Solar Panel

[Paulus]

Grape Solar Photoflex 100 watt Monocrystalline Solar Panel   This panel is made by Grape Solar in Eugene, Oregon.  Does anyone have experience with this panel?  It is very similar to the Solbian Panel but half the cost.  Appreciate any feedback and opinions. 
Thanks,
Paul

[mainesail]

That panel is made in China (I know the rip-off factory that makes them and they have stolen and then cheapened many solar products over the years and relied upon the "looks like" factor to sell them) It is actually a pretty poor knock off of the Solbian. This same sleazy factory has done it to Aurinco, Morningstar and now Solbian. One of their "MPPT" controller was not even an MPPT but was certainly sold as such.

I was just recently meeting with the importer of Solbian USA and was discussing the Chinese situation. They are made with inferior materials, a poorly designed j-box but do sell for less money.

Keep in mind that the Solbian panels are designed and built first for the marine environment and carry a marine specific warranty. The Grape Solar panels are a crap shoot, but cheap. I just hope Grape can keep tabs on them and not get screwed over like so many others have...

It is sad in this day and age that companies like Solbian, Aurinco or Morningstar can pioneer products put millions into R&D of products, such as the film they are sealed with, the design of the controller, the programming of the algorithms, then have some sleazy Chinese company come in, steal the design, cheapen the design so in most cases it does not perform the same as the original but make it look the same, so it sells.

This is a prime example of what Chinese rip off factories do:

Which one is the genuine LED bulb made in Japan of high quality components and which one is the Chinese rip off.....?


The actual performance differences speak volumes:

Chinese = Very poor cold bluish color, less beam width, less light and more power consumption:


Japanese = Excellent warm color, considerably wider beam width, more light and less power consumption.

[Roc]

Mainesail,
When you say the Chinese LED uses more power.  What's the difference in power use of that vs. the Japanese LED?

Thanks!

[mainesail]

It was about 0.11A vs 0.17A... Still LED, and not a lot, but my point is the Chinese do a VERY, VERY good job nailing the "looks like" part but not the actual performance part.... Just be careful is all I am saying.... The stuff is cheap but usually performs cheaply too.

[Stu Jackson]

Sometimes the cheaper units do not have the circuitry to allow the use of varying input voltages, so when your alternator or charger is working, the lights get overpowered and have been reported to fail.

In this case, as in most, it's worth it to buy carefully.

[mainesail]

This guy recently purchased, three weeks ago, some Chinese made knock off panels. They were on his patio and this is what the grommets looked like after three weeks. Remember these have not even been installed on the boat yet or ever spent a single minute in the marine environment...... They look brass, but NO, the Chinese like to cut corners so they are brass plated STEEL...... What else about these knock offs did the cut corners on.....???

[patrice]

They look brass, but NO, the Chinese like to cut corners so they are brass plated STEEL...... What else about these knock offs did the cut corners on.....???

Looking at the picture, they cut the corner of the cell too ....        

[Paulus]

Who is selling this product?  Solbian and Aurion panels have the same corners and the spec sheets read the same?  One company making both panels?  Where are these companies located???

[mainesail]

Solbian manufactures their panels in Italy not in China..... Again the Chinese have literally stolen this product and made one that may "look" identical, but is not...