The packages came and one was larger than I anticipated. The flexible solar panel stood 49" tall by 22" wide. The product description described the lamination as "Aluminium + ETFE + Silicon cell + EVA + Tedlar" but it just seemed like a thick, rugged fiberglass panel to me. I am a novice at solar technology and the instructions were not easy to figure out, but I eventually did. The controller came with a template for placing mounting screws on a backboard, which I installed in the front compartment on the back wall behind the new Lithium Ion batteries I just hooked up. I felt foolish when I found that the cables coming from the panel and the extension cables to the controller were keyed, a set of male and female for each that were reversed for positive and negative so that you can't cross-connect them once you've wired the controller and batteries correctly. The controller had three sets of connections in which to insert and tighten bare wires -- one pair for the solar panel, one for the batteries and another for a load, in case you are powering a device directly. I did have to make the battery cables and strip any ends being connected to the controller.
With everything set up, power flowed with no issues. My battery monitor is Bluetooth-enabled and I was able to see the input into the batteries okay, but since the batteries had a full charge, little electricity was drawn. I was happy that it still showed power, however.
The flexibility of the panel is impressive. It weighs about 6 pounds and is stout but can be flexed for temporary mounting on a curved surface, such as an RV front cap. However, from the manufacturer: "Once in a while bending may be possible, but we do not recommend long - term bending to affect the life of the panel." My main purpose for using a solar panel is to charge my batteries when boondocking, allowing for minimum use of my generator. I am confident that this setup will work great. I rated this 4 out of 5 stars only because the instructions could be better written and/or illustrated and I did have to do some of my own cabling. 
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AuthorJack Huber is a new full-timer and an author and photographer. He and some fellow RV'ers will be sharing their favorite (and not so favorite) travel technologies and accessories in this review blog. Archives
June 2018
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