Questions and Answers for NATURE POWER 180-Watt Monocrystalline Solar Panel with Charge Controller

A:  100% failure rate of all my charge controllers, DO NOT USE!!! FIRE hazard. But the panels are great. the charge controllers will either burn out or cause a FIRE!!!

A:  The charge controller included can only handle up to a 180W solar panel. if more panels are connected, a new charge controller would be required, that can handle the out put of the new solar array. Please feel free to call our customer service line at 1800-588-0590. (9AM-5PM, Est time) for any questions or concerns.

A:  ALL 5 OF my Natures power Charge controllers have failed. They are a FIRE hazard. after the burned out, i payed over $600.00 to get a top rated controller that will handle the current and voltage of all 5 panels at once. Cheap compared to the fire risk of a cheap controller that will not last a week. One controller had an open circuit out of the box brand new (at least it was not a fire hazard). At first i thought the panel was dead. But it was the worthless charge controller i had to diagnose. in all a 100% failure rate on those DANGEROUS worthless charge controllers.

A:  What are you trying to do? The question makes no sense.

A:  The solar panels always need a battery to provide power to the DC loads(inverter). you will need a battery and an inverter. The solar panels are not designed to supply DC power directly to the DC loads(inverter) but through a battery in the middle (in addition to the fluctuations in the sunlight condition, solar panels have high output resistance that avoids a continued and regulated supply of power demanded by the DC loads. [please feel free to contact Nature Power tech support line at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions or concerns.

A:  Thanks for your question. 12 volt solar chargers are always 18 volts but marketed as 12 volt solar charging systems. It is an industry standard. The voltage fluctuates and drops down once connected to the charge controller and a load. Thanks. Nature Power Tech Support Team

A:  Looks like they updated the manual. https://images.homedepot-static.com/catalog/pdfImages/2d/2db81ff2-320a-4e98-a8fb-a1fc061352e4.pdf 18.94 V voltage at Pmax 9.51 A current at Pmax

A:  The solar panels always need a battery to provide power to the DC loads(inverter). The solar panels are not designed to supply DC power directly to the DC loads(inverter) but through a battery in the middle (in addition to the fluctuations in the sunlight condition, solar panels have high output resistance that avoids a continued and regulated supply of power demanded by the DC loads. [please feel free to contact Nature Power tech support line at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions or concerns.

A:  all this hi tec work for these results. i have a camper w/honda1000 w gen 100a convert0r 1000 ihvertor w/30 a converter and can setup in 30mins total cost 1350$ kplus fuel for 7 years heavy use. had hoped that costs , efficiency would have iimproved at one time i calculated one for home would be 20k$ and used up in 20yr since then ca chg to hook up instlallef want some of the power and a maint contracttat home juice is a kw watch this will b grandfathered into new constr in ca. oh i ran a cord and powered 2 refrigs t v and a couple lts for 2wk powerr outage here. i dry camp alot and run a sattelite tv a ljot. dand i believe i made the righjt decision a llong time ago.

A:  Yes, you might have to change the plug!

A:  No if by inverter you mean a power inverter that converts DC to AC. These panels (minus the charge controller) can be used to charge a solar generator such as Jackery Explorer 500 or a Bluetti AC50S.

A:  No, that generator can not handle 180W solar panel input, Please call Nature Power at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions.

A:  Yes, however you might have to replace the plug! We did using Anderson connectors...works great!

A:  You might have to change or wire the plug! We had to order Anderson connectors! My husband had it up and running quickly

A:  Yes, you can use this panel with our 110W kits, connecting both panels by using a 2-in-1 SAE connector. However, an upgrade on the charge controller would be needed. the minimum charge controller needed connecting those 2 panel, with a total output of 290W would be at lease 20A charge controller or higher. Please feel free to contact Nature power tech support at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions.

A:  There are numerous solar battery options these days. Choices are often largely influenced by the size of your solar array, purpose: light power needs (recharging phones, laptops, etc.) vs major power drainage (refrigerators, A/Vs, entire RV or small homes, etc.), and solar equipment location (home/rv/van). Plus consider your budget as the higher end options (lithium-ion based) tend to be much lighter and tolerate high-drainage much better (providing more usable stored power per rated Ah battery), are more expensive per Ah, although longer life and cheaper over the longer run. Lifepo4 is a popular/stable lithium type and some prices are coming down. However many starter or smaller solar systems opt for flooded lead acid batteries (deep cell), AGM (Absorbent Glass Matt), or Gel batteries. But just don't use standard car-starter batteries in any case. When choosing a battery type and size you should consider 1. Battery Capacity (Ah - Amp Hours) 2. Charging Time, 3. Ease and Space of Installation, and once again 4. budget. But as a general rule, funds aside, the more limited space, weight and higher capacity power needs the more an investment in lithium batteries makes sense (especially for travel vehicles). The more fixed locations, flexible of requirements, and limited funds the more an AGM style battery may work for less demanding power needs and limited budgets. But remember, an 100Ah Lifeo4 battery tolerates 80-100% rated Ah drainage (Dod) = TWO 100Ah AGM batteries @ 50% allowable drainage. Lithium batteries will discharge and charge at much higher rates, plus last 2-3 times longer (5-15 years vs 2-3 years). And weigh 60-70% less as well! So it you can afford $600-$1200 for a 100Ah-150Ah lifeo4 battery and can benefit from their higher performance then go to it. But if not then deep-cycle batteries may work just fine for 2-3 years for you. And give you time to save for lithium batteries, if desired, in the future. See more info on-line for more specific applications, options, and pricing.

A:  Deep cycle , 12 V marine battery. you can find them in the market under multiple brands. There are many different types, Gel , AGM, flooded, no-flooded... Etc.. Prefreably, Sealed for no maintaince.Please feel free to contact nature power tech support at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions or concerns.

A:  Anything will work, lead acid as long as you keep up with the water levels, AGM's are install and forget for 8 years, Gel cell are finicky, LiPo is a waste of money.

A:  The answer is yes, you can connect those panels, splicing the wire and connecting negative on positive to increase Voltage to 24V array, similar to what you would do connecting 2 x 12V batteries in series to increase voltage to 24V. This is a 12V panel. the 18V-22V is the maximum voltage produced when solar panel is not connected to a bttery through a solar charge controller. please feel free to contact Nature Power tech support at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions.

A:  TO fully charge a 12volt battery you have to actually take the battery voltage upwards of 14.7 volts. The higher the voltage the panel is the better at charging it will be. You can use a 36 volt panel to charge a 12 volt battery, the battery is a capacitor and will only accept its proper voltage. But since it has a charge controller thats what it does and it shuts down the panel when the batteries are fully charged. So yes you can put 4 of these in series and the properly sized charge controller will neck that down to a proper voltage for your batteries.

A:  It is really about 18 volts but the charge controller is supposed to limit that voltage. The panels are good, but Never use these dangerous charge controllers. Not only do they not work 5 out of 5 failed. They are a FIRE Hazard, DO NOT put them in your RV or you might not survive. Purchase a working good quality one to go with the panels, and they will then work fine.

A:  The 12Vdc refers to the system, such as a 12V system or a 24V system. The Charge Controller regulates at 12Vdc to charge batteries and needs a minimum of 12.8Vdc input from a solar panel to operate. The solar panel maximum output is 18Vdc. The actual max. voltage with no load can be 18.9Vdc X the current of 9.51 = 179.7. Connecting solar panels in series depends on the charge controller input voltage limit. If it is only 12Vdc capable then solar panels can be connected in parallel to increase the current. How many solar panels are connected in parallel also depends on the charge controllers current limit.

A:  The description left out operating voltage and open circuit voltage figures but the first one can be calculated with provided watts and operating amps (180/9.51) to be 18.93V. Around 18V solar panel is typical for charging nominal rated 12V batteries (charging voltage is usually around 14V). Having a higher initial voltage, about 18V, is much needed to account for less ideal sun situations (time of day, season, angle of panel to sun, etc). But no worry, the included current controller will step down the voltage to the level ideal for charging your device or battery. Any excess voltage will simply be ignored/blocked through the included PWM low-amp controller. Never directly plug a device into a solar panel without first going through a controller of some sort (a few have one built in, but are typically very low wattage). For this one panel the included simple controller may be fine, but adding similar wattage panels will require a higher amp rated controller, and an MPPT type will help maximize your panel output throughout the day, and convert any excess voltage into usable amp power, so your usable output could be 10%-40% higher, especially in winter time.

A:  Yes you can , regardless of the size or wattage rating as long as they are 12V. Please call nature power tech support at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions or concerns.

A:  Depends on whether hooked up in series or parallel, as well as whether all three are same voltage rating.

A:  This Panel can charge any size deep cell battery, it will give you about 50Ah per day into your battery, regardless of the battery size. Please call nature Power tech support at 1800-588-0590 for any more questions.