui manque des choses (ex: des supports de panneaux, des fils rallonge pour relier 2 panneaux un peu plus distanc, des fusibles sur le fil qui va la batterie et un sur les panneaux).Le matriel est d’excellent qualit et bien emball pour le transport.
I like that it was very light but built sturdily looks great and performs brilliantly on my 48v system
Ich bin sehr zufrieden mit diesen Set und kauf. Kann ich nur empfehlen. Habe dieses Set fr meine Garage gekauft, weil ich kein Stromnetz dort habe. Ich muss sagen, die Solarzelle ldt sorgar im Schatten mit meinen billig Regler. Das war bei meiner alten Solarzelle anders.
Leider ist das Kabel fr den Anschluss zur Batterieohne Sicherung. Das sollte man noch bercksichtigen.
Ska montera panelerna p bten p en stllning jag gr sjlv.
Lyckligtvis har jag inte byggt stllningen n, fr panelerna har andra mtt n vad som anges p sljarens presentation (och vad som str i Renogy’s datablad)
Mina paneler r 1076 * 509 * 35.
Vad jag sett p ntet r Renogy’s paneler bland de bsta, s tveka inte att kpa, men bestll och kontrollmt innan ni brjar bygga ngot…
Just hooked up this morning and the system is working very well, far beyond my expectations. Brought my 3 battery/550ah bank up from dead to running my propane furnace and water pump in about 15 minutes of direct sunlight.
I was on the fence after trying a cheap HF panel but finally pulled the trigger on this kit. Night and day difference. Ordering 2 more panels and the Bluetooth adapter this week.
I searched the reviews for a long time without finding much real world comparisons so hopefully this helps someone out. This one panel I think will fully replace my 4000watt generator and 15amp battery charger quite easily. Spending $30+ a week for gas, the payoff will be very quick
The 200w kit will be ideal for powering low power 12volt outdoor leisure equipment.
Purchased this complete Renogy Solar Panel / Charging System as my first foray into solar energy. Paired with a Li Fe 30 am hour battery, this complete system powers the DC Blower on my air tight wood stove in the event of a Hydro failure. On a cloudy / overcast winter day in B.C. Canada, 2 100 Watt panels deliver a good 30 watts of usable power, enough energy for the blower and to charge the battery. Having a MPPT charge controller maximizes voltage and current from the two series wired solar panels. In addition, the Rover charge controller provides a great deal of information in regards to voltage, current, battery capacity etc., and the readout measures dead accurate against my Fluke multimeter. Very impressed with the value and performance of the Renogy Rover charge controller, plugs, cables and solar panels. A great deal IMHO.
Based on my experience so far, this inexpensive solar power system will likely be a stepping stone to bigger things in the future.
As winter has come I’ve introduced a MPPT controller to make the most of the little sunlight we have, but the PWM will be absolutely fine for most.
I had a small fridge lying about (actually have another 4 or so). Pick them up at estate sales and such for five to twenty bucks. Used a kWh measuring device (KillaWatt Brand) and ran it for a week, determining that it was consuming about 300 wH per day. So I figured a 100 W panel ought to be sufficient given that they have good sun resource on any day warm enough to need beer.
Note that I did not calculate in the fact that they’d be putting extra stress on the fridge by putting warm six packs in it every day or so. Could have done this by factoring in the specific heat of water (how much energy it takes to raise a given mass of water a given degree) and then working backwards and assuming an inefficiency coefficient based on the efficiency of refrigeration processes. If I had done so and used an egregiously inefficient coeficient, say 1 Wh of cooling (i.e., BTU converted to watt hours) requiring 1 Wh of energy to run the fridge, I’d get about 80 Wh of energy consumption to cool a gallon of beer, or about 50 Wh for a 6 pack. Frankly, I should have included this in the estimation, but assumed it wouldn’t be that big a deal. Note that a 1 to 1 ratio is fairly inefficient, so there’s a lot of wiggle room here. So, bottom line is that even if they switch out a 6 pack a day, total consumption ought not to exceed about 350 – 400 Wh per day. The roof pitch and sun resource here (southern Oregon) is pretty good. I figured they’d get at least 600 Wh ,delivered, with this panel in this location, in the summer.
Bottom line is that the panel seems to be providing enough energy, but we are going to need to add an additional 1200 wH battery since the depth of discharge gets too high if we get any morning fog. Even without that, 400 Wh is about a 33% DoD. That’s not bad, but given the occasional morning fog issue, the battery takes some stress on occasion. For our application, and the price of an extra panel, it might not be a bad idea to add another panel as well. They don’t drink a lot of beer in the winter, but it might not hurt.
As for the system, it was very easy to install and came with mounting brackets and sufficient cable to do it all out of the box.
The only problem was that the client initially used an old deep cycle battery, and on occasion the inverter was shutting down due to low voltage since it wasn’t capable of storing 1200 Wh. I ran a new battery over and they installed it. I THINK but can’t be sure, that they reversed the polarity or shorted the Charge Controller output leads. When I got there, the Charge Controller was not putting out any current. I had a small Victron MPPT unit in the truck so I just subbed it out. I haven’t thoroughly investigated the dead unit yet, but noticed it’s got two soldered in fuses(!) I will hook it up and jump the fuses one at a time to see if that’s what happened (yes, shame on me, I should have put some fast blowing fuses in the wiring – will get back there in the next week or two to do that). Anyway, the client is happy and I can still go in there to buy lumber without a problem.
Amazon has sent me a replacement Charge Controller, no questions asked, so that is good. I bought the Assurion Warranty on it.
I do want to add that the Victron is overkill for this app so I am going to sub it out with the replacement. The reason is that one of the nicest things about this kit is that the charge controller, while only a PWM, IS rated for 30 amps. So it’s easily expandable. (Upto 4 panels I believe.) That’s a nice feature, and the Vicron can handle higher voltage, so it’s wasted on this application.
All in all I highly recommend this kit for small or introductory set ups. Perfect for small dedicated stand alone applications such as a Flojet Water Pump to slowly pump water up a hill to a cistern for gravity flow to an application, or small fridge. Just don’t forget to add external fuses. For that matter, Renogy ought to bump the price up $10 and include them.
Quite easy to fit.
I have also fitted a flexible theory panel, and changed my charge controller because this one is rated at 30A.
All in all, I think that trophy equipment is great value for the money.
We added this to our small A-liner camper to power the battery while camping off-grid in the National Park Campgrounds. It did that well and once up and running had no complaints. The solar panel was out during a brief bit of small hail and took it well. I used an otherwise unused exterior shower compartment on our trailer for cord storage when not in use. Permanently mounting the “wanderer charge controller” inside the camper which allowed me to improvise a more secure cable connection for it. There are a lot of complaints online about those connectors which I agree with. The cardboard packaging it came in is where our solar panel stays until it is time to hook it up. So far that allows me to adjust it for each campsite’s sunny spot and keeps it from damage.
J’ai achet ce kit de dpart solaire pour tre capable de faire du camping sauvage autonome. Je ne savais pas trop quoi m’attendre et pour tre franc j’en suis pleinement satisfait !! Pour l’instant j’ai fait 2 sortie de test avec une seul batterie groupe 27 et elle ne descend jamais en bas du 2/3 de sa charge. De plus, nous avons eu un sjour de 2 jours avec de la pluie la plupart du temps avec un site ombrag et les panneaux ont trs bien fourni la batterie.
I have been using the Renogy 100 watt PV panel to keep my battery charged on my Jayco 165 camping trailer. I bought the 200 watt starter kit but have only been using one panel. I have been very pleased with how well the single panel in the full sun for about 4 hour fully recharges my battery. Generally the battery has been discharged to about 50% of capacity. The best thing, I don’t have to listen to my generator rattle for hours to do the same thing the PV panel does. I am sure the other campers appreciate the quiet.
I purchased this starter kit as “Phase 1 Solar” for my 5th Wheel RV. The end goal (by phase 2) is to have an affordable solution to keep my batteries topped up without having to run my generator for any length of time.
The package was shipped quickly and I was pleasantly surprised at the quality and unpackaging experience of the Renogy product. Out of the box, all of the parts looked well built and of good quality.
I mounted and installed all of the components as per the Renogy website instructions and videos. I added a couple extra components recommended by Renogy (not included in the kit) such as a fuse between the PV array and the charge controller, a fuse between the charge controller and the battery bank, and an easy access kill switch between the PV array and the charge controller. I made sure these switches and fuses were rated for the 10 gauge / 30 amp system I was building.
After a few days of running in partially cloud conditions, this single 100 watt panel setup is able to keep my batteries at 100% charge with the fridge running on propane (which uses approximately 20 AH per day for the climate control and circuit board) as well as the small parasitic draw of systems like the LP gas detector, stereo, etc. I do not expect any more from this system in my first phase (1 panel).
Next year, if all goes well, I will be adding 2 more 100 watt panels to the system which will hopefully cover the remainder of my RV power needs (i.e. water pump, stereo/tv, LED lights, and occasionally the furnace fan).
I will update this post with my findings.
When you sell something be sure and have a copy of directions in the box. Took lots of extra time in calling and talking to tech support to get the systematics of the panel wiring, which should have been in the box! Also you should color code the connects so as it is even to put together. It does not come with the connector wire to plug into a travel trailer, had to order separate.
Comes with everything you need. Cables are plenty long for optimal positioning.
It easily recharges my single battery during the day when dry camping.
A friend built me a great hinged stand from an old aluminum sign.
It locks up at 45 degrees and we stake down with tent stakes to avoid it being blown over in our high Colorado winds.
I put the controller box in a lightweight plastic toolbox with holes cut for the battery and panel cables.
All except the panel stores neatly in the toolbox.. This has survived numerous rain storms.
I would buy the starter kit again if needed and have recommended to numerous friends.
I have about 20 days of total use on it so far. O problems.
I do have to rotate several times during the day as the sun moves to keep the best angle.
I plan on mounting my frame on an old bicycle wheel to make it very easy.
It is not light but one person can easily move everything around and set up.
Yesterday was an exceptionally sunny day to test my new renogy setup. I think the charge controller is faulty because I have only been getting 13.1v out of the charge controller. The panel was making roughly 21v, but as soon as I connected to the charge controller, it doesn’t translate in any charging at all worthy of bulk or even absorbtion(13.1v in optimal weather). All the wiring has been double checked and tested in many configuration and I had no heat at all coming from the CC. I would say the Charge Controller is bad and I can’t get to talk to anyone at renogy to get it fixed or replaced. Not so convenient to put everything back in the box and order a new kit especially after drilling holes on the roof of my van. Mildly annoyed.
edit: I was sent another one very quickly. for customer service try opening a ticket on their website.
I had to research charger controllers for another stystem. This system as is, with no other parts, was hooked up to a water pump and a Centennial deep cycle battery powering a pump for a sink and shower for one person use and I have not had any problems with the solar aspect. The charger controller doesn’t really need to be anything advanced for this application so it was perfect. Because I was just running a DC pump and there was no AC application I went with this set up. If you plan to use AC or anything other than running simple appliances they recommend you get a more advanced controller. Simple use simple controller. I wouldn’t build a system around this set up, but there are many applications that someone could use. 100watts comes to like 8amps I think. So Your tv probably runs that each hour. So you could probably replace-charge 50amps a day in full sun. Not a huge system, but depends what you are using it for. Hope this helps.
Well made, durable panel. A bit of a challenge installing it on my boat, but managed with a few pieces of aluminum and rail clamps. Heavy-duty wires, easy to set up, keeps two batteries topped up with no problems. Panel seems to handle the elements (freshwater boat) with no issues.
Unit was easy to install. Instructions in manual were good. Product performed as well as I expected.
In my case I had to buy additional cable as my battery was a distance away from the solar panel.
The item is as described and contains all parts, packaged well for shipping. The online and hard copy User’s Guide/Installation instructions are well thought out and easy to understand. I was in a hurry to install and could have benefited studying the User’s Guide, systematically, but didn’t have the time as this is my main source of power.
In buying a solar starter kit (from a different buyer on a different platform) I found that one needs to know the exact parts that are needed for individual needs (extension wiring for panel to reach controller 10′-20′, and/or z brackets to secure panel in place). Different kits offer different items and leave out other important ones so it’s important to check all the parts needed to install before buying and pay attention to the features (lcd screen, usb ports, etc) of the controller. There are also blue tooth units and a phone app to use to track what the panel is doing and the state of the batteries, for an additional charge.
In this kit (100W mono panel, 30A controller), the panel works well and will charge 2-12V deep-cycle batteries linked together, at 50% charge level, in two days of direct sunlight to a full float charge. The panel arrived in good shape but I think needs mounted in a permanent location with a metal supporting stand rather than using in a temporary setting. The metal surrounding the panel crystals could be sturdier. The controller is plastic but mounts easily, works well, and is easy to install to the panel and on the wall.
I think that this is a really good starter solar kit for those wanting to use and understand solar, for the price, in an off-grid system. I like that the company put the effort into writing a good installation manual and phone app for tracking. Materials used in manufacture could be a little stronger and sturdier in the panel. Tech support is very difficult to reach: the 800 number rings a fast busy signal (permanently), the local phone number in Southern Cal has long waits (27 callers ahead on several occasions), and it takes about 2 days to get an e-mail answer from tech support that gives cut and dried answers from the book and doesn’t volunteer extra information.
All in all, this purchase was a great value for a well-working product, but along with value be prepared to do a lot of the research/troubleshooting on your own. I hope that after the pandemic, Renogy becomes easier to reach for after sale and tech support.
If I kept the trailer out in pure sunlight, away from under trees, and in more mild temperatures, and set the fan to a bit higher tolerance (had it at 80%), than there’s no doubt I’d be running them at their most efficient and my battery would stay topped off (single 100ah battery).
I gave it 4 stars because I’d like to see the cost come down on these systems a little more, and I think that can be achieved with their construction. I gave “light weight” 3 stars because I’m surprised they’d even ask. They’re not exactly “light weight”, but I think if they actually cheapen the construction a bit (plastics instead of aluminum) to ACTUALLY reduce the weight, putting more of the protection responsibility on the user, then they can drive down cost AND get away with calling it “light weight”. 99% of the time someone is installing this on a roof, so the need for the heavy duty aluminum frame is just not there. Either drastically reduce the aluminum, or move to bioplastics, relocate the terminal to the end so it can be thinner and mounted closer to the surface.
Anyway.. these are good. Tough. Durable. Easy to install. Worth it.
Cheers
Added it to the existing system with a separate charge controller for a seamless install. Going to run it as is for another month and if there are no issues, and if they are available, I will swap out the two 40 watt panels for one or two more of these 100 watt panels.
I bought my solar panel from Renogy few years ago, after 4 years, I have realized that my panel wasn’t delivering the necessary volt to recharge the battery. Something happen that make the solar panel less effective. I have contacted the Renogy support team and after few verification with them, they grantly change my solar panel for a new one!
That’s a great consumer services and their product are guarantee for 25 years!
I strongly recommend
Installed this last year and worked just fine. I’ve yet to mount it to my pickup shell, wanted to see how it worked before drilling holes only to find out it didn’t work/meet my needs.
For the last year I simply had the panel set out angled to the sun while camping and it did fine. I run a 1500v 10a inverter off it for my morning coffee. It runs my LED lights and charges phones/laptop just fine. I also have run a small 750v heater off it and no issues with too much pull or drain (System is connected to a deep cycle gel battery) Panels keep the battery charged.
Pros: Inexpensive and pretty easy to use and setup.
Cons: hard coated cables can be a pain to install, especially in cold climates. I found that the regulator often doesn’t hold the cables secure and the cable pop out if regulator is moved. Most likley a setup flaw in having to bend and secure the cables much more. Mounting hardware looks simple enough. I’ll likely mount it to the shell this summer and update the review.
Like: so far it exceeded my expectations. Great product, well built.
Dislike: sharp edges, 1 wire looks like used (scratches).
Room for improvement: proper wiring code coding. Red for positive, black for negative.
Battery Error Reading (?):
Used the battery for the night (heating). Early morning I check my battery and it reads 1/3″. After an hour of charging through solar panel, it read full (shown at picture). Both terminals (trailer and solar panel + and -) are screwed together (see picture). I don’t know if I am doing it correctly.
Update to follow.
Rengery – 1 Suggestion – the brackets that come with these kits are terrible. Once you mount the panel using the brackets it is impossible to remove panels from RV roof without breaking the dicorr seal around the brackets. I opted for the other brackets designed for airstream campers you offer. This allow for panel removal if they ever need replaced or serviced. This 2 piece style of bracket should come with all kits.
Hab das set auf meinem auto installiert und es luft seit zwei monaten einwandfrei.
Wichtig ist, sich vor dem kauf noch ein wenig mit solaranlagen etc. Zu beschftigen und nicht abschrecken zu lassen.
I chose this system because of its expandability and versatel use. I also have a camper trailer so I may use it for my camper should this truck become a daily driver.
The “kit” came with cables to go from panel to box, and form truck battery to a space inside the hood. I purchased additional 10′ cables and connectors so I could open my hood and snap connect my battery cables to the box cables for long term battery maintenance.
Its all up and running and I am impressed with its engineering. The connectors do not come with instructions, I made some mistakes in assembling the connectors as, for me, the large conductor goes with the “male” connector, and the small conductor fits both the male and female connector.
With the exception of my learning curve, all is well and I can see myself purchasing more solar components in the future to expand the versatility of this system.
I am happy with my purchase, in both its performance and its engineering.
Tim
Die Anlage macht was sie soll und ich betreibe einen 200w poolfilter, eine khl gefriertkombi und led Beleuchtung fr innen und auen soweit reicht alles super aus
The charge controller is very basic, but it is supposed to work quite well. For the price all in for this kit, I think it is a decent setup and is probably well suited to keeping your RV batteries or your boats battery ready to go.
Was easy to instal. Built it on a frame made of 2×4 (see photo). We’re pleased with it and it’s working well.
I purchased this to install on the Roof of my Jeep wrangler (overland built) to serve as a way to charge an auxiliary deep cycle battery which powers my permanently mounted ARB fridge as well as all the camp LED lights and recharge phones and electronic equipment. I was fairly new at this solar thing but did a ton of research on the subject before settling on this. There are tons of off-brand products in this category as well as a vast array of pricing options, both higher and lower than this set up. However, after careful consideration and countless review reading and youtube watching, I decided that this set up was best suited for my application.
The problem: I built my Jeep to do some overlanding and one thing that I cannot live with is my ARB fridge which is permanently mounted in the kitchen which sits in the back of the car. The car doesn’t have a dual battery system and so the fridge is/was plugged into the cranking battery which is not optimal as you do run the risk of the fridge draining your cranking battery and leaving you stranded (NOTE: Fridge does have a shut off feature which measures the voltage of the battery and turn itself off if said voltage is below “x” volts. Also my Jeep is a standard so I can push it / get a quick tow to get it started and I do always have a battery pack / starter as a precaution…).
The solution: Getting an auxiliary battery to supply the fridge (and other accessories) and a solar panel to keep this battery topped off while at camp and on the road.
I chose Renogy after my many hours of research because of the name brand recognition and the the many reviews that seem to point at a great company with solid products and good support. So far I can say that the reviews are 100% correct in that I made the right choice. The package arrived well wrapped and precisely as advertised. The panel is solidly built and all the cabling provided is the correct gauge with the proper connectors. I really wanted to get a name brand Charge controller after reading that cheaply made units can both be highly inefficient and could be dangerous. In hindsight I probably would rather the version of the solar charge controller than has the integrated LED screen providing the charging and consumption metrics but price point on this project was met with the simpler unit. I am using some third party units to measure charging metrics and load usage which is fine but does require more wiring.
The panel comes with all the brackets to install in on a flat surface and my guess is that 90% of the time people will need to do some custom installation of sort so these brackets, although perfectly adequate for a flat install are useless to me at the moment. All the connections are well made and this gives me no reason to believe that they will not last a long time. Right now in full sun and FLAT on my roof rack (note: flat is not optimal as the sun is never perfectly perpendicular to the panel and a 45 degree angle would be better to adjust for the that) the panel does produce about 5.5/6 AmpH and about 24 volts which according to what I calculated will be more than adequate to keep the smaller deep cycle (35amp hour) battery I am using topped off and run all the accessories I want to run off of it.
I intent to post photos of the set up once it’s complete as well as add to this review when i have had a chance to use the system to a greater extent.
I have 2 100W panels on mine and i camp 9 months of the year in Canada, I don’t even bring a generator anymore as I’ve never had to worry about power since i installed them. The heater and lights will run all night at -20C and by the time i wake up, batteries are fully charged. For most campers a single panel would be sufficient.
The other great thing about these is they keep your batteries cycling/charged in the winter so there is no need to take your batteries out of the RV in the winter,
If your considering this or a generator, I would put my money on these as they are silent, require basically 0 maintenance are cheaper than an inverter generator.
Easy to install!
So far I have set up my system and everything has worked well. The connectors seem to be heavy duty and all the components where in good condition.
My only small complaint is the wanderer 30amp CC. I have found the screw clamps don’t hold that well. As well there is no load option, so any load has to run from your battery. Not a huge issue but a lttle extra. Also it has no led screen so you can’t see the power coming in.
I have 4x 12 volt deep cycle batteries and the 2 panels have no problem keeping the batteries fully charged during the summer.
I monitor battery condition with digital meter. 19 volt input into controller was noted when panels in direct sunlight.
All dry camping but I don’t waist power.
Power usage with 4-5 hrs on 24inch lcd.
Also dvd or sat dish.
1200 watt inverter to run the above.
water pump for shower and dishes.
I use led lights for night time.
Refer is on gas but the control is 12 volt.
Some people complain about the controller, but I think it does fine. The complaint is that it doesn’t have a meter to show voltage or current. In my opinion, you only want this in the beginning to see how efficient your system is. The controller has LEDs that show when it is charging and when it is in maintenance charge mode (batteries full). I have an inexpensive volt meter that plugs into the 12 volt outlet. Good enough for me.
Do not buy the huge fuse holder and 100A fuses that appear as “Items other people bought with this.” The correct fuses are 15A and 30A, and you can use standard automotive fuse holders. There is an inexpensive meter that appears when you purchase this, and I recommend that you fully read the instructions and develop a plan before buying it. This meter can only tell you what is happening at the point of installation. For example, some people install this between the panels and the controller (shows panel output), between the controller and the batteries (shows controller output), or between the batteries and the load (shows what the appliances are actually using from the battery). In my opinion, the last application is the only one I care about on an ongoing basis, and the installation for this application is independent of the solar install.
Also, take the time to look up the recommended roof attachment procedures for your type of roof. I have an EPM roof, so I looked at the manufacturer videos for attaching a fan to an EPM roof and used those as a guide. I was surprised to learn that butyl tape is the first line of defense and the self-leveling caulk was the second line of defense. If the roof leaks, dry rot will likely follow, and that can be expensive at best or ruin the RV.
Some people commented that the connectors are difficult to separate, but there is an inexpensive tool you can buy at checkout to make this easy.
The instructions say to hook up the solar panels last or cover them so they don’t produce a charge until after they are connected to the controller. I cut cardboard covers from the shipping box and taped them to the panels. This allowed me to lay out everything before the final attachment.
Installed for a cabin and charging nicely even on dull days
A major reason for going with Renogy was I have noticed that customers that had problems were contacted through the comment box, OR customers that had problem said service contact was great! Peace of mind.
UPDATE October 31, 2017 Our trailer came with a shore power (120Vac) converter/battery tender unit and wasn’t sure about the Renogy and the trailer unit working together. On the forum at Renogy.com, another customer or two asked about this and it is OK to do. One charger of the two will see the need for charging and the other will see the charge and not turn on. Anyway, the hard part of putting this in the RV was to locate a tie to the battery from the inside without creating a new exit hole. I was able to tie in at the battery connection in the RV converter/charger and do a simple run to the Renogy panel mounted near the door. Then it was easy to connect the solar panel to the Renogy panel at the door. The handy indicator lights on the Renogy panel showed it was charging the batteries normally without any issues! So now, rather than having my house power hooked up to the RV for days to charge the batteries (2 golf cart 6 V) I connect my Renogy unit and forget about it. And now with fall here, and winter around the corner, I can park the trailer with a window facing south for the solar panel. No need to haul out 150 pounds of batteries!
RECOMMENDED!
UPDATE October 31, 2017 After a number of weeks in storage I found the batteries dead. Some detective work uncovered a hidden FM booster that was on behind the TV, also the CO monitor was on and so too was the back-light for the radio panel. With these disconnected the batteries still would not charge. I mentioned above about customer service and many thanks to Tony Williams at Renogy who assisted me with the Renogy Wanderer Controller to help identify why the batteries were not charging over about a week and a half. The Renogy unit was fine. It turns out that the likely problem is the 100 watt kit that I have cannot recharge 2 deep cycle batteries in the limited sun light we have in the northern hemisphere . IF the batteries have a reasonable charge then they should recharge just fine with the 100 watt solar panel.
The panel was the easiest part of the install. just use butyll tape on the bottom of the brakets, screw onto roof, and then cover everything in lap sealant. I ran the cables down one of my vent cover holes which luckly was almost directly above where I wanted to mount the panel.
Running the cables and getting the electronics set up was the biggest challenge. I ended up mounting the charge controller and fuses for the system under my travel trailers kitchen sink. I used a 1 foot by 1 foot piece of plywood. I wired up and installed as many components on the board as I could before installling. This made it easier to not be assembling everything under the sink.
The Campers electrical box housing the fuses and converter box are a few feet away from my where I mounted my chage contoller undert the sink. rather than run from the charge controller directly to the battery I went into the electrical box and joined with the 6 guage wires already going from the converter to the battery. This saved me alot of money on cable!
I finished installing on a sunday night. The sun was down and so I couldnt test right away. I turned on half the lights in the camper, the power vent, and left my 24 inch TV running off an inverter. I let these appliances drain on my power bank all night. I turned everything off monday morning. I saw that the green light was blinking which indicated that it was charging. By the time I got home for lunch 4 hours later the batteries were topped off. It has been installed for a week now and the batteries have never gone below 70% full with full usage of the appliances.
I also purchased a volt meter/usb charger/12v socket so I can measure the voltage and charge things, as you can see in one of the pictures.
I am not an electrician. I know very little about electricity. I think this was a fairly easy project that turned out awesome. I am very happy with the Renogy proucts they seem durable and have lived up to the other great reviews I read. I would suggest this brand and prouct to anyone looking to try out solar power. I was very impressed!!! You should buy this for your camper you wont be disappointed.
Install was a tad nerve wracking when it came to the wiring. I saw people bought fuses and fuse cases with it and got he same thinking I needed them, but I ended up using just what it all came with. It seems to do a good job keeping things charged up and I’ve run the heater and everything for a while to see how it did.
I do not plug in my trailer any more and sold my generator (Honda 2000)… I was glad to get rid of the noise (very nice/quiet generator by the way) and gas smell.
I was very surprised how well the panels did in the winter. It kept it charged even thought we had a fair amount of snow. That was interesting.
Controller is a bid hard to wire to, feel like you are going to break the tiny screws with those big wires. Seems like a little stronger setup could be worked out there. The controller is kinda a self handler though after you get all that done. Haven’t done a thing with it. Just look at the lights.
Was relieved when it was over and seemed to work and nothing had smoke coming out of it! haha 🙂 And that it keeps running like a charm (so far).
Again, I would / will buy more of this one if I get more. I’d like 3-4 panels on my 30′ trailer… its a biggy. I did get all LED lamps in this order as well and replaced my entire lighting. Very happy with that decision also.
I’d love to get a tesla power wall and install a bunch of these to keep that charged. Not an environmental nut case, just like to get off the big bills. Not sure if they’d be the best for that though.
I spent the last couple of days building, painting and installing my van roof platform on which I am mounting solar, and for general cargo carrying. After three days late delivery, I installed my basic 100 watt Renogy kit, only to find that it is dead in the water. A disappointment to say the least as we are supposed to be heading out for the Canadian long weekend for some camping and relaxing. Everything was wired as per instructions and when I go to remove the cardboard from the panel and…voila! Nothing!. The green battery light is fine, but the solar light is not lit on the charge controller. Hmmmm…full sun at noon and open voltage of only 10.05 volts. I phone Renogy and am told to test the diodes…voltage between terminal 1 and 2 and 2 and 3; one side good, one side not. They tell me they are sending a new diode, but this gets me to thinking…how do the diodes check out off the panel? A resistance test shows them as fine…would this describe a bad diode or a dead panel? I only had my cheapo meter which lacks a diode test function.
Not only did I waste a couple hours on hold, then waiting for a call back and un-installing the panel to test, but now I suspect I will be without the much anticipated solar for the weekend. I imagine I will receive a new diode, install it and then have to go through the headache of un-installing the whole kit, wiring and all to ship back for a refund when the panel proves to be NFG.
Sorry if this sounds “rantish” but time is precious and I feel like I have just wasted a pile of it…
I will update if the new diode solves the problem.
UPDATE JULY 31st:
Well it turns out that one of the connections in the junction box was not soldered properly. It was not apparent until I gently pried it up. A quick hit with some silver solder and gun and we are back in business. Panel is now outputting properly. Dealings with Renogy customer service were great, but I need to take a star off for the poor quality control…sorry Renogy.
The purpose of this solar panel was to maintain the charge on my camper batteries. I have yet to mount it to my camper, currently it is sitting alongside it on a stand I built for it. Even in these winter months above the 45th parallel with minimal sunshine on some days it has done a magnificent job of maintaining my camper batteries. Installing and wiring the charge controller was simple and I am very pleased with the performance so far. Aside from the stand, everything was ready to go right out of the box and I needed no additional parts to install this for my application (aside from a screwdriver, but that’s not really a part).
The pros for this particular kit are the price, the easy installation, and the portability. This is, in my opinion, the best value for the money if you’re looking at solar panels.
I do, however, wish I would have spent the extra money and got the MPPT upgraded version of this kit. That is not a con or a reflection on this kit by any means; had I have known this was going to be as great as it was, I would’ve purchased the other kit.
All in all, this is a solid solar energy kit that I highly recommend if you are at any stage of your solar energy plans. Five stars for this great product from Renogy.
So far so good. The kit was easy to install and I was online in a little over an hour, installing 4 panels on the bimini of my sailboat. I’ve been a Kyocera panel fan for a couple of decades, but size became an issue with this installation, as all manufactures are making larger panels to cut the cost per watt. I needed a 48″ long panel and this filled the bill. Since installation we haven’t had a fully sunny day for me to test the output. The controller was of better quality than one I had purchased separately in about the same price range on Ebay for my previous array, lost in Hurricane Odile. The construction appears of quality and as I bought them in open box from Amazon Warehouse Deals all was intact. Interestingly enough, these panels are made here in Mexico, but were cheaper to purchase from Amazon that direct from the manufacture here. The 400W’s provided by the two kits should provide more juice than I will need on most sunny days. We’ll see how they weather with time in this harsher then normal environment.
Put the solar panel into full sunlight and got about 20v output. In shade or indirect light, got about 15v output.
I used this with 12v deep cycle batteries in parallel to keep them charged. I noticed that the volts of the solar panel measured at the charge controller drops about 5v to match whatever the volts on the batteries happen to be at the time and slowly increase as time goes on the panels slowly charge up the batteries. Not sure if this is normal or not. Also not sure how much power the charge controller uses for its power. Maybe it drains the batteries overnight ever slightly that could be keeping the batteries from being fully charged.
Also, noticed that even with the batteries left in this configuration for a week w/o any use that the “battery full” light never comes on, as I would expect, it usually stays at “battery at right level” or “under-charged.” Not sure if that is an issue with the charge controller or batteries.
Also, wish the charge controller would have LCD/LED numbers to indicate volts and amps for the solar panel and battery terminals instead of that single digit display for the load feature, which I don’t think most people use and it’s confusing.
Update: Aug 7, 2014
I was able to use amp meter to check the current output. Using a branch connector, I had two of these units connected in parallel. In full sun, I got almost 6 amps going into the charge controller, which is about 3 amps per solar panel. I was a little disappointed, expecting to get 5 amps each. In shade or indirect sunlight, the amps dropped way down, to less than one amp… maybe about 50 milliamps and the charge light on controller showed green (meaning a charge, albeit slowly)… so the lesson here is to get a good charge, you really need to have direct sunlight (or even cloud is okay), just no indirect (eg, in shade, etc)… I can’t imagine the branch controller limiting my current (eg, I doubt it has any resistance )…
Overall, still a good product (in terms of the 100v solar panel itself).
Hint: you cannot connect a multimeter to the back of this panel and read current as a couple of YouTube videos suggest (measuring different brand panels). You can read voltage this way, but not amps. I hooked up my panel as the Renogy YouTube video demonstrates and then set my multimeter to the 10 amp setting. I turned off my multimeter. I faced the panel away from the sun. I unplugged the positive cable running from the panel to the charge controller and inserted one probe in to this hole and screwed it down the same way you screwed down the cable. I took the other end of the probe and attached it to the positive end of the cable I just unplugged from the controller. I turned the panel to the sun, turned on the multimeter and got a consistent reading of 5.6 amps. Whether you compare this to the optimum or the short circuit amperage rated on the panel, this is outstanding!
One last hint mentioned elsewhere, go to the Renogy website and order a tray cable as you will need one. They are difficult to find elsewhere. Thanks to Renogy for the help. Thanks to Renogy for the product.
I then wired up the solar panel to the controller, and do not forget the inline fuse 30 amp. This will protect the controller. Then ran 8 gauge wire to the battery bank. Keep your wiring as heavy as you can. Between batteries run 1/0 wire. I purchased this from amazon. Here is a list of things that may help you. Bc1/0b-20 1/0 gauge 20′ x 2, power/ground wire battery cable 1 Blk,1 Red. Db Link ANLFH01 0 gauge ANL fuse holder and 300 ANL amp fuse. Used for inbetween the batteries to the inverter. Schumacher BAF-MT2 coated marine terminal end. Manuel mechanical rotating wire terminal cable lug crimper. Sold by Koval inc. this tool is awesome. 10 pc Tinned copper lug 3/8, 1/0 gauge. Sold by Windy Nation.
At the moment i have 5- 12 volt batteries and with the small panels i did have, i could not keep the batteries charged. 1 radio and a 64 watt shop light. With this only 1- 100 watt Renogy panel the batteries are being charged. when the sun came out batteries were at 12.5 volts. After 2 hrs the batteries are at 12.8 volts The panel are supplying 21.7 volts. .I am going to get more panels. Do the wattage consumption and this will give you the amount of panels. My inverter I purchased off e-bay After many hours of research i purchased a Boost 3000 watt 6000 watt peak soft start 12 volt DC to 120 volt AC. Modified sine wave. The inverter cost me 273.00. A good buy being you can rebuild it if needed with replacement parts from Boost. And a 1 year warranty My goal is to have 12 solar panels and 12 plus batteries. And power the tv, computer and monitor in the house. Whitch is on 18 hours plus. Will update as it goes. In all Hates off to RENOGY for a affordable and well made solar panel.. Thank You. And Hey RENOGY if you have any panels ya want me to test out please contact me.
Les Wolgamuth.
(A word of warning – if you don’t know how to use electricity, then you will be spending a lot of time doing your research. For me, I was lucky enough to have a father-in-law who has a degree in electrical engineering, but even then, I’ve spend several dozen hours reading about solar power set-ups.)
In two afternoons, my father-in-law and I hooked everything up. We purchased a small 8 amp-hour AGM battery from Batteries Plus for under $15, and then, we bought a 1000 watt inverter from Bestek. We took a 18 inch by 18 inch piece of plywood, placed some galvanized sheet metal (as a common ground) on the board, and mounted the controller and inverter to the sheet metal. We wired everything with 12 gauge wire, placed 10 amp fuses between all the connections, added a switch to cut the power from the panels, and added a small 12 volt light from an auto parts store (so I can see everything when it is dark).
After connecting everything, we added the solar panel, and everything works as advertised. The panel will output around 20 volts or so in full sun, and with inefficiencies in the system, it will run about 65 watts worth of lights (measured with a Kill-a-Watt device) before it dips into the battery’s storage. I’ve drained the 8 amp hour battery down to 50%, and the panel will charge it to nearly 100% (indicated by a flashing light on the controller) in roughly a half hour. After 30 minutes of flashing, the controller will then drop its voltage from 14.4 down to 13.6 to go into float charge mode, and the battery is maintained and ready for usage.
I’ve been experimenting with my whole system for several weeks, and I’m confident (even with my lack of electrical knowledge) that I can take this set-up to my cabin and be able to have some basic electricity. I’ve run my electric drill, some LED light bulbs, and an iPad charger with no problems. The next step, though, is for me to get a bigger battery (8 amps goes quickly) and to buy a grounding rod/cable and expand the amount of amps that can go to the battery (the 10 amp fuse doesn’t allow for much juice).
Anyway, I highly recommend Renogy since their controller, panel, and cables all work as advertised (I’ll install it with the brackets soon). The packaging is excellent. The instructions were helpful. And overall, I will buy Renogy products in the future (possibly to expand the number of panels, soon).
Here are my notes:
1. I measured a full 22V of output right when I pulled it out of the box. While it was a clear day, the sun was not overhead…and I still measured full (or almost full) power. That’s pretty awesome.
2. The charge controller was very basic. I guess I don’t know what I expected, but it feels like a cheap science project box. You’ve just got some screw terminals and that’s it. I suppose the low amperage doesn’t require anything better, but I’d pay a little more for a box with a plug-in terminal instead.
3. Once you connect the mc-4 plugs (I think that’s the designation), good luck getting them apart.
4. The including wiring is quite long, and I believe the gauge is more than adequate (10ga, I think), but the wiring is aluminum. Not what I expected. Wondering if perhaps a run of copper would be better in terms of resistance…
5. The panel is lightweight, easy to mount on any surface with the included brackets, and all the components are good quality. For a “cheap” solar panel, this was a nice purchase.
BTW, my ArkPak has a 93ah battery installed. If I drain the battery down to 50%, this panel can charge it back up in less than 8 hours. That means I can take this setup camping and run a refrigerated cooler all day long PLUS recharge my laptop, phones, etc. and never worry about running out of juice. The setup will even run my 37″ TV (I tried it just for fun in the living room). Definitely recommend this setup if you’re a camper.
After installing the panels on the roof, I don’t plug the trailer in anymore to charge it. The entire system is capable of running a few light appliances like TVs, power drills, etc. It cannot run the air conditioner, microwave, or other high power appliance. I have not experienced running out of power at night, but then I haven’t really tried to stress it. One time when the power was out in the house, I used the system to run a light and a drill. Nice to have a backup power source.
Installation was easy, although I didn’t use the provided tiedown fasteners. I actually liked the tiedown fasteners described in the manual, which are rubber expanding bolts that hold the mounts secure from the back side. However, that was not what came with the panels. I found that the roof was actually something like 3/8 plywood decking, and used wood screws and proper roof sealant throughout.
One hint I would give is to NOT try out the snap in power connectors before you are ready. They are unbelievably difficult to get apart again.
I don’t know why everyone is so down on the controller. It works fine, and gives good status indications. Apparently the “ultimate” charge controller is supposed to be a Maximum power point tracking (MPPT) controller. But according to what I have read, this means it optimizes charging my knowing where the sun is at maximum, by remembering the peak power generation time of the panel. This would have no use in any case for a trailer, because that is going to change when you move the trailer.
The Solar Panel Starter Kit 100W Monocrystalline by Renogy had good reviews so I thought I would give it a try. I am pleased with what I received. The solar panel seems to well built. It is solid and well constructed. While there is a YouTube presentation ( [../] ) that tells you connect everything, It does not say anything about how to installing it on an RV. There is another YouTube presentation that explains how to install another product on an RV that is quite useful: […] . It was very easy to install the solar panel. Routing the cable was a little bit of a challenge. The above YouTube presentation recommends dropping the cable down the refrigerator vent. While this is a great idea, it would not work for me. Too far from batteries. I drilled a hole for each wire and ran the wires down behind some cabinets.
I sealed (waterproofed) the wires by pulling the wires up an inch and the putting cauking around the hole and wire and then pushing the wire down replenishing the cauking as I pushed it into the hole. Depending upon where you locate your solar panel on the roof and the routing you have to do, you may have to buy some more cable. An extra 5 ft of cable would be a nice addition to the kit. I also incased the wires and connections on top with split loom tube to protect it from the elements (sun and wind). It would have been nice if the slots for the wires in the monitor were a little larger. It was a little difficult to install the wires in them. By the way, back of the screws used to tighted down the wires in the moniter before you try to install the wires. They are screwed all the way in.
All in all, I am very please with the kit and would recommend it highly.