Hard or Soft (1 Viewer)

[jhbgaiem]

We are in the process of buying a 120w plus solar panel with regulator and extra battery etc.
We were going for a rigid one until we heard about the plastic glue on types. These would certainly cause less drag but our campervan garage says that they heat up and as they are stuck to the roof, all the heat comes through to the inside. We live in Spain so heat is a problem. He also says that they are more fragile and easily damaged by low branches.
I am a cynical man who wonders if he prefers to sell me his make!
The other thing is that rigid panel have been around for 30+ years and the flexible ones for only 4 or 5. So is is difficult to know how long they will last in reality.
Can any of you give me your thoughts and ideas?

 

[ruffingitsmoothly]

Hi whilst I was at Southampton boat show last year I saw that there were solar panels on sale that actually stuck on to flat decks and you could even walk over them1

Regards Pat

 

[oldun]

From what I saw at the NEC the flexible stick-on ones produce less power per square metre so are not so good if space is limited.

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[pappajohn]

the roll up type are......Amorphous panels.

One advantage of the very thin layers used is that the panels can be made flexible. Types are available that can be curved to the bend in a roof for example, or even attached to a flexible backing sheet so that they can be rolled up and put away when they are not needed! The disadvantage of amorphous panels is that they are not as efficient per unit area as monocrystalline panels - typically you will need nearly double the area for the same power output.

ideally the panel should have a gap under it to allow cooling air to circulate so the stick on ones may get too hot.

stick to the rigid panels...:thumb: