Myth Busters – Jackery Edition

There has been a common recurring theme with Jackery Explorer 1000 –

One would expect connecting two SolarSaga 100W panels would provide more power than 126W…

  • 100W + 100W ?= 126W

Please see the video below for details.

 

A SolarSaga 100W has 32 Monocrystalline high-efficiency solar cells connected in Series – leading to 18V at about 6A as its Max capability under load (Vmpp/Impp). When two SolarSaga 100W panels are connected in Parallel (using the elusive Jackery Y parallel adapter), the Voltage remains the same but the Current gets added (as opposed to adding panels in Series when Voltage gets added and Current remains the same). Hence, the combination of 2 panels in parallel is capable of delivering 12A at 18V. I suspect, Jackery Explorer 1000 internally is not designed to handle current above 7.5A. These limitations are typically due to Wire Gauge (more current -> more heat from internal wire resistance (I²R), thicker gauge wires offer less resistance (R) but are more expensive) but it could also be due to MPPT/BMS/Li-Ion battery limits.

One possible workaround could be to use a DC-DC Boost Converter and deliver Power to Explorer 1000 at a higher Voltage and about the same 6A Current. (25V x 6A = 150W).