# Portable solar panel and power bank compatibility



## Marica (May 5, 2019)

Hey all--

I learned the hard way that not all portable solar panels will charge all power banks. (Hard way *not* when the power was out! It was a failed test run of the solar panel and a particular power station... I learned!)

I am looking to buy my daughter a RavPower solar panel & power bank. I have their 4-panel portable panel (24W) + their 32,000mAh bank (121.6Wh), and as a component of all the other stuff I have to run stuff, it has its place and I like it very much. But it's too much for what my daughter needs, both in terms of $$ and size. So I'm looking at this [USB C Portable Charger 20100mAh PD 3.0 45W Power Bank. I am not allowed to post links yet, sorry!] + this [Ravpower 16W Dual USB Solar Panel].

The folks at RavPower have been pretty helpful. They offered three suggestions for the power bank, given what sort of phone she has (Google Pixel 2).

But I could use independent confirmation that this combination will work-- and maybe a bit of explanation as to why or why not.

Daughter lives Downest Carolina and is a veteran of hurricanes and power outages, but she's also cash-strapped. We all know what the weather is like after a hurricane-- bright and sunny! She needs just enough juice to keep her phone and a rechargeable lantern going.

Thanks!


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

If all your daughter needs is to keep her phone charged and a rechargeable lantern powered up I'd recommend a Crank Powered Weather Radio and a Crank Powered Lantern.

I've had a couple of Kaito radios that have gotten us through some power outages and some hand crank lanterns. But my favorites are the old fashioned lamps powered by good old fossil fuel! OIL! Make sure you got wicks and they never fail.
















We keep one of these in every room

https://kaito.us/ka001.html


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## SDF880 (Mar 28, 2013)

I have 4 car batteries I keep charged and several inverters for whatever need I have at the time. Running several LED
lights or even those curly florescent bulbs I have run all night just off one battery several times. I would imagine it would charge a
phone as well. I only fire up generator for longer outages.


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## Marica (May 5, 2019)

Thanks! I myself have a Kaito and like the functionality (though NiMH battery isn't what it used to be). Still, knowing her situation, I think the set up I'm envisioning would work a little better for her. Though a crank lantern *would* come in handy. I'm trying to help her build up piece by piece so that may be #3 on the list. 

Love those oil lanterns. Only have one. Think I'll keep an eye out at the junk stores.


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Have you explored the idea of a solar powered radio? We have one that also has a wind up hand crank..in addition to a solar powered lantern which I think some come with a built in phone charger. 
https://www.amazon.com/American-Eme...phone+charger&qid=1557083213&s=gateway&sr=8-7


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## Marica (May 5, 2019)

Big Wheel-- in God's Country where my in-laws live! Maybe I should provide a bit more info about why I'm keen to get a portable panel and power bank for my daughter. In the last few months she and our grandson have moved back to eastern NC which is where she was born & raised. So she knows all about hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. Plenty of experience but that experience was with a family. We're now in the great state of Mississippi. If & when-- oh, who am I kidding, NC & hurricanes. When. When she will eventually lose power, I want to make sure she can call me. Or call whomever she needs to call. So, I'm not a hard core survivalist to the extent what we here on our farm in Mississippi are not off grid (working on it) but I have a pretty sweet set up in terms of what happens when the power goes out. (I have 16 different ways to boil water for coffee and only six rely on electricity.) Also, as I mentioned, she's cash strapped meaning she lives within her means but not beyond.

I asked her the other day how ready she was for hurricane season and I kid you not, she said she had a flashlight but no batteries. That got fixed in a hurry. Grandson even got his own flashlight!

My long-term strategy regarding preparedness is to be able to go from normal to without-power normal as quickly and efficiently as possible (hence, being able to make morning coffee with boiling water). So I'm looking at our set up, and thinking about her particular circumstances, and asking myself what does she need first, then second, then ... in order to have a normal life with a toddler when the power goes out. 

I've got a list of a couple apps she needs to load on her phone, and weather-related twitter accounts to follow, all for in advance of severe weather so she can get her bread & milk before the crowd!! She now has flashlights. 

What does she need next? A way to keep her phone charged so she can still use these apps and call family. AND probably for her friends and neighbors to keep theirs charged as well. 

Weather radios are great-- I do like my Kaito!-- but the output generated by the solar panel on my Voyager Pro is not enough to pick up shortwave radio, at least in my experience. I doubt it's enough to charge a phone is any reasonable length of time when the sun is shining. So while it would be good for everyone to have a weather radio, it doesn't fill this particular problem space.

A power bank does. Fully charged, even a smallish one on the order of 20,000mAh w/ just a couple of ports (compatible with her phone) would last pretty much through any weather event that she'd likely to experience where she lives. Again, I'm assuming there's some sharing going on but eventually the sun comes out even though the power may not yet be on. (For what it's worth, we were in NC when Fran came through.) A small portable solar panel fixes that problem. Charge the bank up, and you're back up to speed in no time. (My 24W panel charges a 32,00mAh bank from <2bars to full in 3 hrs.)

I feel like the portable panel-bank set up, for her, would be the most efficient way to go. 

What I cannot figure out is how to know if a panel produces enough electricity to charge a power bank of any given capacity. I know my 24W panel cannot charge my Jackery 160 (11.6Ah) bank. Some companies do a really good job of providing this information. Jackery tells you straight up front that you need a 50W panel to charge their 160 power station. But they only sell 50 & 100W sized solar panels which are way too much for what little she needs. (Though I'm getting one!!) 

Since I've had experience with RavPower, I thought I'd go with them. But customer service doesn't speak English too well and I'd like to learn how to figure this out for myself, anyway!

If anyone has had good experience with other makers of both banks and panels of the sizes I need, please let me know. 

So there you have it! I'll be sending her a butane burner next month so she can have coffee!!


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## Back Pack Hack (Sep 15, 2016)

Marica said:


> ........ So I'm looking at this [USB C Portable Charger 20100mAh PD 3.0 45W Power Bank. ...... + this [Ravpower 16W Dual USB Solar Panel].
> ........


These?

They should work together just fine. Even though the solar panel probably outputs 16-18volts, it will be dropped down to 5v for the USB output to charge the battery bank.

It may take several days to charge a completely dead bank with that small of a panel, however.

The reason Jackery doesn't play well with solar is they're typically *12-30v* input instead of 5, so a solar panel charger won't charge much in the shade or under the clouds when the output drops to less than 13 volts.

Plus, the more mAh (or watts) the battery bank stores, the longer it takes to recharge it. If you're going to use one for emergencies, it requires a bit of maintenance to drag 'em out once in a while and top it off. Otherwise, it'll self-discharge and not have much capacity in 2-3 years when you really need it.


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## Marica (May 5, 2019)

Yes. Those are the ones. I was unable to link b/c I've not posted enough. 

Thanks for that! One key thing I'll remind my daughter of is that she needs to become familiar with both, and use them when the power is ON! Might as well not have them if they sit in the closet. 

Thanks again!


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Marica said:


> Big Wheel-- in God's Country where my in-laws live! Maybe I should provide a bit more info about why I'm keen to get a portable panel and power bank for my daughter. In the last few months she and our grandson have moved back to eastern NC which is where she was born & raised. So she knows all about hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. Plenty of experience but that experience was with a family. We're now in the great state of Mississippi. If & when-- oh, who am I kidding, NC & hurricanes. When. When she will eventually lose power, I want to make sure she can call me. Or call whomever she needs to call. So, I'm not a hard core survivalist to the extent what we here on our farm in Mississippi are not off grid (working on it) but I have a pretty sweet set up in terms of what happens when the power goes out. (I have 16 different ways to boil water for coffee and only six rely on electricity.) Also, as I mentioned, she's cash strapped meaning she lives within her means but not beyond.
> 
> I asked her the other day how ready she was for hurricane season and I kid you not, she said she had a flashlight but no batteries. That got fixed in a hurry. Grandson even got his own flashlight!
> 
> ...


Gotcha. Little propane camp stove would be great on that. I have a cheap inverter that can cook a pot of Mr. Coffee running an extension cord from the car battery. Havent had to use it for that yet..but it can also run a few lights for a long time...which I have used in a few powerr outtages.


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## Old SF Guy (Dec 15, 2013)

Marica said:


> Hey all--
> 
> I learned the hard way that not all portable solar panels will charge all power banks. (Hard way *not* when the power was out! It was a failed test run of the solar panel and a particular power station... I learned!)
> 
> ...


Tell you what, budgetprepper is your guy...hope I got the moniker right?

In the end you need to align your power.... Voltage output of panel...voltage range of your controller, voltage and amp hour rating of your batteries. You don't mix amp hour batteries. Think of lectricity like you would water pressure....it always seeks to even out...so a 120 amp hour battery and a 200 amp hour batter will try to even out and over pressure your lower pressure battery. 
voltage is easier...you find what your charging voltage is for your batteries and match that up to your controller and get panels that support that voltage.


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## Marica (May 5, 2019)

Thank you all! And thanks for the explanation Old Guy! Turns out "they" actually make a two in one gizmo-- power bank that folds out into a solar panel. Pretty good sized capacity, too. So as a first step, problem solved-- and for a lot less money than buying two separate things!


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## budgetprepp-n (Apr 7, 2013)

Old SF Guy said:


> Tell you what, budgetprepper is your guy...hope I got the moniker right?
> 
> In the end you need to align your power.... Voltage output of panel...voltage range of your controller, voltage and amp hour rating of your batteries. You don't mix amp hour batteries. Think of lectricity like you would water pressure....it always seeks to even out...so a 120 amp hour battery and a 200 amp hour batter will try to even out and over pressure your lower pressure battery.
> voltage is easier...you find what your charging voltage is for your batteries and match that up to your controller and get panels that support that voltage.


What in the world is a moniker?


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## Chiefster23 (Feb 5, 2016)

Your nickname!


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## budgetprepp-n (Apr 7, 2013)

If all you'r looking for is to charge a cell phone and lantern you don't need much the small solar powered items 
that were suggested should do it. But if you want a little more,, I helped someone in N.Carolina set up a small
solar set up for emergency use. One battery and one 250watt panel. The solar panel isn't even attached
to anything. It sits behind the work bench until it's needed.
The battery sits on a trickle charger (battery tender) out of sight and mind. he checks it every few months.
He uses it for lights and radio if needed. When needed he gets the panel out lays it in the sun and he is set.
You would be surprised how long and how much light you can get out of one battery. if you use the
correct bulbs for light. I like the corn row bulbs myself. The 10 watt bulb gives plenty of light for a room.
A bulb that they call a 10 watt uses about 8 watts of power and will run a very long time on one charge.
As for the cell phone I bet it would be easy to use a cell phone charger meant for an automobile 
what the heck it's 12 volt right? - why not?


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## Mad Trapper (Feb 12, 2014)

They make little led light bulbs that come with solar chargers for ~$10.

The chargers are REAL slow but ~5.5 V and will charge a phone.

The lights bat work good for a whole night, and can be charged faster with a regular mini usb charger.

like this

https://www.ebay.com/itm/20-COB-LED-Solar-Light-USB-Rechargeable-Hanging-Bulb-Lamp-for-Outdoors-Camping/362669676177?_trkparms=ispr%3D1&hash=item5470cc1691:g:Xx8AAOSw7A9c9yzE&enc=AQADAAAB4KX%2FKt4E1xf3SDqEdBclaYa%2BAo2QsvfmfY4HlN77EPofJFRi9KXu9UIzF4iWG92esUyRJku03ulSJHSARw%2B85oDzedtZnQgtKPTRVP3laMXKQNwq4Z381HMF97CM%2BcLEjnQUQNtcudCTRyXWTUBJWG6H9joJW3eiMw09o7JCbp7tmUW1jbgj6j1b3vyP339nR935Fxkeld79WubhQntCPEBx%2FjNKCTckb4RgMPoEgLeyDxfyVkW3W6SJFjHCsYDdEf0MqwY%2B%2BX7Qiv1JUU5xpI5JofjBBCo678Xg265sR%2BpRAKHYVrLdg9oSBITboRvUontVP8NaN1YRh6cOA%2BhgvLw%2FaGYO4cIqyDEbfev8xDdZ5FUd7kYa%2BKq01gijUE%2Fu9b3%2FcEW%2FVL9ZfmsT0y14fzlghI%2BLLA%2F9t2QC10VLE8Nu1p1tUub%2Bt7t9H5ELtg6jIXPgc7bxTYz9toS4psSQytHfV8%2FnbLyWmG3nVNZq3LQJtHx6j8Szd4aw97sepIZSDhmwwkJfkT%2BwIygpSLP0%2BW5YtD0zbXiX2K3JyCB16cBwbs8u%2F867ownNcmOL5VBTFmq6JB0%2BSZPYANpmOgNwe4p9UE142%2FAoSz5jiEL0WR9vjsUBf1h14655tBGw%2BP0jFg%3D%3D&checksum=3626696761777d8592f0239d4750938444f7320c062f

Whoops wrong setup, but have 5.5Vchargers w/usb

I don't know wtf an "Android" is besides from terminator movies... and F iphones too!


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