Renogy 200W 12V Portable Solar Panels Suitcase with Waterproof 20A Charge Controller, Foldable 200 Watt Solar Panel W/ Adjustable Kickstand, Solar Charger for Power Station, RV, Camping, SUV, Off Grid

Have 2-200 Watt and 1-100 watt suitcase solar panels
Renogy 200-watt solar suitcase notes-Two Year Ownership Update at Bottom, July 2023-Quick notes on things to watch out for:- B01 error on controller. Indicates a wire is disconnected somewhere between the controller and your battery, on either the negative or positive side. Most likely loose at the controller but can also occur from frayed wires at any of the ( non-strain-relief-protected) MC4 connectors or clips at battery. Same code you get before connecting up to batteries.- The maximum power I have seen with this suitcase is 164 watts, 11.4 amps at 14.4 volts. This is with 2 12V 65 Ah AGM batteries. You may get more output if you use a MPPT controller instead of the built in PWM controller. You also may not get maximum output if your batteries are lightly discharged.- The note about connecting the battery first, then the controller second does not apply, since the wires are already connected to the controller. The instruction about connecting the battery first comes from the controller manual which is also sold stand-alone. Renogy says the battery does not need to be connected first when the controller is integrated in the suitcase solar system. The 100 watt suitcase solar system does not have detachable cables between panels and controller like the 200 watt system. What I do is turn the panel away from the sun while hooking up to the battery. This minimizes the controller power output.I first connect the MC4-to-alligator clips cable to the battery, then typically 40-foot 8AWG extension cables, then connect extension cables to controller output MC4s. Then turn the panel around to face the sun.I really like this unit. I have purchased 2 200-watt and 1 100 watt versions over the past few years. Last 200-watt purchase June, 2021.I had the 100 watt suitcase first and wanted more power. Then I tripped moving the first 200 watt and broke one of the panels, oops (Renogy, replacement panel?)I have used this 200-watt panel with 40-foot, 80-feet, and 160-feet (2-40s and 1-80)of 8 AWG Windy Nation MC4 cable. The max amps I got were:40 feet: 11.480 feet: 10.4160 feet: 9.4Note: I bought another Voyager 20A controller to use at the battery end at the 160 foot length as I anticipated the voltage drop from the panel-mount controller would be too great to charge the batteries. Max panel voltage output is 21+ V so more voltage to handle the drop.It was great to have the 160-foot cable distance. We were at a high alpine lake in deep shade and had the 200-watt solar suitcase on the lakeside beach (1/2” cable locked through carrying handle to some large stacked rocks). Enough amps to run our motorhome furnace in the cold and clear morning.Our daily charging while dry camping starts early as I usually leave the panel out pointing where the first sun will occur (cable locked) overnight. The current draw of the controller is minimal, 0.008 A. The controller voltage will display what the current battery voltage is, for us usually 12.7 V in the morning (fully charged is 13 V for our AGMs). The charging voltage and current will gradually rise as the sun comes up. At an initial 10 Amp current the voltage will rise to an initial 13.5 V typically and continue to rise from there. Once the max voltage for the battery type is reached( in our case 14.4V) the controller output amps will start dropping as the battery accepts steadily less current as it nears full charge. I try to keep the panel pointed at the sun from early morning and get the charge current down to 4 A, then the aim is not critical and can rotate panel 60 degrees to the west and maintain 4A current and fully charge batteries over the next few hours. We can take off hiking, etc. and when we get back we’ll have a full charge. (Control displays ‘FUL’ and voltage idles at 13.6V, our idle current is around 1A).I like the weight and water resistance of the panel. I have had the panel out in 40 MPH winds and rain with no issues.I recently bought a Bluetti EB55 Portable Power Station and unplug the MC4 connector from the Renogy controller and hook up to the Bluetti MPPT input. Works great.The 100-watt panel had some wear issues. The cables at the MC4 connectors have no strain relief so they tend to fray over time. The cables at the controller have no strain relief so moving the controller back and forth flexes the wires so they eventually fray. And I would slide the panel around on a tarp to keep the panel out of the shade and pointed at the sun and that flexes the legs. The upper end of the legs has just a metal nut press-fit in a plastic block so it got wobbly.Don’t do what I did, pick up the panel to move, and hold the wires gently to prevent flexing.Additional note on panel solar output: Panel output is optimistically rated with the ‘STC’ rating. Cell temperature: 25°C
 Irradiance: 1000 W/m²
Air mass: 1.5Same with home solar (we have 9000 watts of home solar).The ‘NOCT’ rating is more realistic but lower power:Air temperature: 20°C
 Irradiance: 800 W/m²
Air mass:1.5
Wind speed: 1 m/sPhotos are of the 200 watt (L) and 100 watt panel. On this trip I would charge the motorhome house batteries until the charge current on the 200 watt panel dropped to 4 A, then put the motorhome on the 100 watt panel and switched the 200 watt panel to charge power stations.-Two Year Ownership Update July 2023-200-watt panel still going strong and using older 100-watt panel also. On the 200-watt panel a negative wire at the controller output to battery broke off just a few days ago so I had to screw it back in with a Phillips screwdriver. I carry tools on the road so not a big issue. Got the dreaded B01 error while moving panel. Longer term fix may be to attach spade lugs to the end of the wires and perhaps heat-shrink tubing to prevent flexing. One leg is a little bent but unit is not wobbly.We have got a good 80 nights of use over 2 years approximately. We do a lot of dry camping.Using the even older 100-watt suitcase too. It had wire fraying at the alligator clips and at one or more of the MC4 connectors. Got a replacement alligator clip assembly from Amazon and replaced the wires from controller to MC4 with Windy Nation 10 AWG 3 foot MC4 cables.Added an Ecoflow Delta 2 power station. Charges from the 200-watt Renogy at 165 watts at 75F and 150 watts at 90F with 10 AWG XT60 to MC4 cable I bought from Amazon, 40 foot 8 AWG cable attached to MC4 cables detached from suitcase controller. The Bluetti EB55 has a max of 8 amps input so it maxes out at 130 watts.

Cannot believe the power output during a good sunny day. Topped up my battery in the power box from which I was running fridge, charging camp lights and mobile phone. Battery got to 100% and it stayed that way until sunset. A little heavy to move around freely so be mindful where the panels are stored to provide less strenuous access. Plug and play basically.

I received my 200 watt panel from renogy. It’s built tough and looks good. I read many reviews about this 200 watt renogy suitcase model, before I purchased this. I watched Youtube video reviews and priced checked other sellers and Amazon was the cheapest so I decided to purchase one. When I unboxed it, it was a little heavy but manageable. Nice case and I was impressed with the build quality super strong. The latches I don’t see as a problem, as I’ve read many reviews about people saying the latches need to be upgraded. I disagree. The only thing I didn’t like was the PWM so I changed mine to a 30A MPPT controller. Don’t do this if your worried about your warranty, because you’ll void your warranty. It doesn’t bother me is the reason I changed mine. The MPPT fitted as you can see in the picture and it performs much better then the PWM controller. The fuse needs to be changed in the supply line as it comes with a 10 amp not 20 amp. Other then that it’s a good suitcase panel it serves its purpose and I’d recommend this to others.

Lo uso para cargar mi batería de 100 Ah y funciona excelente, el controlador de carga es muy fácil e intuitivo de usar, lo recomiendo y si lo volvería a comprar