How to Charge the FF Flashfish Portable Power Stations with Solar Panels
FF Flashfish makes portable power stations for camping and emergency use that are in the small to medium size range.
Its products are well made and there are a lot of options to choose from depending on what you need a power station for.
Not all of the power stations they make can be charged with solar panels, so make sure it’s the right kind before you purchase.
Most Popular FF Flashfish Power Station: FF Flashfish 330W (click to view on Amazon)
FF Flashfish makes two sizes of portable solar panels that are compatible with its solar generators and other power stations with a compatible input.
I’ll link to and give some info about those later in this post.
First I’ll go through some of the most popular FF Flashfish portable power stations that are solar panel compatible and then give some options for the best solar panels that come with the right size of adapters to start charging right away.
I’ll also link to the correct adapters for different kinds of solar panels that you might already have.
Solar Compatible FF Flashfish Power Stations
Best Solar Panels for FF Flashfish Solar Generators
All of the FF Flashfish portable power stations currently use a 5.5×2.1 mm DC input for charging for both solar and AC power.
The smallest 200W power station has a solar input rating of 37 watts, which means any solar panel around 50-60 watts is going to be perfect.
The middle two sizes that are around 300 watts have a solar input rating of 60 watts. So any standard 100 watt panel will be able to charge it at full capacity most of the day.
The largest FF Flashfish power station has a solar input rating of 90 watts. A 100 watt panel will work for this station but getting something a little bigger like a 120 watt panel is going to help you maximize the charging for longer.
See Also: Best High-Quality 100 Watt Solar Panels Compared
No solar panel is 100% efficient. The max watts that will be output even during the time of day with the strongest sunlight hours aren’t going to reach the wattage the panel is technically made for.
That’s why it’s recommended to get a solar panel that’s at least 20 watts higher than a power station’s max watt input. Just make sure you don’t go too high because you may go over the max voltage rating.
Most of the FF Flashfish are rated for panels that output between 15-24 volts but you may want to double check your specific model just to be sure.
How to Connect Solar Panels with MC4 Connectors
If you’re looking to get some waterproof roof mount solar panels (click to view on Amazon) or a flexible solar panel (click to view on Amazon) you are most likely going to be dealing with MC4 connectors.
To connect an FF Flashfish portable power station to an MC4 solar panel you will need this adapter (click to view on Amazon).
If your solar panel has a charge controller you will need to bypass it in order to connect any power station.
Power stations/solar generators have built in charge controllers and it’s not recommended to connect two of them.
FF Flashfish Solar Generator FAQ
Do the FF Flashfish portable power stations come with solar panels?
No, you will need to purchase a compatible solar panel separately.
Flashfish does make some of its own solar panels that are well made and have not only a compatible plug but also a few other adaptors for other brands of power stations.
You can see more about them in the table above.
How fast will a solar panel charge FF Flashfish power stations?
The 200 watt model can be charged by a solar panel in 5-6 hours.
The two larger 300 watt models can be charged in 6-7 hours.
The largest 500 watt model can be charged in around 7-8 hours.
Charging speeds with solar panels depend greatly on how large the solar panel is and how long it can output enough watts to reach the full charge capacity of the power station.
During mornings, evenings, and cloudy days the panel may only be generating a few watts of power, which means it will take much longer to recharge the battery in the solar generator.
Please leave a comment down below if you have any questions or something to add.