Backpacking Solar Panel v2
Posted: Mon Apr 17, 2023 7:56 pm
I carried a Suntastic 5 watt panel on 3 JMT trips and it did a good job keeping our Steripens and my iPhone and camera batteries charged. I had it secured to the top of my pack and it would slowly recharged devices as I hiked above the tree line. When we took breaks I would make sure the panel was sitting in full sun when possible.
I bought a Big Blue 14 watt panel last week. The panels and USB controller work great but I didn't like the 4 fold format. I removed all the fabric holding the Big Blue together and reconfigured it into a bifold version It now only wieghs 8.7 ounces compared to the original 12.7 ounces. I replaced the heavier fabric with some ripstop nylon and used some plastic pieces and adhesive to join each of two pairs of panels together to make it a bifold. I put some 3/16" shock cord loops around the perimeter of the panels so I can tie them off to the top of my pack when hiking.
I tested it yesterday under a full sun. I discharged the NiteCore NC10000 battery bank fully when charging other devices. I plugged it into the bifold 14 watt panel and it took 4.5 hours to fully charge the 36 watt-hour battery bank. I used a USB meter when charging it. It passed 38 watt-hours of solar energy when charging the battery bank. I saw a peak of 9.8 watts and it stayed above 9 watts until the last half hour or so when the battery bank was almost fully charged so the current was being throttled. My wife and I will each carry a NiteCore NC10000 battery bank and alternate each battery bank on the solar panel.
The BigBlue 14 watt panel can be purchased for $34 which is a bit less than the Suntastics 5 watt panel I bought more than a decade ago. I am glad to have a reasonable sized panel that provides better than an effective watt per ounce.
I like using the FarOut GaiaGPS apps and on my iPhone when hiking so it is good to have a way to keep the phone charged. We recharge the Steripens about every 5-7 days as needed. I have extra batteries for my Fuji X-H2 so I don't need to recharge it. My Kindle can go weeks without a charge with the Wifi turned off. It saves a lot of weight compared to paperback books. I have a Garmin Inreach Messenger and Garmin Fenix 7X watch that both can last for weeks without recharging so they can be recharged on resupply days.
I bought a Big Blue 14 watt panel last week. The panels and USB controller work great but I didn't like the 4 fold format. I removed all the fabric holding the Big Blue together and reconfigured it into a bifold version It now only wieghs 8.7 ounces compared to the original 12.7 ounces. I replaced the heavier fabric with some ripstop nylon and used some plastic pieces and adhesive to join each of two pairs of panels together to make it a bifold. I put some 3/16" shock cord loops around the perimeter of the panels so I can tie them off to the top of my pack when hiking.
I tested it yesterday under a full sun. I discharged the NiteCore NC10000 battery bank fully when charging other devices. I plugged it into the bifold 14 watt panel and it took 4.5 hours to fully charge the 36 watt-hour battery bank. I used a USB meter when charging it. It passed 38 watt-hours of solar energy when charging the battery bank. I saw a peak of 9.8 watts and it stayed above 9 watts until the last half hour or so when the battery bank was almost fully charged so the current was being throttled. My wife and I will each carry a NiteCore NC10000 battery bank and alternate each battery bank on the solar panel.
The BigBlue 14 watt panel can be purchased for $34 which is a bit less than the Suntastics 5 watt panel I bought more than a decade ago. I am glad to have a reasonable sized panel that provides better than an effective watt per ounce.
I like using the FarOut GaiaGPS apps and on my iPhone when hiking so it is good to have a way to keep the phone charged. We recharge the Steripens about every 5-7 days as needed. I have extra batteries for my Fuji X-H2 so I don't need to recharge it. My Kindle can go weeks without a charge with the Wifi turned off. It saves a lot of weight compared to paperback books. I have a Garmin Inreach Messenger and Garmin Fenix 7X watch that both can last for weeks without recharging so they can be recharged on resupply days.