Beware portable power stations

This message is about portable power stations that claim to be solar powered. Here is a very simple truth: If a LARGE photovoltaic panel(s) are (is) not included, you are buying only a storage battery and an inverter. Small panels mounted on the top are barely strong enough to for battery maintenance, not for charging. Once the on board storage battery is depleted, shore power will be required to replenish. You just cannot charge a large battery with a tiny panel.

There is no magic to solar power... if you really want to depend on it, even for a small system like a portable power station, you must have a large (at least one 200 -300 watt panel) to feed electricity into the battery. Some portable power stations come with large panels, some do not. Beware.