Sunpower 327 panels-are they available to us?

[Roy M]

I've been talking to socaldmax about my future solar system on my boat. He introduced me to the Sunpower 327 panel, but we can't seem to be able to buy them direct. Has anyone got an idea of how to purchase some? I am looking to purchase 4 to 6 of them. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[LeaseOnLife]

They show up on craigslist from time to time

SunPower solar panels 327 and 435 watt modules Brand new on pallets.

I'd like to join the hunt for some sunpower panels, I am looking for the smaller x21 series 255W.

Dirk

[Dsanduril]

Roy,

I second (and third) the use of the Sunpower panels. They are more efficient, have a lower heat coefficient, and more tolerant of shading, all of which come into play in the limited space we have on boats.

Unfortunately, Sunpower tries to keep a tight control on supply, they are only supposed to be installed by an authorized installer, and selling the panels for self install can get the authorized dealer/installers in hot water.

[Arthur Garfield]

Give these characters a call --- Sun Electronics - Lowest Prices in Solar Panels, Kits, Inverters

They're good folks and will give Great price !



All the Best

[CAELESTIS]

Roy, I went thru this a year ago. You will have great difficulty buying them in the US, unless you buy a large quantity for a home thru an authorized installer. My neighbor had 20 installed on his roof, and I tried every way possible to purchase just two more. No go. I also shopped them from many suppliers and they would not sell them.

I ended up with the Sanyo/Panasonic 240w panels as they were the next most efficient panels on the market and the fitment was better for the top of my bimini. The Sanyo panels are within approx 1% of the same efficiency as Sunpower.

You are welcome to dingy over and inspect them.

[socaldmax]

There is a solar installer selling them on CL, in Vista, CA, not too far away.

[laika]

Another option is aurinco. Patrik has been great to work with, offering his time to make sure my DIY install is done appropriately.

Based out of Washington state.

[CAELESTIS]

Originally Posted by socaldmax

There is a solar installer selling them on CL, in Vista, CA, not too far away.

In that case, get the 345w panels.

[bill good]

I purchased 2 200W panels, put them on myself & there was a problem with them & Sunpower replaced both at 5yr into service & sent a installer to the boat to replace N/C. The replacements work very well. NB reduced warranty on boats & mobile installations.

[Roy M]

Wow! Thank you, CF denizens! Steve (socaldmax) introduced me to these panels, and the reasons they are unique. This morning, he called to tell me about the Vista source. Apparently, as new product becomes available, the warehouse gets full of older product, and they have to reduce stock to get the newest panels ready for installation. Hence the occasional quickie sale. I can't afford to stock up on them at the minute because I have a garage filled with deck gear and electronics waiting in line for their installation, and I can't stack anything more in there. Steve says this should not be a problem, because the nature of the industry means that newer, better product comes out, and the older stock needs to get sold off cheaper. This is so much like computers. Anyway, thank you all for your efforts, comments and suggestions. What a resource this forum is.

[socaldmax]

It looks like you can get them in CA, WA and FL, if someone finds a source up in the New England area and TX area, then we have a source reasonably close to most everyone on the US coast. I'm sure if people asked around a bit, they could find a local installer in their county or state with a few extras in the warehouse.

[Scott Berg]

Sunpower panels aren't marketed in the marine market but some vendors do indeed sell them but it's rare.

Sunpower DOES license their cells to be installed into marine panels; Solbian and Solara are two that use real Sunpower panels.... 22.5% efficient and well made, just not cheap....

[newhaul]

At only 100 watts windy nation use the sun power cells in their panels for cheap the problem is they don't make bigger panels

[Bruce K]

Sunpower panels are excellent, but beware that some of them esp 425w have very high OCV over 80v if memory is correct. BK

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by Scott Berg

Sunpower panels aren't marketed in the marine market but some vendors do indeed sell them but it's rare.

Sunpower DOES license their cells to be installed into marine panels; Solbian and Solara are two that use real Sunpower panels.... 22.5% efficient and well made, just not cheap....

Renogy also claims to use Sunpower cells, which allows them to produce 100w in a panel only 41"x21". However, I'm not sure if any of them use the same copper sheet mounting method which gives the low shading losses of the Sunpower panels, or the same durability.

However, for efficiency and light weight, it's hard to beat them!