Charge Your Energizer Portable Power Station With Solar Panels
If you have ever purchased batteries, you have probably seen or heard about the company Energizer. Recently, Energizer has gone into the portable power station market and released a couple of portable batteries for people that need power when they go outdoors camping or want to have an emergency backup at home.
There are four ways to charge these power stations. With the included wall charger, in a car, via USB C PD, and with solar panels.
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Today we’re focusing on how to charge the batteries with solar panels. I’ll recommend a couple of compatible solar panels in different sizes, and let you know how you can use any compatible solar panel on the market.
Let’s start by taking a look at some compatible panels, and whether they require the additional adapter or not. Then we’ll talk about the limitations of the Energizer power stations, and what you need to know and think about when you want to recharge the battery with the help of the sun.
Solar Panel Recommendations For The Energizer 160Wh/240Wh Power Stations
Note that the solar panels with a green checkmark next to “Requires Additional Adapter” requires additional purchases, I link to the adapter below the table.
Note: Scroll left/right on small screens to view all products in the table.
The Adapter You Might Need
If you choose a solar panel with MC4 connectors, you’re going to need an adapter to connect the panel to the 8mm input on the Energizer power stations.
The adapter you need is this one (click to view on Amazon).
With a solar panel like the Renogy 100W above, the adapter can only be connected in one way. The solar panel has a positive male connector and a negative female connector. The adapter is the opposite, which is what makes it compatible.
If you have a different third-party solar panel with different wiring, you need a different adapter. You can leave a comment and let me know if you’re having issues finding the correct adapter.
Energizer Power Stations – Inputs And Limitations
Both the 160Wh and 240Wh models have an 8mm DC input. They can also be charged with a USB C cable.
The 8mm input on the Energizer 160Wh can handle panels rated between 12-22V and 45W maximum.
The 8mm input on the Energizer 240Wh can handle panels rated between 12-30V and a 55W maximum. There is some contradicting information about this since Energizer also says that it has a 22V VOC limit. Therefore, I recommend staying below 22V VOC to be safe.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Can I Improve The Charging Efficiency?
One of the easiest ways to improve the charging speed and efficiency when using solar panels is to tilt the panels towards the sun. If the solar panel is angled directly towards the sun, it will do a much better job of generating electricity.
This is especially helpful in the morning and evening hours when the sun is low on the horizon. It also helps during cloudy days.
Another thing you should do is make sure that the solar panel isn’t shaded, not even a little bit. Sometimes, a very small shadow can decrease the charging speed significantly.
What Is The Difference Between The Energizer 160Wh and 240Wh?
The biggest difference between the two is the battery capacity, as you can tell by their names.
160 versus 240 watt-hours. That’s 50% more battery capacity, so you can power your devices for 50% longer.
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Another difference is the inverter rating. The 160Wh has a 150W/200W surge inverter, while the 240Wh has a 200W/400W surge inverter. So you can power four 50W devices with the 240Wh model vs three with the 160Wh.
If you don’t know how many watts your device use and it doesn’t say on it, you can use a P3 Kill A Watt usage monitor that will show exactly how many watts the device(s) plugged into it are using.
How Long Will It Take To Charge The Energizer With Solar Panels?
Energizer advertises that it will take 4-5 hours to charge the 160Wh model with a 60W solar panel, and 6-7 hours to charge the 240Wh model with a 60W solar panel.
What USB C Adapter Do I Need To Charge Via USB C?
You need to use a 45W+ PD charger, like the Anker USB C PD Charger.
The charging time is the same as above no matter how you charge as long as you max the 45/55W input.
Please leave a comment down below if you have any questions.
Could you provide a detailed comparison (including battery efficiencies, cell qualities etc.) between Beaudens 166Wh and Energizer 240Wh power stations?
Sure, I will add that to my to-do list.
Hello, have you done a test on the energizer pps2000? I’m wondering if I could use my 100w solar panels I purchased with my jackery on this new energizer PPS2000. Thank you in advance for your input!
Hi, it should work with a cable like this (click to view on Amazon) since Energizer includes a XT90 to Aviation plug. The SolarEnz supposedly come with a male to male adapter which you might need to connect it all together.