Portable solar panels from eBay

I got mine from Bits Deals on Ebay, very good to deal with.

Do NOT get any from a company based in Seven Hills Sydney as they 99% of the time supply incorrect sized panels.


Cheers Kev

Hi Old fellow
I brought a 120watt folding panel kit from bit deals. I mounted it to the roof rack of my Landcruiser for a "round Australia" trip. So it was exposed to the elements and would have felt all the vibrations and bumps encounted along the way.

It performed flawlessly. It cost $166 about 6 months ago. The whole unit was most probably cheaper than what some dealers ask for a regulator so of course I realise that the regulator is not top class, however it done what was ask of it.

Bit deals delivered within about 3 days and I am in a rural area. I am completely satisfied

Third recommendation for Bitdeals on Ebay. Panels have been of excellent quality and have now done 18 months on top of the tucktruck. Only disappointment has been how fast the price has dropped since I bought mine :-(

Without getting into a debate, I'd recommend an MPPT type controller if at all possible. (I've actually got the panels running "open circuit" into a Redarc BCDC mounted in the vehicle. This has an inbuilt solar controller)

Cheers Mick

Bought my 120W folding set from Low Energy Developments in Victoria (via Ebay). Not the cheapest, but they had a quality, clearly identified waterproof regulator in the kit, they took my phone call and answered my questions (try that with some other vendors) and the technical information on their web page was consistently accurate and not full of spelling errors (again, compare). I was also able to look up the regulator manufacturer's website and peruse the full technical specs of the device (try that etc. etc.). In my view, I got a quality kit at a fair price. Other vendors may well do the same.......

Hi The old fellow
I don’t know if you looking for real quality and want to spend bit more. After extremely bad experience with buying cheaper (not totally cheap) panel we splashed on this:

136 Watt Flexible Roll Out Solar Panel Charge Kit - MPPT Regulator & Accessories by RolaSolar for AU $795,~

https://www.rolasolar.com.au/solar-charge-kits.html/

We went for 2 months trip, most of it bush-bash on which panels were used very frequently as we slept only once in caravan park and they work like honey even in not so bright days. We usually hang them on heavy-duty suction hooks from our Troopy’s roof to the ground and they catch sunshine very effectively.
Yes, they are expensive, but than again “we are not a rich people, so we can’t afford to buy a cheap things”. It is good to know that we have after service & help only a phone call a way and also on Skype to Mr. David Gurman.

You can find about our bad experience and decision why we bought this pannels under this thread:
ThreadID: 100337 Date: 03 Feb 2013 10:43

Under heading:
“Bad experience buying 150W tri-fold panel from m2cptyltd.”

It is something to read about….

Otherwise good luck with purchase.
HooRoo Dana

Ditto Bit_Deals on Ebay.
I bought a 120W about 6 months ago which has an MPPT controller for $170 delivered.
100% satisfied

There was a thread a while ago on another forum, where a fairly reliable poster purchased a cheap & cheerfull folding solar pannel kit.

It all seemed as expected.

He fired it up and got out the test instruments...it performed nowhere near spec.

He then replaced all the cables with significanly heavier, relocated the regulator toward the battery end of the cable and fitted so decent terminals.

He measured nearly twice the output from the panels after the mods and they met the published specs.

Others on the same thread reported, various cheap hinges and catches, and how easy it was to replace them with much better off the shelf items.

The consensus was they there are some great value kits out there...especially if you are prepared to do ......a little tuning.

cheers

I've just purchased a 140 w kit from this seller on ebay:http://stores.ebay.com.au/ozplaza-living?_trksid=p2047675.l2563 The item was $185 delivered to Townsville and comes with its own 10 A Solar Controller/Regulator - I'll tell you next week if it can charge my 185 AH deep cycle battery..

Thanks to all for taking the time to reply to my post, the information was just what I was after, much appreciated
The Old Fellow

Just don't expect to get 120W from a 120W panel (or 160W from 160W panel etc).
Unless you have a very good mppt controller (the ones on the cheaper panels off ebay are not in that class) you won't get close. Probably 80-90W when feeding a 12V battery.

We're camping up in Alice for 6 mths in our camper trailer & have been relying on solar for our power needs. We bought a set of 255W panels off an ebay seller called Bestbuy-au...would not recommend him...poor communicator, panels arrived without instructions or warranty card, mppt reg was a cheap Chinese one. The regulator lasted 2 mths before we had to replace it then we had to rewire it & all up have cost us over $750. The seller wouldn't reply when we contacted him. He deserved the neg feedback he got. Ebay doesn't protect buyers enough & lets fraudulent sellers get away with blue murder. We regret not putting the money into something better quality as they're still not powering up enough for us...Collyn Rivers article makes a lot of sense & now realise we're going to need 500W to power up our fridge, fan, water pump & lights.

We bought a 120W Redarc panel for our Ark Pack recently & have to say Redarc were fantastic when we had to contact them over a couple of setting up issues. It pays to have a contact ph number if you need support.