Looking for suggestions on solar panels and chargers for emergency (power out) lights

mckeand13

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With recent a recent power outage, I'm put a concerted effort into upgrading my household emergency kit.


One piece of the puzzle, is power generation, and how I can charge batteries. I've got an OK stock of batteries (both primary & li-ions), but I'd feel better if I were charging at the same time as I'm consuming.


I'm thinking I would like a solar panel that is capable of powering a charger. Right now I've got a Nitecore D4 which is a fantastic charger, but I certainly don't need the display or the fancy features in the situation.


Looking for a recommendation on a solar panel and a small charger that is capable of charging 16340, 18650, and Eneloop AA (desirable). I'd like the charger to be "family friendly" as in anybody can put any cell in it without issue and without having to set anything.


Solar Panels:
Goal Zero Nomad7 - looks nice, but 7W seems to be a bit short in capacity. Some chargers ruled out due to power high power consumption.
Goal Zero Nomad13 - questionably capable of providing the 12V @ 1A (12W) to power some of the chargers


Charger:
Xtar XP1 – Seems to fit most of the wishes. Charges AA & 16340, but not 18650. Bummer. USB cord would plug right into the solar panel, and I might even be able to use a Nomad7. The charger consumes 2.5W ([email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>)
Xtar MC1 plus – Nice and compact but won't charge nimh.
Xtar VC2 – won't charge nimh.
Xtar SP1 – won't charger nimh. High input power.
Nitecore i2 – Chargers both nimh & li-ion in the sizes I'm after. I'd probably have to make a cordset to connect the output from the panel to the 12VDC input to the charger.
Nitecore UM10 – won't charge nimh.


Any other suggestions on brands/models, particularly on the panels?
 

Rider57

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As someone who recently went on the market for these things i know how frustrating, outdated and plain out pita it is to read through old forums and google searches. So ill help, or atleast try.

1st :forget about the solar panel/powerbank all in one (the ones that look like ipads)

2nd: for an emergency and even camping a high/medium powerbank is a must for several reasons. On a cloudy day were light to the panel is intermittent, your batterys will take for ever to charge. You dont want to baby sit batterys all day or leave them plugged in wasting pottential charging energy. Best to have a powerbank and charge your batterys off of that then just leave the bank charging during the morning.

3rd: many many brands out there, very few good ones, even less reliable ones.

Things to consider
What are you charging? 5v, 12v - 0.5-1.0a (cellphones li-ions) or 1.5-2.1a (tablets/quick charging) this will determine the specs and the wattage.

Price.....

Size

Durability

Portability

Last but not least warranty!

I looked everywhere and read alot of reviews and finally choose these

Solar panel: All Powers 16w panel. 3.1 amps split to 2 usb ports, one at 1.0a and the other at 2.1a. Small, light and strong enough to charge everything i need it too. One year warranty.

Powerbank: (my main one) Anker 2nd Gen Astro E3 Ultra Compact 10000mAh, great little powerbank, very capable, 18 month warranty, great customer service (personal experience)




Both charge my phone, tablet, powerbanks, 18650s, 14500s as fast as an ac connected charger, in most cases even better at 2.1amps. Both use intelligent charge tech that stops charging the device when its full and both charge at the maximum safe amperage the device supports.

Allpowers also has a 14w 18v panel if you need to charge car batterys and such.

Goodluck

Edit, As far as a usb nimh charger, dont know of one, im looking for one too
 
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Str8stroke

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You are missing a huge element in your Emergency System!!!

Best way to charge is use a panel to charge a "Storage Battery", Then use the "Storage Battery" to run your charger and what not. You can skip the rest of the my post if you want. lol

Since you said Household and didn't say a budget. I am gonna throw a idea out, Family Friendly is easy once the system is set up.

You can set this up in a window or on a porch or driveway.

I suggest a Sealed Lead Acid battery, like in a computer UPS, Home alarm back up, or Razor scooter battery (got it?). Those are places where used ones can be found. I wouldn't go under 6Ah.

Use that to fead a NiteCore I4. Not the best charger in the world, but it is flexible and works well. Any $20 Five watt panel and $10 solar controller will work. Then get you a cigaret 12 volt socket wired to battery and a USB plug.

Now for under a $100 total and a little time, you are fully flexible and can charge at NIGHT!! With a system that will last years!! Your panel idea first mentioned will only charge in full sun. Not a good idea. Unless your power only goes out in nice weather, on sunny, clear days???

Want to do it cheaper, get a panel that has a Cig lighter already on it, hook straight to battery with a Cig 12 volt plug. That way you can skip buying a controller.
 
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reppans

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Here are some of my rigs, primarily standardized around NiMh, USB and Li-ion. They're all pretty good depending upon your priorities - mine happens to portability (for outages while traveling, and off-grid camping). I have an RV generator, so home power outages are covered. As low lumen/night vision enthusiast, a single Eneloop can easily last me a week, with my iPhone probably being the greatest consumer of power - I think could survive with just the 4oz/1.5w Powerfilm 2AA/USB charger.

20175081675_b9013995e5_z.jpg


18340299003_1f3b2a0355_z.jpg


If you go USB, I highly recommend this Drok Ammeter/Voltmeter, it has clock to track mah.
19525455206_accbf26209.jpg
 

mckeand13

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There are several existing threads on these topics. Do a search for 'solar panel', 'emergency preparedness', and/or 'solar charging' and see what you come up with.

Yeah, the search works great. If I want information from about 2009....
 

mckeand13

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This is a lot of good info. Thank you.

It will take me a bit of time to read through, understand all of the detail, and research some of the products you guys are using.
 

mckeand13

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What usb nimh charger are you using?

Don't currently have one, I'm looking for one. Right now I only have a Nitecore D4, but I could use something simpler and smaller for power outage charging.
 

Rider57

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Oh wow looks like were all looking for one good deal, 3 birds with one stone. Now quick! Someone recommend a good one!
 

KeepingItLight

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You are missing a huge element in your Emergency System!!!

Best way to charge is use a panel to charge a "Storage Battery", Then use the "Storage Battery" to run your charger and what not. You can skip the rest of the my post if you want. lol

I suggest a Sealed Lead Acid battery, like in a computer UPS, Home alarm back up, or Razor scooter battery (got it?). Those are places where used ones can be found. I wouldn't go under 6Ah.

I see you are recommending a seal lead-acid battery rather than a Li-ion power bank of similar capacity.

What are some of the advantages?

Thanks in advance.
 

braddy

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Many of the chargers we own charge from the car cigarette lighter, wouldn't it be best to just shop for the best solar panel with car battery clips, to keep our car battery topped off, as we charge our batteries from the cigarette lighter?
 

Timothybil

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Many of the chargers we own charge from the car cigarette lighter, wouldn't it be best to just shop for the best solar panel with car battery clips, to keep our car battery topped off, as we charge our batteries from the cigarette lighter?
Doing that without using a charge controller is very inefficient, as well as possibly causing problems.

If you are looking for a portable setup, the best combo is a folding set of solar panels, one or more power banks, and the devices to be charged. To be specific: I have the Anker 14w folding solar panel that ouputs 10w to two USB ports. I have two 15000 mAh power banks that can charge from the Anker, and have just ordered an Xtar VC4 USB charger that will charge both Li-Ion and NiMH cells. I had originally put together a boost circuit I bought on EBay to convert USB to 12v so I could use my i4 v2 charger, but won't need that now with the Xtar.

There is one branch of solar believers that do a lot of backpacking and the like who like the smaller 7w panels because of weight issues. They have their own favorite panels in that class. There are others who favor the semi-portable rigid panels in the 50w and 100w class, complete with charge controllers and SLA batteries. You really have to determine what you are trying to accomplish, how much energy that will take, and the best way to obtain that energy.

And yes, I know there are a lot of older threads out there. But I know of at least two threads from earlier this year that were rather comprehensive in covering all these topics. If I get the time I will look them up.
 

braddy

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The MH-C9000, the Nitecores, the ThruNite Charger MCC-2, and all the other chargers that come with/or offer cigarette lighter adapters, shouldn't be used in our cars?
 

Midnight.Sun

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I see that you have chosen Goal Zero products, great choice IMO, you will find everything you need there, power banks from all typs and sizes (NiMh, Li-Ion, LA), check also their accessories and lightening sections, i think everybody will find that LIGHTHOUSE 250 (Lantern/PowerBank) with solar panels/USB or hand crank chargeing system, a very attractive device!! :twothumbs

My only advice to you is that you go with the Nomad 20, it will be more efficient IMO.
 
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reppans

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Looking for suggestions on solar panels and chargers for emergency (power out...

What usb nimh charger are you using?

Oh wow looks like were all looking for one good deal, 3 birds with one stone. Now quick! Someone recommend a good one!

There are three USB>NiMh chargers shown in my pix - GZ Guide 10+ (4cell); Sanyo Eneloop AAA/AA (1 or 2 cell); and Klarus CH1 Li-ion/NiMh (1cell). Course there's also 2 dedicated Powerfilm NiMh chargers shown too.
 

Timothybil

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The MH-C9000, the Nitecores, the ThruNite Charger MCC-2, and all the other chargers that come with/or offer cigarette lighter adapters, shouldn't be used in our cars?
If that is a reference to my statement, what I was referring to was using a solar panel to charge the car battery on a regular basis. Doing so without a charge controller is not a problem for the small panels sold to trickle charge the battery to keep it up. But in a situation where one will be placing a sustained load on the car battery and then recharging it with a higher output solar panel, a charge controller is a definite need.
 

braddy

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I see now, but does that mean that post 12 makes sense, as long as we use a small solar panel with a controller?
 

Father Azmodius

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On the cheap......HF 45w set up, a $30 charger controller from NewEgg if I remeber correctly and some batteries (1 deep cycle, and some gel hobby batteries I had laying around)











The panels don't give you enough amps to run directly, so storage batteries are essential.
 

Father Azmodius

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In a pinch you can charge nimh AA cells in solar walkway lamps. The larger panels hold 3







I live out in the woods and it's not uncommon to lose power. I have a backup generator and the solar panels as a backup backup. In the mean time they power landscape and exterior accent lights.
 
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