Instapark NEW All Black 5W Mono-crystalline Solar Panel with 12V Solar Charge Controller

I would like to review this product by addressing comments left by others. · The product arrived on time and packaged well. SOLAR PANEL: · My solar panel is sealed well with a solid bead of silicon caulk front and back. · My panel was exactly the same as the one picture, including the number of cells. · The mounting holes are behind the panel with not much clearance. Mending braces or some other creative method will be necessary to secure. · The wires from the panel are plenty long enough for most all-practical uses. · Generates 21.5vdc in direct sunlight. · Black frame, solid aluminum that looks great. · Yes, if you bang it around it is going to break. I wouldn't suggest using it as a hammer. CHARGE CONTROLLER · Arrived in good condition, no rust. · Is housed in a cheap non-weatherproofed plastic box. Will need to be enclosed. · Alligator clips are to small to connect to a battery. Will need to be replaced. · Is fused with a 10amp fuse. As far as I can tell it is used to protect from reverse connections, not overload. The example given of adding more load caused the unit to burn up (in the reviewers example of adding more lights to the battery) simply doesn't make sense. But I do agree that a 10amp fuse is too large to protect a 3amp system. · My controller does not have a USB port. · The current draw from the battery to the controller LED during periods of no sunlight is negligible. For you technical people I measured 4.63mA draw from the battery to the controller. A typical charged car battery can supply that amount of power for years before running down. Your battery discharged because it is either a bad battery, another load was drawing current, you left the battery sitting on the ground or you where just unlucky and received a defected controller. · The instruction and data sheet are poor, but good enough for anyone to get the job done. I tested the system by charging a run down 12vdc battery. The battery fully charged without over charging in just a few hours. Overall, with a few simple modifications, the product works well at a nice price.

SOLAR PANEL: This panel is very well made, reliable, and seems quite weatherproof. It puts out the full 5 watts in bright sunlight. I put some silicone caulk where the wire exits the back of the panel, just to be safe. EDIT: The charge controller failed after 19 months, and two replacements from Instapark were dead on arrival. The techie at Instapark said they are replacing that model of charge controller with a different model. So I can't recommend it any more. The solar panel is still good, but the charge controller didn't last long enough. So ... read all the information below with the failure in mind. CHARGE CONTROLLER: The housing is definitely not weatherproof, but it does work properly. Some reviewers reported rusted connectors. Mine arrived without any rust. I created a battery box for an electric fence. The solar panel is mounted on top of the box, and the solar charge controller is inside the box with the battery and the fence energizer (protected from weather). Don't use it with a large panel (as one reviewer did), because it's only designed to take a small current. It is rated for only 3 amps. 3 amps x 12 volts = 36 watts. So ... don't hook up more than 36 watts of 12-volt solar panels to this charger. Another reviewer said the charger allows the battery to discharge into the solar panel at night. That's not really true. I did many tests and figured out what is going on. There is a green "Power" LED light on the charge controller. That light is on whenever it is connected to the battery. That light draws about 5 milli-amps from the battery at night, which is negligible. During the day, the solar panel powers the green LED. So ... when the solar panel gets no power from the sun, electricity flows from the battery to the green LED. But that is the only draw on the battery. I tested it, and there is no current flowing into the solar panel from the battery. The 5 milli-amp draw is minimal, and really has no effect on the battery at all. Consider that during bright sunlight, the panel pours about 400+ milli-amps into the battery. Even that amount is just considered a "trickle" charge. I put a blocking diode (1N4001) between the battery and the charge controller, which even blocks the 5 milli-amp discharge at night. Now the green "Power" light only comes on when the panel gets light. I also verified that the charge controller stops charging the batter when it reaches about 13 volts. That protects the battery from being over-charged. Hope this helps.

I posted on another review and wanted to explaing that I'm pretty new to Solar technology and overal the concept of this. I just installed and built a wood shed. About 8x10. The problem that I was faced with was if I ran electrical to it, I then get taxed because it's considered a permenant structure... *NO THANK YOU*.. So I have some spare UPS 12v batteries, nothing huge or eleborate as some of the people's setups that I have been reading about. I have had these sitting in my basement for almost a year. HitLights LED Flexible Lighting Strip Cool White or Bright White, 5 Meter or 16 Ft, 300SMD, 24 Watt So decided that instead of purchasing something that is probably made like crap, lets design something with them. I've worked with LEDS before so I'm very comfortable using them but my problem was if I use it with the battery how do I charge the battery without having to disconnect everything then take it inside and charge it..etc. Found this little solar panel and all the great reviews from everyone here convinced me to try it out. It was between this and the 10watt version but went with this due to price and more reviews. What I didn't know is that I needed a battery solar controller and from the reviews here everyone did NOT like the one that came with the solar panel, and I have to agree, it's extremely CHEAP. I purchased this one: HQRP Solar Power Controller 10Amp 150W with Digital LED Display plus HQRP UV Chain / UV Radiation Health Tester . This device uses the solar panel's voltage and reduces it down to charge and maintain a battery. It also has a load feature that enables me to plug in my LED lights and turn them on and off at will which is exactly what I wanted. Fast forward to the panel review. I took it outside and got 21 volts in direct sunlight. Trying to figure out how to mount this on my roof I then tried just putting it on the back of the shed. Believe it or not just from the ambient light outside I was getting 19volts which is more than enough for the battery controller to charge the battery. So I am very pleased with this!! Actually extremely excited that this is all working and the fact that I can run my LED lights on at night for when I need to get into the shed and see what is going on. I am not researching what else I can add and perhaps get another solar panel and play around with it. I can now fully understand why people enjoy this and enjoy getting off the grid in a way and being completely self sufficient in power. Given my application is EXTREMELY tiny compared to others but it's extremely rewarding to know that I can take parts and make it all work together and have a finished product that actually WORKS and works much better than pre-made "shed lights" that aren't as bright, aren't as efficient at charging and utilizing a solar panel and best of all knowing that with the help of others here willing to answer questions makes it a fun project! For a beginner such as myself I feel this product is at least 4-5 stars... Probably get 5 stars if I could figure out how to properly mount the panel to something or if they gave mounting hardware, but honestly that's ok. It's still a nice solar panel for the price. Don't be afraid to try it or try solar projects! I'm already looking at others just to see what else I can do! *I will take pictures of my setup once it's fully completely so others can get an idea or possibly help someone in the future like all the reviews and discussions helped me so far!

If not for the "but', I would have rated this 4 or maybe 5 stars. Here's the details: First, the mono-crystalline solar panel does indeed work in a package size much smaller than traditional panels with the same output. I installed this to charge the battery for my trolling motor, a 45 lb thrust rig. It has kept the battery sufficiently charged when otherwise I would have had to hook up a car battery charger. This is why I bought it and it works. When I first hooked up the charger, the trolling battery was at about a 75% charge. It has maintained the charge at a level sufficient for a day's worth of fishing with no noticeable loss of output. Afterwards, a day or two in the sun (more if it's cloudy) replenishes the battery enough so I can use the trolling motor again. Because I never started with a dead battery, I can't say if it has enough juice to bring the charge level up sufficiently for a totally discharged battery. Now, for the "but".....if you've looked at the other comments, there are many that complained about the lack of weather proofing for the aluminum frame that surrounds the solar panel, the cheesy but sufficient control box, and the small alligator clips which attach to the battery. All true. The solutions have already been noted---seal up everything with black silicone sealant and also grease the four wires where the enter the cheesy control box. Also as noted, the mounting holes are not well designed and are basically useless. In my case, I cut a piece of scrap plywood and used sheet metal screws to attach it to the back of the frame. I glued a 4" chunk of 2x4 to the plywood, drilled a 3/4" hole in the 2x4 and glued a scrap piece of 3/4" aluminum tubing into the hole. The tubing drops perfectly into the post for one of the fishing seats and makes a perfect and easily removable mount for the panel. Of course, if you're using the panel in a protected environment, not all these mods are needed. This all may seem a lot of work to get it right but considering the same panel in a more weatherproof mounting cost 4 times as much, for me it was a no brainer.

O.k., maybe that is a bit much, after all these are NOT PERFECT...let me list the problems, then I'll heap on the praise!!! They are NOT WATERPROOF. I HIGHLY recommend you use a little silicon caulk around the edges of the glass and the seams of the frame. The electronic unit is a cheap little plastic box, but it seems to work well. The hookup instructions were translated from chinese, and are a bit confusing. I wish I'd kept them, I would put photos up here. Now the praise: WOW! REALLY? For this price!?!? I installed one on my pop-up trailer, and lived in it (unhooked) for 10 days in semi-cloudy weather! I bet I could have gone forever! The battery would only have lasted two days without this unit! I loved it so much, I bought another for my F150 Base truck (2WD), which is stored all winter. I long ago mounted a trickle charger under the hood, and kept it plugged in all winter. With this baby, there's no need to plug in or worry it might accidentally get unplugged (which has happened)! I actually mounted it on my fiberglass topper, and ran the wires to the dome-light switch (battery side). My battery has been great this winter the times I've checked it! Keep in mind that this unit puts out about 20VDC (12VDC regulated by the electonic box), but at VERY LOW CURRENT. It is a TRICKLE CHARGER, and will NOT run any electronics, or charge a battery that sees HEAVY USE. But if you have a boat or a trailer or vehicle that sees a moderate amount of electical use/discharge, you really need to try this! It even works fairly well in cloudy/indirect light! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

Seems to work fine. The cable is sufficiently long to reach. I put the control box in a Ziploc bag and tied off the top to make it more water resistant. So far, so good. Updated: 12/15/2014 I had my boat winterized a few weeks ago and the boat has sat untouched since. I had the solar charger hooked up to keep the battery charged until I had time to go get everything out of the cabin and remove the battery to store for the winter (the battery was purchased new this season). When I went out to remove the battery, it was completely dead. None of the switches were on in the boat, so the only culprit is the solar panel, so the controller was not working to prevent the backflow and draining more power than it was charging! What a waste!

Initially it was working but charge controller stopped working. Load LED is always ON even with no load connected. but when connected to an inverter it's not drawing any voltage (it's broken). Not happy with controller however Solar panel is good.

Hey all, I never write reviews but after this afternoon I felt obligated I am using this solar panel to charge my boat's battery, and thus keep it exposed to the elements. I took the advise of a previous reviewer and glued the seams with a silicon sealant to try to rain-proof the panel itself. I left my boat in the water this afternoon (12' wood skiff) and forgot to hook up my automatic bilge pump. Well a squall line moved through here in Pensacola, FL and all but sunk my boat (did actually sink my neighbors Jon boat). This solar panel and the charge controller which had been in a battery box was tipped upside down, submerged in 2 feet of water for at least several hours. I pulled the panel out along with the controller, and alas I saw the red charging light in full brightness. There is slight corrosion now on the hookups of the controller, but overall it appears the panel is still putting out power, able to charge my battery and is functioning correctly; very impressed. The panel itself does seem admittedly flimsy and susceptible to water damage; but alas it held through just fine today. Very inexpensive alternative to some of the other solar panels out there. Would definitely buy again.

Very high quality solar panel. Solid construction. When I purchased this unit, the photos showed a waterproof 5A charge controller but I received a non-waterproof 3A charge controller. Contacted the vendor and they promptly shipped me the charge controller as advertised. Not sure if the vendor posted the wrong photos or if this was a shipping error. If the photos get updated by the vendor you want to see if the charge controller is black (waterproof) or white (non-water proof). The white charge controller works just fine but it is not what I was looking for as I wanted to mount outdoors to charge a small sealed lead acid battery to power some 12V LED lights. Vendor was great to work with and very prompt to reply and correct the shipping or advertising issue.

It really annoys me that there is absolutely no mounting hardware. Why is it that one cannot assume mounting hardware inclusive.

Excellent product