I’m looking at the Bluetti 120w panels cause I’m not sure my HarborFreight 100w panels will meet the 35volts requirement or if have the correct connectors
If I’m understanding correctly, with the voc 23.? per 120w folding panel that means I would need 2 sets of the 120w panels at $309 (holiday sale price) so over $600 to be able to solar charge the AC200p? Is that correct?
Sorry @roxie60, I just saw this post! Haha I replied to your other comment in more detail but yes, you will need at least 2 panels to hit the 35v-150v VOC requirement for the bluetti. I def recommend the 120w portable Bluetti panels and also the 180w BougeRV rigid panels if you’re looking for something more permanent. 
Here’s a link to the other post/comments I made regarding the Harbor Freight setup…
Thank you @m.briney. I will need to save a bit longer for the panels. Maybe there will be a spring sale on them 
. I do like how they fold up and are packaged, portable.
@roxie60yea the portable ones are pretty pricey in comparison to solid rigid panels, but I must say, bluetti definitely didn’t cheap out on the build quality of them. Which I can really appreciate cause I know I’m going to probably beat the crap out of them! Haha 
And I had originally purchased a set of cheaper Dokio?? brand ones and they were much less efficient, so the extra price for the “sunpower” solar cells bluetti uses, def pays off. Plus I don’t have to rig up wiring cause the mc4 connections are perfect for the AC200’s setup
Thanks, I appreciate the feedback
How long does it take to charge your AC200§?
I’ve seen people charge w/ the AC brick and solar so I’m guessing the VoC limit is still a requirement…the more I think this silly question.
Basically it means no matter how many watts/panels, I have to meet the 35volt minimum to charge from panels. So that means 2 panels at minimum.
Even with sale price it will be tough to pull trigger. If I consider other panels it appears I will need MC4 adapter.
@m.briney curious how long takes to charge your AC200§ from 2 120w panels ?
I estimated about 8.5 hours in optimal conditions. Am I calculating correctly (2000/240). In winter I’m lucky to get 4 hours if sunny day. Another reason to consider the folding panels cause could possible squeeze a few more watts late in day(would have to test).
If I am calculating correctly needcto adjust my daily power expectations. I’m wanting to try and get 3 days of power (hoping outages not more than 3 days).
I do have a Sportsman 1800/2200 dual fuel gennie I could use in a pinch to charge the bluetti but I need to see how to configure. And hope the 35v limit not an issue.
I wasn’t thinking, I would be using the AC input if charging from sportsman genie, not the PV input.
@roxie60 I was able to bring the AC200 from 48% to 100% within 5 hours , running 2 of the 120w portable SP120 panels in series. I am located in Michigan and this time of year isn’t going to yield optimal results, but honestly I was really impressed for just “set-and-forgetting” them out angled towards due-south.
Thank you @m.briney. this is what I was looking for. I’m in IL. I really want the portable panels but tough decision since I think I should have enough panels to charge in 5 hours (Summer optimal sun). We rarely get clear skies anytime of the year. I think I could get 4 rigid 120w panels for the sale price of the 2 bluetti panels. But I really like the foldable, easy to move buetti panels…I’m trying to consider worse case scenario where power might be out 3-5 days. Anyway thanks a bunch for sharing your experience.
No problem @roxie60! I’m in a very similar boat, and that’s why I went with 2 of the Bougerv 180w rigid panels to supplement the 2 portable ones. Least till I can save up some more funds… haha cause the bluetti ones really are solid quality!
Guess I hesitated too long. Went tonight to finally purchase 2 of the Maxoak 120w portable panels but (my panels were still in the cart) price is back up to $800(2). It was hard enough to pull the trigger at $620.
I hesitated a few days cause I was doing research, see what others thought, etc.
So I guess I need to look elsewhere. Are these panels made by an existing solar panel maker? Sun? something …anything special about the Maxoak version? I know they say they are more efficient than other panels but are the some how better than the company that makes the cells?
May look to see if BougeRV 180w still on sell.
@m.briney I know this not bluetti question but you mentioned the BougeRV 180w and I was looking at it. A customer said his weighed 31lbs but I’m see just under 25lbs. These are behemoths but people seem happy with them do you know how much one panel weighs? Thx
Looks like I can get 360w for well under $400, not sure how long will last. They also offer 10ft extension cable but I need 20-25ft. Something else to wrap my brain around. Cheers.
Discouraging, went to order 2 BougeRV 180w panels while on sale
Got this msg:
Some items in your cart don’t ship to your location. Contact the store for more information
But the don’t say which items. How can they not deliver here, we gave every shipping company. May try again tomorrow.
My mistake. I didn’t realize there are different buttons for different countries. So I corrected that.
However, I contacted BougeRV with a few other ?s in addition to the ordering issue(my issue).
I was told due to Covid19 these panels are considered pre-order cause they don’t start shipping until Feb. How long did it take to get your BougrRV 180w panels after ordering?
Is delivery an ongoing issue with BougeRV?
These seem like very good panels but I’m only 5’5" and wondering if going to be difficult to move(i will not be installing permanently).
Any other panels reco that work w/ out much setup work? 100-120w might be a more manageable size for me but I would like the quality/ efficiency of the BougeRV. Thanks
@roxie60 I think they are closer to the 25lb range. My shipping details confirmed a 28lb weight and thats including the solid shipping packaging which definitely was appreciated. They are more awkward to move but honestly weren’t to bad to haul around & mount.
Another good thing to keep in mind when mixing/pairing up solar panels, is that you want to try and keep their specs as similar as possible. Beyond their efficiency/price-point, this was another reason why I went with the bougeRv panels for my applications.
When I ordered them back in August, they were on a “preorder” as well, and I knew that they were also experiencing supply delays due to Covid but BougeRv was very transparent and quick with answering any questions I had and keeping me updated along the way. I ordered them Aug 19th and they arrived October 27th so just about 2 months out, which is about spot on from what I was told in the beginning. In fact as I think about it, I originally had pre-ordered their 170w panels, but they upgraded and sent me out the 180w panels! haha For the price point and quality of the panels, I would do it all again in a heartbeat honestly.
And on the BougeRV website, it allows you to choose what length/gauge wire you want. I personally went with the 20ft/10AWG as I will be adding more of those 180w panels in the future, but they also have the 12AWG which would work just fine.
Once again thank you @m.briney. I would love the BougeRV but I will be moving these in and out as needed. I think they t the best so far but I’m just not that strong anymore and sadly prone to clumsy.
Thank for the comment about the specs, I was not aware or if I was I forgot.
Right now haven’t totally ruled out BougeRV but leaning towards RICH or Renova 100w poly panels. Hoping to get 75w out of each. I know I will probably need 4 panels (trying to get to 300w). I’m still wanting to add Maxoak portable panels down the road in parallel so I need to check the specs and compare. Unfortunately I’m finding spec info online to not be consistent.
I kinda figured if they said ships in Feb I’m assuming that means coming from China so add another 4-5 weeks. Thanks for sharing your experience. I have more confidence to move forward.
New user of the AC200P - I see no way to connect panels in parallel with the supplied cables . If you plug 3 panels in series that would exceed the 12 A spec. 3 panels would supply a max of 18.18 A. It appears that the power station would limit the current to 12A. So I do not see the value of using 3 panels in series, and yet that is what they offer as a set with the 200P. Also is there an extension cable available for the panels? Thanks in advance for any response.
I think you are confusing what series and parallel do. Series will add all the voltages together (not amps) so you want to connect in series and do not need any other cables to do so. If you need an extension cable search on Amazon for MC4 extension cables.
If you connect the panels in parallel is will add the total amps of all three panels which would be 18 amps like you state (but not by connecting in series) . Connecting in parallel will not only not give you the minimum of 35 volts, but will also require a “Y branch” parallel adapter to do so. But…again, you want to connect in series and not parallel which is the only way to connect three panel for the AC200.