Renogy 200w Suitcase with MPPT Controller

[porkchopmountain]

I have a 100aH LiFePO4 battery and as of today, I've been charging it with a Victron AC wall charger. It works good, but I would like to have something to charge it when off the grid.

I have my eye on the Renogy 200 watt suitcase panels with the 20a Voyager PWM controller. I would like to swap this out to a MPPT controller. I *think* the "Victron 75v 15" controller may be a little undersized. I think I would need the 100-volt, 30 amp one, but not 100% sure.

As an option to the Victron, would the Renogy Rover 30Amp controller work?

 

[Tomthumb62]

I have this same Renogy 200W suitcase. I removed the PWM controller and simply wired it in parallel with my other panels into my charge controller.

I had used the Renogy Rover 30A up until about 6 weeks ago. I switched to a Victron 100/30, which is equivalent to the Renogy in terms of input/output. NIGHT AND DAY difference. That dang Renogy gave me so many headaches I won't repeat here and their customer service gave me even more headaches (super friendly but inept to help and kept asking the same questions that I answered again and again...) Not only does the Victron simply WORK like I expect it to, my rough math suggests I am getting up to 30% more production from the same panels using the Victron compared to the Renogy.

If you do go with the Renogy controller, there is a very good and very long thread (something like "40A renogy rover settings") that you will want to read from start to finish to learn what you're dealing with and how to setup the Rover properly. Even then, I hated the thing. SO glad to be done with it. Had I realized how much of my life I would waste learning how bad Renogy sucks, I would have gone with Victron from the very start. But the physical looks and low price of the Renogy was what hooked me, if I'm honest.

This forum is generally not fond of flexible panels for reasons I understand. One of those reasons is that rigid panels tend to produce better. However, we recently added two 100W Sunpower panels (the ONLY panels I recommend if you're going flexible). I laid the flexible 100W Sunpower panel on the ground in full sun and tested voltage and amps. I don't have the numbers anymore because I didn't write them down. Then I set up the Renogy 200W suitcase and angled it towards the sun and took measurements. I divided the suitcase numbers in half, because it's 200W compared to the flexible 100W. The difference was shocking - the flexible panel (flat on the ground), produced better than the rigid panels.

Many on this forum have said that Renogy's stuff is overpriced junk (but wait, it's cheaper than Victron!) and I agree. They often make an exception - that their rigid panels are decent and of decent value. I don't have any other rigid Renogy panels to compare to, but based upon my small experiment here, I don't agree.

IMO, the best feature of the Renogy folding suitcase is the semi-padded zippered case. The zipper sucks, but it works enough to close up and this really helps with storage. The panels fold in such a way that the glass faces out, so the zippered case is essential when storing it in the back of a vehicle, otherwise it's surely to get scratched or cracked.

We got a good deal on the Renogy suitcase by buying it 'used' on Amazon Warehouse. I think we paid less than $180. Were I to do it over again, I think I'd rather build my own suitcase with known quality 100W panels and hinge them so the glass faces each other when folded and put a piece of felt between them for storage. The suitcase is a bit heavy and I'd much rather have that weight pay for itself in producing as much energy as it could.

Hope that helps!

 

[porkchopmountain]

I have this same Renogy 200W suitcase. I removed the PWM controller and simply wired it in parallel with my other panels into my charge controller.

I had used the Renogy Rover 30A up until about 6 weeks ago. I switched to a Victron 100/30, which is equivalent to the Renogy in terms of input/output. NIGHT AND DAY difference. That dang Renogy gave me so many headaches I won't repeat here and their customer service gave me even more headaches (super friendly but inept to help and kept asking the same questions that I answered again and again...) Not only does the Victron simply WORK like I expect it to, my rough math suggests I am getting up to 30% more production from the same panels using the Victron compared to the Renogy.

If you do go with the Renogy controller, there is a very good and very long thread (something like "40A renogy rover settings") that you will want to read from start to finish to learn what you're dealing with and how to setup the Rover properly. Even then, I hated the thing. SO glad to be done with it. Had I realized how much of my life I would waste learning how bad Renogy sucks, I would have gone with Victron from the very start. But the physical looks and low price of the Renogy was what hooked me, if I'm honest.

This forum is generally not fond of flexible panels for reasons I understand. One of those reasons is that rigid panels tend to produce better. However, we recently added two 100W Sunpower panels (the ONLY panels I recommend if you're going flexible). I laid the flexible 100W Sunpower panel on the ground in full sun and tested voltage and amps. I don't have the numbers anymore because I didn't write them down. Then I set up the Renogy 200W suitcase and angled it towards the sun and took measurements. I divided the suitcase numbers in half, because it's 200W compared to the flexible 100W. The difference was shocking - the flexible panel (flat on the ground), produced better than the rigid panels.

Many on this forum have said that Renogy's stuff is overpriced junk (but wait, it's cheaper than Victron!) and I agree. They often make an exception - that their rigid panels are decent and of decent value. I don't have any other rigid Renogy panels to compare to, but based upon my small experiment here, I don't agree.

IMO, the best feature of the Renogy folding suitcase is the semi-padded zippered case. The zipper sucks, but it works enough to close up and this really helps with storage. The panels fold in such a way that the glass faces out, so the zippered case is essential when storing it in the back of a vehicle, otherwise it's surely to get scratched or cracked.

We got a good deal on the Renogy suitcase by buying it 'used' on Amazon Warehouse. I think we paid less than $180. Were I to do it over again, I think I'd rather build my own suitcase with known quality 100W panels and hinge them so the glass faces each other when folded and put a piece of felt between them for storage. The suitcase is a bit heavy and I'd much rather have that weight pay for itself in producing as much energy as it could.

Hope that helps!

Thank you for the information. I feel like I'm on the same path as you. The Victron controller is ~$100 more but I hate headaches. I bought my Victron charger without trying anything else, so maybe I'm just expecting everything to work as expected... For about $75 more, I may just get that Victron controller.

And yes, I agree with Renogy quality. I feel like their panels are OK overall, and I like the portability of them. My next step is to see if/how they fit in my trailer.

I was trying to keep it simple and upgrade later, but I have a feeling that if I go the Renogy route, I'm going to spend more time swearing than smiling.

 

[Tomthumb62]

Thank you for the information. I feel like I'm on the same path as you. The Victron controller is ~$100 more but I hate headaches. I bought my Victron charger without trying anything else, so maybe I'm just expecting everything to work as expected... For about $75 more, I may just get that Victron controller.

And yes, I agree with Renogy quality. I feel like their panels are OK overall, and I like the portability of them. My next step is to see if/how they fit in my trailer.

I was trying to keep it simple and upgrade later, but I have a feeling that if I go the Renogy route, I'm going to spend more time swearing than smiling.

If I haven’t convinced you yet: definitely go for the Victron controller. It’s the brain of your system. And the thing beginners tend to cheap out on. The Renogy suitcase is decent, though, as long as you don’t pay full retail price, which I think is over $300usd.

Word of advice when using the suitcase- if you setup on grass of any length (except something like putting green grass), or other weeds, lay down the zippered case opened up and put the deployed panels on that. It will prevent grasses and weeds from putting micro shading on your panels, which can cause production problems and other issues.

 

[porkchopmountain]

If I haven’t convinced you yet: definitely go for the Victron controller. It’s the brain of your system. And the thing beginners tend to cheap out on. The Renogy suitcase is decent, though, as long as you don’t pay full retail price, which I think is over $300usd.

Word of advice when using the suitcase- if you setup on grass of any length (except something like putting green grass), or other weeds, lay down the zippered case opened up and put the deployed panels on that. It will prevent grasses and weeds from putting micro shading on your panels, which can cause production problems and other issues.

The 200watt version is running $319 now on amazon. It looks like it's been at that price for quite some time. What would you consider a decent price I should be shooting for is?

 

[Tomthumb62]

The 200watt version is running $319 now on amazon. It looks like it's been at that price for quite some time. What would you consider a decent price I should be shooting for is?

I think that is way too high considering how mediocre renogy quality actually is. It’s Walmart store brand quality at Fancier-but not the-Fanciest supermarket prices.

Like I said, we found ours on the Amazon Warehouse, which is where they sell all their returns at deeply discounted prices. And if the item you receive is of lower quality (say there’sa scratch someplace the listing didn’t mention), then if you call up Amazon, they’ll give you another 15-40% off. I think we paid $180-200 for ours. It was flawless, except one of the four foam protective corners in the packing materials was missing. It may very well be that’s why it was discounted in the first place.

If you’ve never bought from Amazon Warehouse, it’s not obvious how to reach that part of the website. Just Google “amazon warehouse” and that should direct you there. We’ve bought from the Warehouse several times now and have always been pleased.

Or wait for a Renogy sale. Buy direct from them instead of Amazon. I think you can get 5% off as a new customer 365 days of the year if you sign up for their email list. Black Friday is just around the corner.

Whatever you do, don’t pay $319. It’s a rip off price. Or a nicer way of putting it, it’s the price that they tell you so that when they offer a sale, they sell it for still higher than it’s actually worth, but much closer to the mark.

I say all this because I bought almost all Renogy gear at first. One by one, I’ve been replacing those devices with other brands, because of the headaches that the Renogy ones have given me. And the headaches that Renogy customer support has given me. No headaches so far with any of the replacement devices.

 

[Smeeg]