Renogy and Grape Solar both do the smaller 100 watt solar panels which are commonly used for 12 volt battery charging purposes.
If you’re in the market for one of these smaller type panels, a Renogy vs Grape solar comparison would be useful to you.
The review below should save you time and research, and help you figure out which is the best panel for your situation.
Let’s have a look at each brand and what they offer …
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Renogy vs Grape Solar: 100 Watt Solar Panel Comparison & Reviews
Renogy
What Do They Offer From A Product Perspective?
Renogy offers both a standalone 100 watt 12 volt Monocrystalline panel, and a starter kit with the same panel that includes most things you need to get started.
The panel specs are:
- 100 Watt panel
- Mono-crystalline type panel
- 18.9 volt operating voltage – good for 12 volt DC battery charging
- Operating current is stated at 5.29 Amps
- Panel dimensions are 47 X 21.3 X 1.4 In = 1001 square inches surface area
- 16.6 lbs in weight
- 25 year warranty on the panel itself in terms of performance, and 5 years on the materials and worksmanship (check conditions of warranty when buying through third parties though)
View On Amazon
In the starter kit, you get:
- The panel – see above
- A solar controller – Renogy Wanderer 30A PWM Charge Controller which allows up to a 400 Watt panel system
- Connectors – 20ft 10AWG MC4 Adaptor Kit to connect from your panel to your solar controller
- Cables – 8ft 10AWG Tray Cable to connect the controller to the battery
- Brackets – Z bracket to mount your panel to a surface
- NOTE: you may need to get some additional fuses, lugs or wire to complete the install of this kit
What Would You Use These Panels For?
- Any home or off grid purpose where you want to charge 12 volt batteries
- On your RV, camper trailer, van/car, cabin, home or even on your boat charging marine batteries
- NOTE: there are also 200, 300 and 400 watt starter kits Renogy offers with 2, 3 and 4 100 Watt panels respectively if you want more power
Where To Check These Panels Out?
View the Renogy 100 Watt 12 volt Monocrystalline Solar Starter Kit on Amazon
View the Renogy 100 Watt 12 volt Monocrystalline Panel on Amazon
Grape Solar
What Do They Offer From A Product Perspective?
Grape Solar offers both a standalone 100 watt 12 volt Polycrystalline panel, and a starter kit with the same panel that includes most things you need to get started.
The panel specs are:
- 100 Watt panel
- Poly-crystalline type panel
- 18 volt max operating voltage – good for 12 volt DC battery charging
- Max Operating current is stated at 5.56 Amps
- Panel dimensions are 40.16 x 26.37 x 1.38 inches = 1059 square inches surface area
- 19.66 lbs in weight
- 25 year warranty on the panel itself in terms of performance, and 5 years on the materials and worksmanship (check conditions of warranty when buying through third parties though)
In the starter kit, you get:
- The panel – see above
- A solar controller –35 Amp Xantrex C35 charge controller (allows you to add three more 100 watt panels to the system)
- Connectors –1 Set of 6 inch MC4 conversion cables
- Cables –1 set of 5 inch cables with a 3/8 inch lug for connecting the charge controller to a deep cycle battery
- You have to buy brackets and fasteners separately
- NOTE: you may need to get some additional fuses, lugs or wire to complete the install of this kit
What Would You Use These Panels For?
- Any home or off grid purpose where you want to charge 12 DC volt batteries
- Grape Solar states their panels and kits are for DC applications, and RVs, Boats, Gates, Electric Fences, Remote cabins, Emergency backup, Disaster preparedness
Where To Check These Panels Out?
View the Grape Solar 100 Watt 12 volt Monocrystalline Solar Starter Kit on Amazon
View the Grape Solar 100 Watt 12 volt Monocrystalline Panel on Amazon
Which Is Better For You – Renogy or Grape Solar?
Both panels perform well, but in our opinion, Renogy gives much better value for money when you look at price – for both the single panel, and the kit.
Performance of the panels is always going to be subjective because the following variables will always dictate how many Amps you get out of the panel anyway:
- The panel itself (type of panel, how big it is to catch sunlight, and how efficient it is in terms of Amps/output)
– The Renogy is a Monocrystalline panel which is 47 X 21.3 X 1.4 inches = 1001 square inches of panel surface area. It has a stated optimum output of 5.29 Amps
– The Grape is a Polycrystalline panel which is 40.16 x 26.37 x 1.38 inches in dimensions, which = 1059 square inches surface area. It has a stated maximum output of 5.56 Amps
Some solar companies also say monocrystalline panels are slightly more space efficient (produce more power per square area of panel) than poly crystalline panels – but that extra efficiency is quite minimal.
- The weather and amount of direct sunlight available
– Dependent on conditions you use them in (sunny, cloudy, rainy), and how much direct sunlight they get
- The charge controller and system you use (look at the efficiency of the controller, and maximum system ratings)
– The Renogy starter kit comes with a Renogy Wanderer 30A PWM Charge Controller
– The Grape Solar starter kit comes with a 35 Amp Xantrex C35 charge controller
Overall, we think you would be happy with either panel purely from a product perspective, as they are very similar and have no major drawbacks.
Both of them would be worth the money to invest in – and both the starter kits offer fantastic value for money. Although, the Grape Solar starter kit doesn’t come with brackets or fasteners so you’ll have to buy them separately.
But, if we had to choose one brand over the other, we would definitely choose Renogy because:
The Renogy delivers better when comparing cost to performance
Renogy appear to have more resources as a company for delivery (shorter delivery times), and customer & technical support (more people and resources to answer calls and questions you might have)
Renogy is so well known that you might have a higher chance of finding solar accessories that are compatible with Renogy’s products in the future
There’s a good chance Renogy will keep developing their products in the future
The Renogy panel is slightly lighter
The Renogy products are much more popular than the Grape Solar products – so you’ll have many more other customers to communicate with on any issues if this is important to you.
View the Renogy 100 Watt 12 volt Monocrystalline Solar Starter Kit on Amazon
View the Renogy 100 Watt 12 volt Monocrystalline Panel on Amazon
Renogy vs Grape Solar: Resources
1. https://www.renogy.com/
2. http://www.grapesolar.com/
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