Solar panels

Three folding solar panels to recharge a portable power station where there is no socket: in a van, a camper, at anchor, in the garden or on a worksite. 182 × 182 mm monocrystalline cells with 23 % efficiency, ETFE front face, and a carry case that doubles as a stand.

Folding solar panel, portable solar panel

Both terms describe the same object: a panel that folds into a case and travels, as opposed to the rigid panel you bolt to a roof. It is not installed, it is set down — facing the sun, angled by its case — and packed away when you leave.

The three sizes

The 100 W folding solar panel weighs 3.8 kg and fits in a boot: it is the top-up that keeps the charge going through the day.

The 200 W weighs 7 kg and measures 2.16 m unfolded: it is the one that genuinely refills a station between two stops.

The 300 W weighs 11 kg and measures 2.50 m unfolded: it is for a pitch you settle into for several days, when you have the room to spread it out.

What 100, 200 or 300 W actually means

The stated power is measured in a laboratory, under 1,000 W/m² of irradiance at 25 °C. In the field, a well-angled panel on a fine summer day commonly produces between 60 and 80 % of that figure; under a hazy sky, considerably less. This is not a manufacturer's trick, it is the measurement standard — but it is why a 100 W will not fill a 1,024 Wh station in a day, and why we would rather write it down.

Angle matters more than wattage. A panel laid flat loses a large share of its output; angled towards the sun and repositioned two or three times a day, it makes up the gap on a larger panel left on the ground.

The connection

All three output MC4, the standard photovoltaic connector, at 20.5 V at the maximum power point: the connection is the same for all three. As the input on Volta stations is DC 5525, it goes through the adapter supplied in the cable kit — written on every product page rather than discovered when the box is opened.

A panel connects straight to the station: the charge controller is in the station, not in the panel. So there is nothing to configure, and nothing else to buy apart from the adapter.

What we commit to

2-year warranty, support in France. The conformity documents we hold are listed, with their number, on Our checks.