How to Connect Solar Panels to a Portable Power Station: A Quick Guide
Once you get a portable power station in your hands, there’s a question that soon follows: How do you connect solar panels? And this can start to get more complicated than you want. You might be wondering if you have to get certain solar panels from the same company. Or what cables and connectors you need.
It’s time to get the details you need so you can connect any solar panel to any power station. This high-level guide provides a quick overview of the essential parts. As someone that’s helped countless people harness solar power, you’re in the right place for the answers you need.
The key to connecting solar panels comes down to three things:
- The connections on the solar panels
- Your power station’s input port
- The cable and adapter(s) that bridge these two connections
This article is a quick overview of each steps, but we also have an in-depth series to connect solar panels.
Can I Use Any Solar Panel?
It’s common to think you must get a certain brand of solar panel to work with your specific power station. Thankfully, that’s not the case. With some basic understanding and the right tools, you can connect almost any solar panel to almost any power station.
Each power station has a solar input that has a specific connection. As long as you match this connection type and don’t exceed the limits of your power station, you can use any solar panel.
For example, many Jackery power stations have an 8mm connection type. You can get a Jackery solar panel and those will usually come with the right adapter for your power station. Or you can get any power station and get the right 8mm adapter to use it with your Jackery. That’s all it takes!
As long as you understand the connection on your power station and match it, you can use any solar panel with any power station.
Pro Insight: To avoid damaging your power station – whether you’re using the same brand of solar panels or a third party solar panel – you must stay within the power station’s limits. Solar inputs will have ratings in both voltage and current (amps). Never exceed the voltage.
Solar Panel MC4 Connectors and Tools: Industry Standard
When you look into the wide world of solar panels, you’ll find that there’s one connection used more than anything else. It’s called the MC4 connector. This stands for multi-contact 4 millimeters. And they're amazingly easy to work with.
MC4s are designed to be easy to work with and nearly foolproof. They have large plastic exterior connectors and thin interior metal pins. The plastic connectors have a male side and female side that fit seamlessly together. And like a submarine hatch, the MC4 connectors create a watertight seal that’s typical IP67 rated – more than enough for most outdoor use.
If you use MC4 connections, you'll want to get a special MC4 unlocking tool to maintain them. Using pliers or other methods can damage them. These are small, affordable and make disconnecting MC4s easy.
Pre-made MC4 cables are perfect for many setups. As long as you can find the right cable in the appropriate length, you may not need anything else.
But if you find that you want to create custom cables, it’s pretty easy to do. You’ll need three things:
- The appropriate gauge wire
- MC4 connectors
- A wire stripper and crimper
You’ll simply cut the wire to length, strip the connections, and crimp on the MC4 connectors. It’s quick and painless. No heat shrink, no soldering, no complications.
Read more about MC4 Connectors & Tools.
Power Station Solar Input Port: Connection and Specs
When you're staring at your power station's charging port, it can be hard to see what’s going on. But the answers are much closer than you think. Every manufacturer lays out the details of what you need. Like the right key to a lock as long as you understand what you need, everything clicks into place.
Most popular power stations use one of four main types of solar input ports:
- MC4 Connectors: On many of the larger power stations, you’ll be able to connect the typical solar panel MC4 connector directly to the input. No special adapter required! This is on some of the biggest options from EcoFlow and Anker.
- XT60 or XT60i Ports: These are small yellow or orange connectors with a distinctive D-shape. They handle high power loads. They’re most common on EcoFlow products, especially the smaller power stations of the low-PV port of the larger options.
- 8mm Connectors: These barrel-shaped connections will look like a circular port with a pin in the center. They’re simple to use but require careful attention to the exact size. There are multiple 8mm sizes with 8020 and 7909 being the two most common. Smaller 5mm barrel connectors exist too, typically 5521. Many Jackery systems use either 8020 or 7909 connections for the solar input.
- Anderson Connectors: With a rectangular shape, these are used for some solar inputs on power stations. They're quite similar to XT60 and incredibly reliable. But they require proper orientation. Some use a horizontal configuration and others use a vertical. You can typically adjust the orientation by sliding back the cover and manually rearranging the two poles. Goal Zero is a brand that uses Anderson connectors on certain power stations.
Each port type comes with its own voltage and current limits. Exceeding these can damage the cable, connector, or your power station.
So what’s the answer to this puzzle for you? That’s easy. Take a look at your user manual and it will tell you. Follow that specification and you’ll have no problem. Here's a quick guide to many options from leading brands. It's crucial to verify your particular model because brands use different connections:
- For many EcoFlow systems, an MC4 to XT60 adapter cable is the ideal solution.
- For Jackery systems, the MC4 to 8mm adapter cable is usually the best, although you might need an extra 7909 to 8020 adapter depending on your model.
- For Goal Zero, you’ll probably be reaching for MC4 to Anderson Connector adapter cable.
Solar Extension Cables: Length, Gauge, and Efficiency
When it comes to solar extension cables, think of them like a garden hose. The longer and thinner the hose, the less water pressure you get at the end. With solar cables, longer or thinner wires mean less power reaches your power station. It can also be a hazard to use inappropriate cables.
For many solar setups, 12 AWG (American Wire Gauge) cable is the sweet spot. It handles up to 30 amps safely while remaining flexible and cost-effective. We stock high-quality 12 AWG cables in various lengths with and without pre-installed MC4 connectors.
When should you consider upgrading to 10 AWG? Two main scenarios:
- Long cable runs (over 50 feet)
- High-current setups (multiple panels in parallel totaling over 20 amps)
While 10 AWG cables are thicker and slightly less flexible, they reduce power loss over distance. For instance, a 100-foot run of 12 AWG cable might lose 5% of your power, while 10 AWG would lose only 3% under the same conditions. They also help keep heat build-up to a minimum.
Quick Tip: Always buy the shortest cables that will comfortably reach your power station. Every extra foot adds a tiny bit of power loss and those losses add up.
Read more about Choosing the Right Solar Extension Cables.
Parallel Connectors: Combining Multiple Solar Panels
Parallel connectors are like a highway merge. They take multiple lanes of traffic (your solar panels) and combine them into one, while maintaining the same speed limit (voltage). These Y-branch or multi-branch connectors let you add more solar panels while keeping the voltage compatible with your power station.
When do you need parallel connectors? Let's say your power station has a 30V input limit, but you want to use multiple 18V panels to charge faster. A parallel connector lets you combine those panels while keeping the voltage at 18V. It's the amperage (charging current) that adds up instead.
We offer several solar parallel connectors:
- 2-to-1 branch connectors (combine two panels)
- 3-to-1 branch connectors (three panels)
- 4-to-1 branch connectors (four panels)
Read more about When to Use Solar Parallel Adapters.
Solar Connections Continued
For a more in-depth look into these topics, see these articles: