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Thread: RFI Solar Cell Phone Charger

  1. #1
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    RFI Solar Cell Phone Charger

    I am considering getting a USB solar charger for my and my wife's cell phones and for our usb-rechargeable Fenix flashlights/ Lanterns.

    This isn't something I've ever looked for and I don't even know where to begin. I don't know enough about it to know who would or wouldn't be a quality manufacturer.

    Any advice the collective could give would be greatly appreciated.

    TIA

  2. #2
    Supporting Business NH Shooter's Avatar
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    Sep 2014
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    New Hampshire, U.S.A.
    For those so inclined;

    I build this a few years ago. Solar panel charges a 12V sealed lead-acid battery through a charge controller, lead-acid battery charges all handheld devices and powers 12V Li-ion battery charger for flashlights, etc. It can also power a pair of table lamps converted with 12V LED bulbs that we use indoors during power outages.

    These are commercially marketed as "solar generators" but I decided to build my own. I do have plans for a much larger version but never moved forward with that project.












  3. #3
    Curious, why solar vs. battery packs?

    The "big" one can charge an iphone ten times, for instance, and is much smaller/lighter/faster than a solar unit.

    Are you frequently off grid for extended periods?
    David S.

  4. #4
    ................
    David S.

  5. #5
    Site Supporter Hambo's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by NH Shooter View Post
    I do have plans for a much larger version but never moved forward with that project.
    Do you have plans/part list for the one pictured?

    Cypher, I bought a Goal Zero Nomad on sale. I'm not sure what to say about it other than it works.
    "Gunfighting is a thinking man's game. So we might want to bring thinking back into it."-MDFA

  6. #6
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    Nov 2013
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    northern Virginia
    I used to do some bike touring, and for work I'd often spend long hours in the field. I bought a product called Orange Joos, or something like that. I liked the form factor, because I could put it on top my rear trunk bike rack and it could charge all day while I was riding. It was also marketed as being reasonably rugged. Well, after two failures, including one frustrating trip where I lugged that stupid thing around on my bike, I gave up on it. $150 down the drain. I'm mentioning this because I have still seen some of these for sale on Amazon. Do not buy.

    After that, I went with the Goal Zero system. However, about the time that I bought that system, I changed jobs and no longer go out in the field, and I haven't been doing much bike touring. My last trip was down the C&O canal, and I roughed it by staying in B&Bs along the way. For that trip, I just bought a rechargeable battery pack that I'd recharge each night. I think I've used the Goal Zero once and had no problems with it.

  7. #7
    Banned
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    Quote Originally Posted by David S. View Post
    Curious, why solar vs. battery packs?

    The "big" one can charge an iphone ten times, for instance, and is much smaller/lighter/faster than a solar unit.

    Are you frequently off grid for extended periods?
    No. We're really not off the grid ever but it seems like a prudent investment. If I can get a good quality one for a reasonable price. Because then I would have it should we decide to go camping.

  8. #8
    Banned
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hambo View Post
    Do you have plans/part list for the one pictured?

    Cypher, I bought a Goal Zero Nomad on sale. I'm not sure what to say about it other than it works.
    So far I've had two people suggest Goal Zero.

    I'm not sure if it's because of the altitude or because I bought a cheap product but I used to have one of those solar powered emergency radios. I put it out in the sun one day at work just to see how it worked and by the end of the day the solar cell was burned out.

    That's why I want to get one from a reputable manufacturer

  9. #9
    Site Supporter rob_s's Avatar
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    Nov 2011
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    SE FL
    If your'e just looking for phones, a friend has one of these that he likes and I keep meaning to get one myself.
    https://litmobile.us/products/wirele...olar-powerbank

    I like that it offers wireless charging for phones so equipped. The guy I know that has one leaves in on the dash of the truck, then takes it out and sets his phone on it when he needs it. I think he's also trapped it to the top of a saddlebag on his ADV bike and charged it that way so that when they get to camp he can top up the phone.

  10. #10
    Site Supporter Hambo's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Cypher View Post
    So far I've had two people suggest Goal Zero.

    I'm not sure if it's because of the altitude or because I bought a cheap product but I used to have one of those solar powered emergency radios. I put it out in the sun one day at work just to see how it worked and by the end of the day the solar cell was burned out.

    That's why I want to get one from a reputable manufacturer
    I'm 15' above sea level with blazing, burn your retinas out sun. The Goal Zero works very well in that level of sunlight. We've got a few cheap ass lights with solar panels, but I've never put them out in full sun at high noon. I usually keep them on a window ledge and that's enough to keep them charged. That's not an endorsement of cheap ass gear, just an observation.
    "Gunfighting is a thinking man's game. So we might want to bring thinking back into it."-MDFA

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