12 Volt Solar Panels for Caravans
Do you love the idea of camping but become anxious at the thought of having no electricity? Electricity has become a necessity of life because we are now living in an age of internet connection, information, and accessibility for social and business purposes. This connection can only be possible through electronic gadgets such as laptops, smartphones, tablets, and so forth, which must be charged to stay connected to the internet.
Solar panels for caravans provide you with solutions to the electricity problem you face with camping. Several solar panels for caravans are available on the market with different specifications according to your requirements. Voltages commonly used for caravans and campers are 12 Volt. Therefore, 12 Volt solar panels are of a great choice to be looking for.
Many people struggle in choosing the right solar panels with so many kinds of solar panels available on the market. You can choose between rigid or flexible solar panels and of different power voltages and sizes.
Rigid Solar Panels
Rigid solar panels are available in Mono-crystalline, Polycrystalline, and Multi-crystalline photovoltaic (PV) panels, which are suitable for mobile usage of solar panels such as buses, coaches, caravans, camper and vans. This kind of solar panel is based on PV solar cells laid under glass. The tempered glass is a great choice as a protective layer on solar panels because it can easily be cleaned even in bad weather conditions. Rigid solar panels are mostly framed with aluminium and are large in size. The aluminium frame helps in maintaining its rigidity and enhances the weatherproof design that withstands hail, sand, wind, and rain. In general, per watt price of rigid solar panels are most competitive in transportable solar panels. At the same time, well built and strong aluminium framed rigid solar panels help in aligning and setting them up for optimum production of electricity.
Rigid solar panels are relatively heavy which may be a problem to handle during travel. Besides handling rigid solar panels, they are cheaper and easier to place in day sunlight than flexible panels and have the best efficiency to produce energy. Rigid solar panels require a mounting frame for setup and may not neatly setup on the rooftop of a vehicle.
If you want to make sure your panels have sufficient juice to be worthwhile, I wouldn’t go for anything under 250Watts. The Panels on my bus are 2 X 285Watts Victron Solar with deep cycle batteries and a 1500W max inverter – this is MORE than enough power and would be sufficient to power a tiny house, so relatively cheap when you think of it that way. This 300W solar panel could be another good option, as could be these two 300W Gencity panels.
Flexible Solar Panels
On the other hand, flexible solar panels, unlike rigid solar panels, are not framed and comprised of a protective glass layer. Because these panels are not framed with aluminium, these are lighter in weight and easier to set up than rigid panels. These panels can easily be set up on the rooftop of caravans. Flexible panels are less durable and much more vulnerable to scratches because of the plastic protective layer used for manufacture. However, due to the flexible surface, they are less likely to crack. Flexible solar panels are more expensive per watt they generate than rigid solar panels.
Here is a 200W flexible solar panel that would be a fair option, and another 200W panel which is flexible here.
Both rigid and flexible solar panels are available 12 Volt capacity on the market. Rigid solar panels are the best choice for caravans due to their efficiency and durability. Solar panels operate at an optimum level when their whole surface can be exposed to sunlight and this can be achieved through rigid solar panels. Rigid solar panels are more efficient, however, flexible solar panels may be more suitable if mounting or transporting panels is an issue.