Another Flexible Solar Panel Option?

[Mobile Solar]

Portable solar 4x4 kit

Having the solar panel permanently installed on the vehicle or trailer may not be advantageous at all times, especially when parked under trees, i.e. shade. There is an alternative, flexible solar panels rolled up in a bag with a 10m cable (or whichever length is needed, just adjust the cable diameter). Park in the shade and the panel is positioned where you have full day sun. Can be laid flat on the ground, draped over a trailer or gazebo. When you leave, simply roll up the panel and put it back in to the bag. The panels itself are fairly durable and resilient to harsh treatment. - South African company manufacturing the kits, www.flexopower.com

 

[graynomad]

There are a lot of "semi-flexible" mono panels out now (search for "semi-flexible solar panels" on ebay), sometimes down to about 90c/W. A group of us on another forum are trying to organise a bulk buy.

230W panels weigh about 5-6kgs, you can get them without j-box as well if that makes sense for your application, for example you want to add your own j-box on the back so trees don't rip the wires off.

Despite the marketing blurb personally I would never glue them direct to a roof because I don't know how the heat will be dissipated. That said there is a version with a sort of "coreflute" on the back, it's 10mmm thick and allows air flow so convection currents should help keep the panels a bit cooler.

Check out these guys

http://www.qsolar.net/

I think they are Canadian although I've been dealing through Alibaba.

Mobile Solar is right about the fact that you normally want to camp in the shade, I've had remote panels in the past and it worked well but they were heavy (normal glass panels) and it got pretty tedious. OTOH if you only have throw-out panels you don't get any solar while driving. So on my impending build I plan to have both remote and on the roof.

 

[alan]

http://www.shinesolartech.com/?m=offer&s=offer_detail&fid=100604&id=240


Another mob with semi flex panels.

 

[Arclight]

I've got one of these on my truck, mounted to the roof of the cab with 4xmagnets from Harbor Freight. Works great, and it is very sturdy:

http://www.solar-electric.com/poupun30wamu.html

Arclight

BP solar used to sell poly cristalline silicon cells that were laminated to a rigid stainless sheet, and encapsulated without glass. Anyone seen anything like that lately?