Instapark NEW All Black 5W Mono-crystalline Solar Panel with 12V Solar Charge Controller

SOLAR PANEL: This panel is very well made, reliable, and seems quite weatherproof. It puts out the full 5 watts in bright sunlight. I put some silicone caulk where the wire exits the back of the panel, just to be safe.EDIT: The charge controller failed after 19 months, and two replacements from Instapark were dead on arrival. The techie at Instapark said they are replacing that model of charge controller with a different model. So I can't recommend it any more. The solar panel is still good, but the charge controller didn't last long enough. So ... read all the information below with the failure in mind.CHARGE CONTROLLER: The housing is definitely not weatherproof, but it does work properly. Some reviewers reported rusted connectors. Mine arrived without any rust. I created a battery box for an electric fence. The solar panel is mounted on top of the box, and the solar charge controller is inside the box with the battery and the fence energizer (protected from weather).Don't use it with a large panel (as one reviewer did), because it's only designed to take a small current. It is rated for only 3 amps. 3 amps x 12 volts = 36 watts. So ... don't hook up more than 36 watts of 12-volt solar panels to this charger.Another reviewer said the charger allows the battery to discharge into the solar panel at night. That's not really true. I did many tests and figured out what is going on. There is a green "Power" LED light on the charge controller. That light is on whenever it is connected to the battery. That light draws about 5 milli-amps from the battery at night, which is negligible. During the day, the solar panel powers the green LED.So ... when the solar panel gets no power from the sun, electricity flows from the battery to the green LED. But that is the only draw on the battery. I tested it, and there is no current flowing into the solar panel from the battery. The 5 milli-amp draw is minimal, and really has no effect on the battery at all. Consider that during bright sunlight, the panel pours about 400+ milli-amps into the battery. Even that amount is just considered a "trickle" charge.I put a blocking diode (1N4001) between the battery and the charge controller, which even blocks the 5 milli-amp discharge at night. Now the green "Power" light only comes on when the panel gets light.I also verified that the charge controller stops charging the batter when it reaches about 13 volts. That protects the battery from being over-charged.Hope this helps.

This solar panel combo is a solar panel plus a charge controller plus clamps - all preassembled and ready to go. Set it out in the sun, attach the clamps to a meter, and you should get what I got - 20V at .3 amps. My panel came in good condition - inside a solid cardboard box within another box. Your mileage may vary. I am pleased with the construction overall, but it does not look overly rugged. You won't want to casually toss it around too much, but it should mount nicely to a solid surface. The aluminum frame has mounting holes on the back, but the clearance is very limited.I have a Brunton foldable solar panel that cost ten times as much and only puts out 3 times the amps (same voltage).I will be buying a larger Instapark product in the future. Overall, I am very pleased with this purchase.

I posted on another review and wanted to explaing that I'm pretty new to Solar technology and overal the concept of this. I just installed and built a wood shed. About 8x10. The problem that I was faced with was if I ran electrical to it, I then get taxed because it's considered a permenant structure... *NO THANK YOU*.. So I have some spare UPS 12v batteries, nothing huge or eleborate as some of the people's setups that I have been reading about.I have had these sitting in my basement for almost a year.  HitLights LED Flexible Lighting Strip Cool White or Bright White, 5 Meter or 16 Ft, 300SMD, 24 Watt  So decided that instead of purchasing something that is probably made like crap, lets design something with them. I've worked with LEDS before so I'm very comfortable using them but my problem was if I use it with the battery how do I charge the battery without having to disconnect everything then take it inside and charge it..etc. Found this little solar panel and all the great reviews from everyone here convinced me to try it out. It was between this and the 10watt version but went with this due to price and more reviews. What I didn't know is that I needed a battery solar controller and from the reviews here everyone did NOT like the one that came with the solar panel, and I have to agree, it's extremely CHEAP. I purchased this one:  HQRP Solar Power Controller 10Amp 150W with Digital LED Display plus HQRP UV Chain / UV Radiation Health Tester . This device uses the solar panel's voltage and reduces it down to charge and maintain a battery. It also has a load feature that enables me to plug in my LED lights and turn them on and off at will which is exactly what I wanted.Fast forward to the panel review. I took it outside and got 21 volts in direct sunlight. Trying to figure out how to mount this on my roof I then tried just putting it on the back of the shed. Believe it or not just from the ambient light outside I was getting 19volts which is more than enough for the battery controller to charge the battery. So I am very pleased with this!! Actually extremely excited that this is all working and the fact that I can run my LED lights on at night for when I need to get into the shed and see what is going on. I am not researching what else I can add and perhaps get another solar panel and play around with it. I can now fully understand why people enjoy this and enjoy getting off the grid in a way and being completely self sufficient in power. Given my application is EXTREMELY tiny compared to others but it's extremely rewarding to know that I can take parts and make it all work together and have a finished product that actually WORKS and works much better than pre-made "shed lights" that aren't as bright, aren't as efficient at charging and utilizing a solar panel and best of all knowing that with the help of others here willing to answer questions makes it a fun project!For a beginner such as myself I feel this product is at least 4-5 stars... Probably get 5 stars if I could figure out how to properly mount the panel to something or if they gave mounting hardware, but honestly that's ok. It's still a nice solar panel for the price. Don't be afraid to try it or try solar projects! I'm already looking at others just to see what else I can do!*I will take pictures of my setup once it's fully completely so others can get an idea or possibly help someone in the future like all the reviews and discussions helped me so far!

Very high quality solar panel. Solid construction. When I purchased this unit, the photos showed a waterproof 5A charge controller but I received a non-waterproof 3A charge controller. Contacted the vendor and they promptly shipped me the charge controller as advertised. Not sure if the vendor posted the wrong photos or if this was a shipping error. If the photos get updated by the vendor you want to see if the charge controller is black (waterproof) or white (non-water proof). The white charge controller works just fine but it is not what I was looking for as I wanted to mount outdoors to charge a small sealed lead acid battery to power some 12V LED lights.Vendor was great to work with and very prompt to reply and correct the shipping or advertising issue.

It really annoys me that there is absolutely no mounting hardware. Why is it that one cannot assume mounting hardware inclusive.

Excellent product