Customer Reviews

Sunforce 50022 5-Watt Solar Battery Trickle Charger

5 star:		(64)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(11)

 

 

I live on a river and built a campsite on an island across from my house (the dog loves it). I bought a deep-cycle marine battery but am getting too old to lug it in and out of the canoe for charging. So I got this little panel and, so far, have not run out of juice. And it's cheap enough so if someone steals it it's no big tragedy. I run a laptop, TV, fluorescent light and charge my cell phone. I even have a 12v car-vac to clean the sand out of the tent.

Of course, I'm not there 95% of the time so 5 watts is probably adequate. And I don't have to worry about overcharging. I screwed it to a big log in pretty open sun. So far, it has survived, even some small hail.

BTW, I use the power cord from an old vacuum cleaner and a 4-way 12v splitter to distribute power from the battery.

In 2006 I took a 3 week vacation out of the country. I left my car at the airport and away I went. Upon my return, I had to have the battery boosted for 15 minutes before it would turn my car's engine on. I have no idea what caused the drain (Sattelite Radio memory, car's other computers, etc), but I had to do something to prevent a $50.00 boost call in the future. A coworker told me about these devices and how his brother uses them to keep his mobile home powered when parked. Higher wattage products are sold, but if all you're doing is keeping a car battery charged, 5 watts is plenty of power for the job. No other devices (charger controllers) are needed. The charger comes with a couple of ways to hook up to the battery (direct battery terminal clips, cigarette lighter plug). I used the cigarette plug. Just plug it in to the power port, and lay the solar energy collector side face up on your dashboard. For those with heavily tinted windshields, I have no idea if the tint would cause a problem with the panel's energy collection.

This year, after returning from another 3 week trip (and using the solar charger), my battery started better than it did before my trip to the airport!

I recently ordered one of these panels (June 2007). The first one arrived shattered - the manufacturer packaging does not protect the panel much and it was inadequately packaged in the shipping box by Amazon. The replacement unit was also badly packaged for shipment.

I tested the electrical output in full sunlight and got 20V out into a 100 ohm load -> 4 watts which is pretty good.

One thing to consider though is that this product is not very rugged. The solar panel has a plastic frame but the middle is unprotected on the back (and front). So unless you handle it very carefully it is likely to break.

Someone using this on a car dashboard would need some sort of protective carrier (like those insulated pizza boxes) to protect the unit when it was not being used.

------------ Update Dec 2007 ----------------

Panel stopped producing electricity in November. Had to send it in to Sunforce at my expense for warrantee replacement. They promptly tested it and sent me a replacement. One thing I did notice is that the plastic housing on the unit that I returned had developed some small cracks. I am using the unit on my car dashboard to keep my battery charged.

Performed as stated. Keeps my deep cycle marine battery charged. When I
leave my boat after sailing for 2-3 hours my 12V LED volmeter reads system
at 11.85 volts and the next day it is charged to 12.80 after receiving sun
for 10hrs. Tops it off - trickle charge as stated.

I took this on my one month trip to the Colorado mountains and used it daily. It kept my batteries charged that I use to run my pop up, and they never did run down. After 10 days of using one I switched to another battery just because I wanted to, but the one I was using was still working fine. I wasn't using a lot of power, but at the same rate of use I've never gotten more than four days out of charged battery before without a solar charger. This works very well at a great price. I got it soaked several times with no problem. I'd recommend it highly.

This unit has consistently performed _better_ than it is rated for. It routinely generates over 140% the rated voltage - and even generates the Rated Voltage on overcast days. A *streetlight* at night caused it to generate a measurable voltage (~50% rated, as I recall). Also, it is weather/hailstone resistant. I am very pleased with the performance of this item.

I'm afraid I'm guilty of buying impractical transportation. Sports cars are just not made for Wisconsin winters. Fortunately I also have a 1997 Isuzu Rodeo as my winter vehicle which is very practical for winter driving. The one drawback is that left on it's own the battery will be useless without either putting it on a charger or starting the truck every couple weeks over the summer. Between the slow drain and the harsh winters the battery is toast. I bought this charger to see how well it would work for me over the summer. I just remembered to test how well it maintained the charge on my vehicle since installing it in late April. I turned the key and my truck started right up.

I have a 98 Camry that is rarely used, and often when I tried to use it, the battery had been drained (not sure by what) to the point that the starter would only make clicking sounds. Since I have hooked up the Sunforce 5watt trickle charger the car starts up every time! Very cool product.
My only complaints would be that it is a bit large, but still rests on the dash when the car is parked, and I had to connect direclty to the battery (with provided clips) since the cigarette lighter is turned off when the ignition is off - but I just ran the wire around the door frame and under the hood.

I have a 22' motor home with a Ford 350 V8 engine, and keep forgetting to disconnect the battery when I store it, so it's always dead when I go retrieve it from the storage lot in the spring. So, I decided to buy this to keep the battery from dying. However, when I received it and went to install it in my RV in the middle of April, the battery was dead, dead, dead! Not even a murmur when I tried to start it, couldn't even turn on the lights. Absolutely nothing.

So, just for kicks, I decided to see just what it could do, even though the FAQ on the manufacturer's site says

"A35: This solar panel is ideal for trickle charging all types of vehicle batteries and power packs. If the battery or power pack is completely drained, use a larger Solar Power Panel (11-1881-0 or 11-1882-8). "

I plugged it into one of the 12v outlets and placed it on the dashboard facing south (I live in the mostly overcast Pacific Northwest). A couple of weeks later when I checked, there was enough juice in the battery to turn on the lights, but not start the engine. Today (end of May), I went to get the RV, assuming I'd have to jump start it from my car. I was pretty amazed when I turned the key and the engine started right up.

Needless to say, I am 100% thrilled with this item.

(And, of course, not everyone may have the same experience as me.)

I bought this Sunforce 5 watt solar charger to keep my RV battery "topped off" and it MIGHT do ok if the sun shined 24/7...but it doesn't. If you're looking for something to help keep, say, a gate opener battery charged up it might work fine. There is no light as claimed to indicate it's charging so I checked the output with a voltmeter with full sun and it puts out about 25v and that's a good thing. The downside is you might be disappointed if you buy this to keep a normal size deep cycle battery charged. Hindsight tells me I should have gone with a MINIMUM of 10 watts (and that might be cutting it to close).