Portable power stations such as the Jackery range often come with their own proprietary solar panels for charging the power station from the sun. Is it possible to use solar panels from a different manufacturer such as Renogy to charge your Jackery power station?
When checking the compatibility of Renogy solar panels with Jackery units, we must consider the following.
- Are all Jackery power stations the same?
- Will Renogy solar panels work with Jackery
- Why use a Renogy panel instead of a Jackery panel?
- How to connect Renogy panels to your Jackery unit.
Using Renogy solar panels to charge up your Jackery portable power station is possible, but it is not as simple as plugging the solar panel in. The connectors on the Jackery for solar panel input are not standard solar panel connectors. You will need some modifications to get it right.
What Solar Connections Does Jackery Accept?
Jackery manufactures portable power solutions ideal for outdoor activities, camping, Overlanding, RV living, or even power outages at home.
These products are versatile and robust and have earned a reputation for being a premium products in the portable power niche.
The Jackery power stations are sold in two configurations. The first configuration is a standalone unit that must be charged by connecting the power station to the main outlet.
The second configuration the Jackery power stations are sold in is as a solar generator. In this configuration, the units are supplied with their own proprietary solar panels that plug directly into the unit.
The addition of solar panels makes these power stations truly portable and gives you reliable electricity wherever you are.
Because the Jackery is designed to be used with Jackery solar panels, the connection port on the power station is made to accept the same connector on the Jackery solar panels.
Are All Jackery Power Stations The Same?
The Jackery power stations are marketed in two distinct ranges, the Explorer range, and the Compact Explorer range.
The Explorer range offers the E1000, E1500, and E2000 models, which are all heavy-duty power stations. The Compact range consists of the E160, E240, E300, and E500 models, which are more compact than the Explorer range but have limited capacity compared to the Explorer range.
The power stations are designed with an 8mm port or jack to accept the connector from the Jackery range of solar panels.
See also: Portable Solar Panels Are Good (Here’s Why)
How To Select A Solar Panel To Connect To Your Jackery
When looking for a third-party solar panel to connect to your Jackery power station, you should consider several aspects before going ahead with the purchase.
Do not use a third-party solar panel with a built-in solar regulator on the back of the panel. Some rigid solar panels. The Jackery power station has its own built-in solar regulator or solar controller that cleans the power from the panel and manages the charging of the battery.
A solar controller on the panel would interfere with the function of the internal Jackery solar controller and could damage the Jackery unit.
Another consideration for third-party panels is the input wattage and the amperage of the solar panels. The input wattage and amperage must not exceed the specifications of the Jackery unit.
Which Renogy Solar Panels Work With Jackery?
Renogy solar panels are a popular brand, especially in the RV and camping sector. The panels are high-quality mono-crystalline cells and are some of the most efficient solar panels on the market.
Renogy makes rigid solar panels, flexible panels, and foldable panels that fold up into what they call a solar suitcase. These are portable solar panels, similar to the panels offered by Jackery to charge the portable power stations.
Some of the Renogy solar panels are shipped with built-in solar controllers. These types of solar panels are not suitable for use with the Jackery units since the power stations have their own built-in controllers.
When you source your Renogy solar panels, make sure to specify the panel that is shipped with no integrated solar controller, such as the Renogy 100-Watt, 12-Volt Monocrystalline solar panel.
- Compact and Reliable - The 100W 12V Monocrystalline solar panel delivers a stable output of an average 500Wh of electricity...
- Superior Quality and Material - All Renogy solar panels are made from 100% EL-tested Grade A+ solar cells to provide the...
- Advanced Solar Cell Tech and Panel Structure - Renogy solar panels adapted the newest 9 Bus-bars cell tech and Half-cell...
The most popular Renogy solar panel to partner with the Jackery is the 100-Watt panel. If your Jackery unit is one of the smaller ones, a single panel will be sufficient.
For the larger Jackery units, you can use multiple 100-W Renogy panels linked together to provide the charging capacity you need.
Why Use A Renogy Solar Panel Instead Of A Jackery Panel?
Why do Jackery owners seek out alternatives to the Jackery panels for charging their portable power stations?
The most common reason Jackery owners seek out alternative solar panels is that the Jackery panels are not weatherproof. The Jackery panels cannot be left out in the rain and exposed to adverse weather.
Renogy solar panels, especially rigid panels, are intended to be permanently fixed in outdoor locations. Thus, they are weatherproof and can be left outside in heavy rain without suffering any damage.
Another motivating factor to use panels other than the proprietary Jackery panels is the price. Jackery 100-Watt panels cost about $250, while the 100-Watt Renogy rigid solar panels cost a little over $110.
This significant difference in price prompts Jackery portable power station owners to pursue alternative methods for charging the units off-grid.
How To Connect A Renogy Panel To A Jackery
The Jackery power stations accept a DC 8mm connector as an input from the solar panels. The solar panels made by Jackery and sold as the solar panels to use on these units come with matching connectors to simply plug into the unit.
Standard solar panels do not use DC 8mm connectors, so an adapter is necessary to make them compatible with the Jackery input socket.
The Renogy solar panels can be connected to the Jackery units with the SolarEnz Solar Connector to DC8mm Adapter Cable to convert the standard solar connectors from the panel to DC 8mm.
If you are using Renogy solar panels on the E1500 or E2000 Jackery units, you will need the SolarEnz DC8mmConnector DC7909 to DC8020 Adapter in addition to the adapter above.
If you have one of the larger Jackery units, you may want to connect multiple 100-Watt panels together to speed up the charging of these units. The E2000 can have up to 4 of the 100-Watt panels connected.
To connect multiple solar panels together, you will need Y-cables such as the BougeRV Solar Connectors Y Branch Parallel Adapter Cables.
These adapters or converters can be used on Renogy panels or any other standard third-party solar panel to make them compatible with the Jackery units.
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