Customer reviews from goalzero.com
Goal Zero - Nomad 100 Portable Solar Panel - Black
Average customer rating
3.3
(33 Reviews)
Rating breakdown 33 reviews
5 Stars
11
4 Stars
6
3 Stars
4
2 Stars
5
1 Star
7
52%of customers recommend this product.
(
12 out of
23)
Customer Reviews for Goal Zero - Nomad 100 Portable Solar Panel - Black
Customer Rating
1
Lasted one summer
on November 8, 2022
Posted by: Sad customer
from Arizona
Gender:Male
Purchased this in 2020 in combo with the 500x. Had issues with the 500x, so this unit didn’t actually get used until 2021.
Lasted the summer of 2021, pulling up to 90 watts! Wow! And then by end of summer in direct AZ sunlight, it only pulls 10. Depressing.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com
Customer Rating
4
Practicality
on October 17, 2024
Posted by: Paco
from Central Florida
Gender:Male
I bought a Nomad 100 and a Nomad 50 to tested the versatility of the solar panels in comparison with the Boulder 100 and 50 Briefcase panels. I am in Central Florida and the day of the test we have a beautiful sunny day with temperatures in the lower 70s. Both 100 panels provided an average of 65 to 70 watts input. When connecting the Nomad 100 and 50 using a 4 x 8 Anderson Connector the input reached and averaged of 85 watts while connecting the panels on line provided an averaged of 60 watts. In conclusion, will be naive to believe that the advertised number for watts will produce that amount. That number only gives you the maximum capacity/capability of the panel. In optimal conditions you may get 75% of that capacity as an average. I am pleased with both panels system since I use the Boulder while at home or car camping while the Nomad is better for camping and while car traveling to the beach/picnic, sport events, or fairgrounds. Both systems can be combined with each other.
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com
Customer Rating
1
No way it gets to 100
on October 22, 2022
Posted by: PTB1
from Fort Collin, CO
Rating this as one star b/c the fact is that it can't get 100 watts, so it shouldn't be priced and sold like that. Like others, I've tried it high elevation, no clouds, direct line to full sun - several times - and never seen it above 61.It's portable and convenient, yes. But again: if you pay for 100 W, that's what you should get.
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com
Posted by: Colin T
from New York
Gender:Male
Verified Purchase:Yes
Excellent product works well when camping. A little heavy though. Better when using a car to get on site
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com
Posted by: SurvivalFringe
Verified Purchase:Yes
Portability is the key - Fits easily inside of most small aircraft & stores away nicely when not in use.
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com
Customer Rating
5
Great products, need larger cable options
on November 15, 2024
Posted by: MOE Knows
I've been using Goal Zero equipment for many years, and the equipment has always been of the highest quality & performance. However, I felt obliged to comment on the several reviews that reported lower than expected power output. There are typically two things to blame for low output: 1: Solar panel damage or geometry, 2: Battery state-of-charge, and 3: Insufficient cable size.
1. Solar panel damage and orientation... doesn't seem to be an issue with the review cases. Well documented conditions and sky exposure. Just make sure that no part of the panel is shaded of course.
2. Battery SOC : As a battery fills, especially Lithium, the charging system will taper-off to protect the battery. Battery management systems and chargers will differ slightly, but generally it will put as much current into the battery as it can until the battery is nearing 85-90% capacity. The charger will then change modes so that the charging current declines as the voltage rises through the last 10-15%. This is why you might see a battery get from 30%-80% in an hour, but then will take another hour or more to get to 95%. So, don't blame the solar panel... blame the MPPT charger and the BMS for taking care of your battery.
3. Cabling : This is something that Goal Zero should improve. If you use a 4x1 APP Combining input cable at the solar panel location, you will be trying to carry as much as 40A (200W Nomads) on a wire that is much too small. I believe the largest HPP cable is #14AWG which has an ampacity of 15A. Your energy losses in the 30' cable due to this mismatch would be over 40% in the case of 4x200W Nomads, and approx 20% if you have 4x100W Nomads, and 10% if you only have a couple of panels on the line. Better to run all the solar panels back to the Yeti and then combine. But even then, you will see 5% losses for a single 100W Nomad running over 30' on #14AWG wire (2.5% over 15'). Since Goal Zero doesn't make heavier-duty cables, if you need to go further than 15' with 100W or more of solar, you need to have cables built for you. For reference, 5% is generally the maximum acceptable loss for non-essential loads.
Hope this helps!
1. Solar panel damage and orientation... doesn't seem to be an issue with the review cases. Well documented conditions and sky exposure. Just make sure that no part of the panel is shaded of course.
2. Battery SOC : As a battery fills, especially Lithium, the charging system will taper-off to protect the battery. Battery management systems and chargers will differ slightly, but generally it will put as much current into the battery as it can until the battery is nearing 85-90% capacity. The charger will then change modes so that the charging current declines as the voltage rises through the last 10-15%. This is why you might see a battery get from 30%-80% in an hour, but then will take another hour or more to get to 95%. So, don't blame the solar panel... blame the MPPT charger and the BMS for taking care of your battery.
3. Cabling : This is something that Goal Zero should improve. If you use a 4x1 APP Combining input cable at the solar panel location, you will be trying to carry as much as 40A (200W Nomads) on a wire that is much too small. I believe the largest HPP cable is #14AWG which has an ampacity of 15A. Your energy losses in the 30' cable due to this mismatch would be over 40% in the case of 4x200W Nomads, and approx 20% if you have 4x100W Nomads, and 10% if you only have a couple of panels on the line. Better to run all the solar panels back to the Yeti and then combine. But even then, you will see 5% losses for a single 100W Nomad running over 30' on #14AWG wire (2.5% over 15'). Since Goal Zero doesn't make heavier-duty cables, if you need to go further than 15' with 100W or more of solar, you need to have cables built for you. For reference, 5% is generally the maximum acceptable loss for non-essential loads.
Hope this helps!
I would recommend this to a friend!
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com
Customer Rating
3
Goal Zero Nomad 100 Solar Panel
on July 10, 2017
Posted by: cowpens6
from Smithfield
Gender:Male
I will echo some of other reviews of this product. We had a day in the mountains, 7000 Ft, bright, cloudless summer day. Perfect, high intensity sun. The panel had excellent solar exposure - but - only produced 25-28 Watts of input into our Yeti 400. The panel does work well with GoalZero products. GoalZero has designed a nice set of compatible products. However, you need to plan on only 25-30% of the advertised efficiency. I will keep and use the product, but, it is hard to recommend it to the public based on this experience and the price they are asking. Perhaps their "fixed" solar panel work better. Perhaps this is no different than all other solar panel products -- I cannot tell at this point.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com
Customer Rating
3
Yeti 400 and Nomad 100w solar panel on beach
on June 17, 2016
Posted by: LB31829
from Columbus, GA, United States
Gender:Male
I purchased a Yeti 400 and the Nomad 100 solar panel. This was for a 4 day camping trip on beach. The first night the battery was fully charged and was running a 12v box fan. The next morning the battery was at 40%. In direct all day sunlight the best input charge I got was between 35-40 watts. This took all day to charge up. I have tried with and without the extension cord. With a battery more than half drained I would expect more watts going into this unit. The same recharge wattage was experienced everyday. It took much more than the 6-8 hours recharge time like the chart advertised. Also I was expecting a more heavy duty connection cord for the battery to the solar panel.
Written by a customer while visiting goalzero.com