Solar Panel Showdown: Sunpower VS Bifacial VS Used VS Renogy VS Rich Solar
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 4 พ.ค. 2021
- Solar Panels in the video (affiliate links):
Winner "T-series" 250W by Santan Solar: www.santansolar.com/product/s...
Bifacial 410W Panel: www.mobile-solarpower.com/300...
Renogy Eclipse Sunpower 100W: amzn.to/3y1Sw7i
Rich Poly 100W: richsolar.com/products/100-wa...
Rich Mono 200W: richsolar.com/products/200-wa...
Does off-grid solar confuse you?
Check out my DIY friendly website for solar system packages and product recommendations, and so much more! www.mobile-solarpower.com
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#1 largest solar forum on the internet for beginners and professionals alike:
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If DIY is not for you, but you love solar and need an offgrid system, check out EnergyPal! They will price out a system and get your house offgrid: energypal.com/diysolar/
My Solar Equipment Recommendations (Constantly updated! Check here first):
12V/48V Lithium Batteries: www.mobile-solarpower.com/sol...
Solar System Component Directory: www.mobile-solarpower.com/sol...
Complete 48V System Blueprint: www.mobile-solarpower.com/48v...
Plug-N-Play Systems: www.mobile-solarpower.com/ful...
Complete 48V System Kits: www.mobile-solarpower.com/com...
DIY Friendly Air Conditioner/ Heat Pumps: www.mobile-solarpower.com/sol...
My Favorite Online Stores for DIY Solar Products:
Signature Solar
Offgrid One-Stop-Shop. Best Value 48V LiFePO4, Victron and Offgrid Specific Heat Pumps:
www.signaturesolar.com/?ref=h...
Current Connected
SOK, Victron, Mr.Cool Heatpumps and High Quality Components:
currentconnected.com/?ref=wp
Ecoflow Delta
My favorite plug-n-play solar generator:
us.ecoflow.com/?aff=7
AmpereTime
Cheapest 12V batteries around:
amperetime.com/products/amper...
Renogy
A classic 12V solar store that has been around for ages!
renogy.sjv.io/n1VjXx
Rich Solar
Renogy's biggest competitor! Similar products, but at a better price:
richsolar.com/?ref=h-cvbzfahsek
Battery Hookup
Cheap cell deals
bit.ly/2mIxSqt
5% off code: diysolar
Contact Information:
I am NOT available for personal solar system consult! If you wish to contact me, this is my direct email: williamprowsediysolar@gmail.com
Join the forum at diysolarforum.com/ if you wish to hang out with myself and others and talk about solar
FTC Disclosure Statement and Disclaimers:
Every video includes some form of paid promotion or sponsorship. Some links on this youtube channel may be affiliate links. We may get paid if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these. My videos are for educational purposes only. Information is subject to change/update at any time. Electricity is DANGEROUS and can kill. Be smart and use common sense :)
DIY Solar Power with Will Prowse is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program,
An affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com
Does off-grid solar confuse you? Check out my DIY friendly website for solar system packages and product recommendations, and so much more! www.mobile-solarpower.com
Join our DIY solar community! #1 largest solar forum on the internet for beginners and professionals alike: www.diysolarforum.com
Check out my best-selling, beginner-friendly 12V off-grid solar book (affiliate link):
amzn.to/2Aj4dX4
If DIY is not for you, but you love solar and need an offgrid system, check out Tesla Solar. Low prices and great warranty, and they can take your entire house offgrid with their new Powerwalls: ts.la/william57509
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My solar equipment recommendations (Constantly updated! Check here first):
12V/48V Lithium Batteries: www.mobile-solarpower.com/solar-batteries.html
Solar System Component Directory: www.mobile-solarpower.com/solarcomponents.html
Plug-N-Play Systems: www.mobile-solarpower.com/full-size-systems.html
Complete 48V System Kits: www.mobile-solarpower.com/complete-48v-solar-kits.html
DIY Friendly Air Conditioner/ Heat Pumps: www.mobile-solarpower.com/solar-friendly-air-conditioners.html
Complete 48V System Blueprint: www.mobile-solarpower.com/48v-complete-system-blueprint.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My Favorite Online Stores for DIY Solar and Coupon Codes:
-Current Connected: SOK, Victron and High Quality Components. Best prices and warranty around: currentconnected.com/?ref=wp
-Signature Solar: Cheap Server Rack Batteries and Large Solar Panels:
www.signaturesolar.com/?ref=h-cvbzfahsek
-Ecoflow Delta Official Site: My favorite plug-n-play solar generator:
us.ecoflow.com/?aff=7
-AmpereTime: Cheapest 12V batteries around:
amperetime.com/products/ampere-time-12v-100ah-lithium-lifepo4-battery?ref=h-cvbzfahsek
-Rich Solar: Mega site and cheaper prices than renogy! Check them out:
richsolar.com/?ref=h-cvbzfahsek
-Shop Solar Kits: Huge site with every solar kit you can imagine! Check it out:
shopsolarkits.com/?ref=will-p
-Battery Hookup: Cheap cell deals
bit.ly/2mIxSqt
10% off code: diysolar
-Watts 24/7: Best deals on all-in-one solar power systems, with customer support and distribution here in the USA:
watts247.com/?wpam_id=3
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Contact Information:
I am NOT available for personal solar system consult! If you wish to contact me, this is my direct email: williamprowsediysolar@gmail.com
Join the forum at diysolarforum.com/ if you wish to hang out with myself and others and talk about solar
FTC Disclosure Statement and Disclaimers:
Every video includes some form of paid promotion or sponsorship. Some links on this youtube channel may be affiliate links. We may get paid if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these. My videos are for educational purposes only. Information is subject to change/update at any time. Electricity is DANGEROUS and can kill. Be smart and use common sense :)
DIY Solar Power with Will Prowse is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program,
An affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com
Dude, I lived on solar panels for 14 years in my motor coach, all you have to do to adjust your solar panels is look at the shadow. When you are watching the shadow go half way in between the 2 inclines and that your is peak angle( in other words make the shadow as long as you can make it). Very fast, works every time I've tested it with my meters hundreds of times. Here's a good trick get yourself one of those reflective emergency blankets and lay it on the ground in front of the panels so they reflect on to the panel and you will get more amperage out of the panel then it's actually rated 4, I used to do it all the time.
Great tips! I want to try the beer can shadow technique just for S&Gs. Will has used reflectors when in his van.
I was wondering if something reflective would increase amperage cool
I'm a professional power engineer and Will is a great example for me, an inspiration! His technical knowledge, his hands on ability and his way of teaching is just amazing! Keep at it Will!!!!
I am an unemployed guy who gets up after 10:00 a.m. I appreciate your contribution to the conversation.
I purchased 2 Rich Solar poly panels a few years ago based on your recommendations and haven't regretted that decision yet.
"We're gonna have to test them during summer" - I like the look of your winters
Funny, I just referred all my subscribers to your channel to help them with solar and up comes a new video by you! Keep up the awesome work!
It's great to see you doing actual side by side comparisons rather than theoretical comparisons we might see from someone else.
I bet those Bifacial panels will work better in the snow. Reflections on snow is likely to be higher.
So snow on and under is good?
On a boat? How well will water reflect?
Bring them to DC. Best snow job ever. Tic
or near water, etc
@@jeffroyal1554 It will also cool...maybe offset.. ?
You should try the 380W Heliene 72-Cell Bifacial North American Made Solar Panel. I am in Texas and was getting 445 watts from each panel today. I was blown away.
Holy cow!
Wow that is great output. Was it partially cloudy over head by any chance? The clouds do reflect sun, I watch my system on all kinds of days.
are they ground mounted or on a roof?
Everything is bigger in Texas.
Hey, I’ve been meaning to comment to thank you for your videos. They have been very helpful in building my solar work van and solar RV!
Your videos always get better and better. Thanks for such a well edited no fluff video.
thank u Will for all your hard work, for sharing not straying far from the titles/subjects of your TH-cam videos....reason to keep subscribing
I love these panel tests. Thanks for working in the heat
Thanks so much for the collector addition! Just yesterday I went digging, trying to find Will-level coverage on options.
Thanks for the great information and recommendations. I agree, small rv with limited roof space, I'm going to spring for the renogy/sunpower when I redo the electrical this summer.
It would be most interesting to me and others with space limitations to know the wattage per area and the cost per area, in addition to the cost per watt.
Thanks for the time your taking to explain and show what you're talking about. Great work! Keep it up. 🤙
Will, I've torn apart many Jinko solar panels. Willing to bet you either have some with bad solder connections or shorted diodes in the junction boxes. With the 29v you were stating I'd say most likely one bad diode (You get about 15v per diode on those ~400w 72/144 cell panels). If you pop the junction box cover you could probe the back with an ohm meter and see that one of those diodes is conducting both directions is my bet. I doubt SanTan intended to send you broken panels, unfortunate that so many were that bad off!
Will - all of your videos are just fun and informative!
That test stand is fantastic! In addition to angle adjust, maybe you could set a pivot so you can also adjust direction.
Thanks for your unbiased reviews !!
Will your youtube videos are awesome, they are for everyone , beginner to intermediate.
You are brilliant at explaining things to a beginner , in laymans terms.
Also someone who just wants to basically know how things work will enjoy your chanel.
You are an inspiration.
Love the Eclipse solar panels for camping stuff. Very reliable power output.
My 5-6 year old 435 watt grade B SunPower panels pulled 872 watts last May on 3 different cloudy days in the AZ mountains. On the perfect cloudy day they can actually do better than in full sun. Can't wait to try my grade A panels. Awesome Job today Will. This channel is awesome.
i bought my rich solar poly panels based on your opinion and videos. they often out perform their stc here in northern indiana.
This is a really good video with the systematic output check and comparisons. Thanks!
I gotta say... you're one of the best youtubers as far as what notes and explanations have really explained how things work. I'm a 25 yr old girl that just started using power tools and determining my own level of involvement in getting things done for the past three years. I am NOT an electrician. ..I feel like you could teach all of this stuff I've learned from you to a preteen even. Given that kid's interest and willingness to learn. But anyway, yeah just wanted to finally drop a thank you comment after all this time. Even another skoolie friend was saying to look into you in conversation the other day and I was like yes he's a geek I love him! Stay healthy stay happy, much love man ❤
Wow! Awesome test. 🙏🏽 Thanks so much.
Bought four of those bifacial panels for my build. I'm at 45 degrees latitude, and generating power in the winter will be far more of a concern than the summer. Looking forward to testing them.
Such an outstanding demo. I have four Eclipse on my 26’ RV with 300 amp battery bank. The Eclipse seem to make something out of almost nothing. Low angle performance so much better than my first system. During peak solar hours people did not believe my solar controller output numbers. Yep, they for sure outputted more than 100%.
Your enthusiasm is infectious. 😎
God bless
I love all your videos! I have copied your 200w system for my van with a cheap walmart 100ah SLA battery and a cheap Chinese pwm controller.
Because of my budget ive had to start off pretty cheap, but its been holding up for a year now! Probably cycled this battery too many times though and its getting about time to upgrade to a lithium iron phosphate battery!
Thanks for all the videos!
Love that test stand. Awesome comparison
Great video Will, cant wait for the winter to come and check my new bifacial array,
For the hot summer i only get 93-94 % rated wattage.
This is great video. I am trying to decide what panels to use.
Brilliant comparisons, as per usual!
I'm definitely curious to see someone who lives at high latitudes try out the bifacials and report back.
Evening. I have 6 of the San Tan Solar 250W panels mounted on a 5 x 12ft cargo camp trailer top and sides for 1.5KW off grid solar for my instapot / crockpot cooking setup. they work very well for me in south Arkansas with no need for generator backup. Batteries are 2 of the DIY 280AH lithium milkcrate builds in parallel from an earlier video. Thanks Will for your info and inspiration.
I have used Santan Solar and the used panels. I currently have 24 - 327w panels and they work great! When I did have an issue they were easy to work with and took care of my issues very quickly.
It might be fun looking at EL photos of those panels, especially the degraded ones. It also gives a good qualitiy indication of the production ( you can see cell cracks and defects ).
I buy the Renogy Eclipse solar panels not because I have limited space on my roof, but because I have limited space inside my class B RV and I need the smallest most efficient solar panels I can store inside.
Great test Will. I ordered a CIGS panel and am excited to try it out. I’m traveling and mailed it to my sons so will see. Bob Wells just gave me a Victron Charge Controller so will have fun with them both. The cigs are only 70watts so I may get another to run in parallel with the other.
Will you are the first person I have ever followed. I was building solar way back in the early 90s before it was so popular. I have truly enjoyed your vids. Then today I looked back at your posts. Very interesting. You have come so far. I have built systems for Rv’s, and boats. Have sailed a few thousand open ocean single handed miles built 30 some very efficient homes. Have had a great life. I am now 56 and am experiencing the effects of all I have done. Very cool to here how you have battled back from such a low. Doctors tell me I will lose use of my arms at some point, I don’t believe them. Anyway you have gotten my into lifepo4. Sold off a bunch of AGMs I had. Wow what a difference. When AGM came out it was a game changer, but no comparison to lifepo4. You would love some of my projects. My latest will be a 5th wheel I am putting a 24 volt system into. But I still have to have 12 volt for everything except the inverter. Can I use an mppt controller to charger the small 12 volt system from the 24 volt system? Ore is it better to use a dc to dc charger?
I watched the first review of the bi-facial panels and now this one. I was leaning heavily toward the purchase of them. But living in Central Texas where it gets hot I am a little concerned. They are very high on my list even after this. As it does get cold here as witnessed last winter lol. Thanks for all the truthful reviews. Have a great week. God bless.
Very inciteful test! Hopefully, the efficiency increases as the technology develops!
You appear a lot happier than you did a couple of years ago. I am glad to see it.
Thanks, Will. I think the bi-facials will perform better if more elevated from the ground, say about the height of a patio cover. At lot of the ads show this type of installation, especially if over concrete, near white if possible.
Thank you so much I'm learning God speed brother ⛺👍🇺🇸
You produce some of the most informative and easy to understand videos on this subject that I have seen. I would like to see the power per unit area (watts per square meter) added to your analysis. I am in the planning stages of adding solar to a boat and surface area is quite limited. Having an inexpensive solution would be nice but if that means my array is three times the size of my boat then it is not a practical solution.
I'm pumped. I got 4 of the 250 watt used panels and I love them. My BMS was bad so I need to get a new one. Power in but none out.
So glad to see those santan panels doing that well. I just picked up a pallet of them this afternoon.
I ordered a pallet yesterday so I agree - nice to see they're decent
@@goatyhomestead4583 the people there are really amazing and nice people. They spent extra time to help me load everything up and make sure I was taken care of.
Do they have snail trails?
@@alloyspeed1889 they offer both. I chose to purchase the ones with snail trails to save a few bucks.
That's what I heard as well. That they are really good will be ordering my soon
I love these tests. I was pulling 114 watts from a 100watt Renogy Solar Panel 12V Lightweight Semi Flexible Black Division Monocrystalline Bendable panel. Whereas my Topsolar 100watt flexible only brought 88 watts max.
What a fantastic video. Thanks Will.
Super helpful video Will. Much appreciated.
Absolutely right with the bifacial panels doing well in northern latitudes. Way up north in Canada, a simple mirrored reflector aimed at the back side of those panels year round would help. Tilt is a big factor for us also. If you absolutely had no option for a mirrored reflector, even the snow on the ground reflects a lot of energy. I know a bunch of people who would reconsider solar with those panels.
Awesome Will. Sunpower Maxeons are the number 1 panel we install in Australia!
This was perfect, I was wondering this exact question.
Thanks, fir the amazing content, as always, please test Sunpower Panels in partly shaded conditions, or other panels with bypass diodes. Seems like it might be very interesting for Vanlifers.
Will, I think the Bi-facials are very sensitive to mounting orientation. The surface facing the back side of the panel should be in as much direct sunlight as possible. Elevating the panel so that sun strikes the ground under the panel should. keep up the good work.
Excellent panel comparison Will, thanks!
Just curious, all of these tests were performed at your ideal sun angle for peak performance and results varied widely from rated output. What would happen if these panels were tested while significantly off axis from direct sunlight? As RV owners know, most panels are firmly mounted to the roof for safety and spend most of their lives off axis, or in other significantly less than ideal conditions like cloud cover. Would a single large panel say 400w typically outperform 4 x 100w panels in parallel under the same off-axis conditions due to the higher voltage output of the single panel?
This might make for a fun real-world comparison test that can guide future RV solar systems to maximize output from limited roof space. Cheers!
Thanks Will. I live in San Diego. I got the idea what u said. It not worth ... will b too heavy for roof. Tnanks. Glad I see this video.
Thanks for all the time you put into these kind of tests, and ideas we come up with then suddenly see you are saving us time by already having tested it...such as reflective materials helping the panels etc. :)
Renogy's basic panels may not be the best, but they have some killer sales sometimes.
IE: Can buy 2 100 Watt panels for the price of 1 Eclipse Panel
Still truly impressed this is all self taught
Sorry you had to be in the sun all day though. Keep up the Great work.
Now i know which channel to look to when I'm ready to build my first solar powered system for this channel.
Great work testing bro.
💫Love the new test station!👍
I have two of those eclipse 100w renogy panels on my jeep and they work fantastic even with a fixed flat mount. They also work well in partial sun - I had decent output even in mixed snow flurry conditions. :)
Must keep it a lot cooler with the shade?
Love your videos! Keep it up.
Would be nice to see some high resolution thermal images on this channel...
Thank you for your videos
12:46 I could just tell by the look on your face that you really love and understand what your were talking about.
heya love to see all the test's you are doing so I don't have to do them my self and know what I have to bay myself thanks
My friend has quite a few of those 250w santan panels and we both went about 6 months ago and he bought 4 more, tested them all, and they each pulled about 230-245 w a piece. I bought a jinko 40w panel for 200$ and it was pulling 390w when I tested it alone, bought I have it paired now with an LG 335 bifacial one. The Jinko is not even close to the lG in build quality, but it does work really well.
Cool rack. I like that it is adjustable. Good job. Also, nice review and report. Consider a 1 Gal. Pump Sprayer from home depot. They are like $10 for 1 gallon. Old Windex bottle didn't put out enough water. I often wonder why there are not more auto-sprinkler setups to cool down solar panels. I have a canal behind my house and thought if I ever get panels (Miami, FL) I would rig up a sprinkler system to cool them off. We are pretty constant temp 70-95. Thanks for sharing.
Excellent video. Excellent information. You are the gold standard of solar.
I would like to congratulate you on owning your first home. I grew up on the streets with no family so having a home is very important to me. I've been watching and studying your videos and have decided to start my own youtube channel. It will be geared towards mountain biking camping survival and so on. But I wanted you to know that you are no only a great teacher but a inspiration to me. Thank you. It is because of your inspiration Iv decided to move forward and create my own youtube channel. Perhaps when covid is over and you are visiting Canada you could stop by for a visit
THANKS
consistency is important
COOP
...
Went to Amazon to pick up your book. Hadn't seen your vids about your health and what got you into this stuff and read your Bio while I was there. As a Type 1 Diabetic since '92 who has been working to figure out how to correct it, it's like we're thinking the same. When I tell people we're really a machine, no different to diagnose than a small block Chevy, an EV, or a cargo vessel I always get the blank stare... Just recently swapped my "hacked", 15 year old insulin pump that I'd been soldering together for years, in for a new-to-me used one that the manufacturer won't update or repair if it breaks. They didn't like when I told them I already replaced the battery on their $8000 dollar machine and I WILL be installing their encrypted firmware update... Thanks so much for what you do, why you do it and the integrity with which you approach it!
Maybe you should try the bifacial panel at the higher angle, but put the reflective surface... white stucco would be good, about 12 feet behind the panel. Try to get as much light as possible to reach the back of the panel. This way you are recognizing their creature and working to maximize it.
Another informative and entertaining video from Will.
I do enjoy listening to the technical content of Will's presentation moreover the nuances of intellect, refinement and humour that is expressed in his oral presentation.
Given all the tests on the solar panels he conducted, has peeked my curiosity of the 275 watt? Solar Panel fitted on roof of my motorhome. I wanna know exactly watt that panels' specs are and how it's performing.
I love when he says “they were horrific”
No punches pulled..
I use that word as well. I love this young man so much. I wish he were my son. My sons are amazing too, but I just want to give Will a hug.
ha
Yes he’s so enthusiastic about all things solar. Love him!
@@maggiesjourney3877 same here. I second that.
I'm sure all the testing for comparo vids sucks. But these are my favorite to watch.
0:48 Ayyy that looks like an SOK! haha my 206er is still purrrrin. Thanks for what you do.
I'd LOVE to see you do testing under reduced lighting conditions to replicate a cloudy day, maybe toss a translucent plastic sheet over them and redo the tests you just did.
awesome video with honest testing methods and honest results too.....Will Prowse is the Mobile Solar Power Guru....
Great more bifacial testing and on a rack, thanks. I've had a heat dissipation idea for my bifacial panels en route, to use in our Latitudes and hotter areas, especially with low wind.
Why not try adding cold water misters (rope style, like ya get walking into a store) mounted underneath, tucked in the frame?
I have 4 of the Renogy black 100-watt Solar Panel. there great I love them.
I would have measured whilst increasing the pitch angle ... AND while decreasing back down to confirm any variation in sunlight...
Good work man !
From the Emerald Isle
😎👍☘🍺
Extremely good evaluation sir
This is an excellent review. A+
Very informative. Thank you.
Very cool!!... your test rack is very cool!!😊👍😎
Young man, your a genius
THANKS WILL ! TAKE CARE..
As always --great vid!
I like the idea of the rack and charge controller with batteries good work, Things that I would improve are State of charge of the small of a bank of batteries maybe add a load while doing the test, height of rack for bifacial front edge 3ft min "higher the better" in my experience, I am skeptical of the small charge controller maybe compare only panels of similar voltage and size with a larger charge controller 40amp rated etc. The panels must be the same temp or close to before the test. Again great work I enjoy watching your experiments and tests.
For my van I have 4-100W Renogy panels but not the Eclipse variant.
For my Cargo Trailer build, I am going to consider the Trina 415W panel.
I was really interested in the bi-facial panels because I live in Massachusetts with low sun angles, but the rear face output is unpredictable.
Have Battle Borns for the van, two pairs of different age AGMs that I already own for the trailer, I will keep the AGM pairs separate and put a switch after the charge controller to charge either set. One set dedicated to CPAP.
do a shade output test
That’s a nice rig. I would love to see an head to head DSSR20 vs MPPT same rig side by side 1 week
Sunpower have some amazing tech, just difficult to get at a consumer level beyond the flex panels
Need some insight to AGM… absorption times, cyclic voltage, float voltage bulk and absorption voltages when using victron inverter chargers
The used Santan T-Series 250 watt panels are amazing. Have three flat mounted on a van. They were $35 each on sale from SanTan. Storm rolled through yesterday and dumped rain followed quickly by peak sunlight (north central Florida). The rain cooled 750 watt array (3x250w) produced almost 900 watts until the panels heated up again. Amazing value!
Impressive thank you for sharing this
Cools the van via shade, right?
@@johnfitbyfaithnet Yes, I have them flat mounted on a rack above the roof and fans so it keeps the sun off the roof and the fans as well as protecting them from hail, etc. I've since the sold the van but I was happy with the setup and the new owner is too.