Harbor Freight Tools that don't suck

[daugen]

Thanks Reb. I think I need one in the 15-25 watt range, but an all in one.
Sunforce has been around a while, not sure if they are any better. So many of these solar builders come and go...

 

[JRobyn]

Haven't been on here in a while, would appreciate some recommendations from you HF experts.
I have a fairly small UTV battery powering a new DC fence charger. I would like to put a small solar charger on the battery
to extend the life of the charge.

Do you have any recommendations for HF solar chargers that work? Under a hundred bucks for sure.
I know there are varying grades of panel construction, different chemistries.
I see the ones in Northern Tools which frankly I would tend to trust more than HF. But maybe they are buying the same unit from China
and putting their label and paint job on it. Have seen that a bunch of times. Or maybe it's the knockoffs knocking off the knockoffs...

thanks Drew

Drew, I built one that I think is what you'd like, quite inexpensively from some Amazon parts - a universal battery, a decent solar panel, a cheap charge controller and a nice sealed box. Maybe $60-$75 in the whole thing. I use mine to power a driveway alarm. You can select whatever size/capacity suits your need. Mine is 5w/8aH, mainly because that was the biggest battery that would fit in the box, and the panel was a nice size to mount on the box. It's been working perfectly for over 3 years now. I was quite surprised to find that almost no one is making "pre-assembled" little solar charging setups like this.

Amazon.com : Solar Panel 5 Watt 12V Poly Crystalline-Grade A Cells-Diode-5W Panels : Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com: docooler 1A 12V/24V Solar Charge Controller Solar Panel Battery Regulator Safe Protection: Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com: UPG UB128I Sealed Lead Acid Batteries: Home Audio & Theater

Amazon.com: ESPi EC-1 Outdoor Enclosure Outdoor PVC Enclosure, 8" W x 4" H: Home Audio & Theater

It looks like some of this stuff is rising in price and becoming less available. I wonder why?

 

[sixdogs]

I have a bunch of Irwin screwdrivers that look just like that... wonder why?��

In it's earliest days, HF seemed to sell lots of products from lots of places and I think they still do except now they may be HF branded.

 

[300UGUY]

In it's earliest days, HF seemed to sell lots of products from lots of places and I think they still do except now they may be HF branded.

I bought a 15kw generator from them, surprised that it said "made in Milwaukee" on the box. Generac brand.

 

[sixdogs]

I bought a 15kw generator from them, surprised that it said "made in Milwaukee" on the box. Generac brand.

I bought loads of U S General tools from them in the olden days along with one of the first Makita 7.2 V drills. The Chinese connection was always there but not to the degree of the past 10 years. They used to sell lots of Japanese things way back then.

 

[sixdogs]

Sixdogs, the Costco tarps are probably 3 times the thickness of anything from HF. And have UV stabilizers too, I believe.

Indeed they are. We were in Costco and I felt one of their blue tarps and it seemed way thicker than a HF tarp. In fact, the HF tarp felt puny by comparison.

 

[California]

I think HF started out, back in the mimeographed letter days, selling odd lots of whatever they found at odd places like Customs auctions. "Harbor Freight & Salvage".

Copyright info for the logo above

Classification Information
International Class
008 - Hand tools and implements (hand-operated); cutlery; side arms; razors.
First Use In Commerce Date
1988-02-00

============
Another

HARBOR FREIGHT SALVAGE CO. Trademark Information
Central Purchasing, Inc.
CLOTHING, NAMELY, SHIRT AND CAPS
July 25, 1988, a U.S. federal trademark registration was filed for HARBOR FREIGHT SALVAGE CO. by Central Purchasing, Inc., CAMARILLO, CA 93011
[abandoned 1996]

 

[sixdogs]

HF was in biz in at least the late 1970's. Those must be later things as the biz grew.
Really, it's an American success story.

 

[daugen]

Drew, I built one that I think is what you'd like, quite inexpensively from some Amazon parts - a universal battery, a decent solar panel, a cheap charge controller and a nice sealed box. Maybe $60-$75 in the whole thing. I use mine to power a driveway alarm. You can select whatever size/capacity suits your need. Mine is 5w/8aH, mainly because that was the biggest battery that would fit in the box, and the panel was a nice size to mount on the box. It's been working perfectly for over 3 years now. I was quite surprised to find that almost no one is making "pre-assembled" little solar charging setups like this.

Amazon.com : Solar Panel 5 Watt 12V Poly Crystalline-Grade A Cells-Diode-5W Panels : Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com: docooler 1A 12V/24V Solar Charge Controller Solar Panel Battery Regulator Safe Protection: Garden & Outdoor

Amazon.com: UPG UB128I Sealed Lead Acid Batteries: Home Audio & Theater

Amazon.com: ESPi EC-1 Outdoor Enclosure Outdoor PVC Enclosure, 8" W x 4" H: Home Audio & Theater

It looks like some of this stuff is rising in price and becoming less available. I wonder why?

View attachment 539265

View attachment 539266

thanks, nice set up. The charge controller isn't waterproof for sure, so it needs a watertight compartment.
I did find a few combo kits on Amazon. I really need to study the specs on the electric fence and find out what its daily
consumption will be, and then can size this sensibly without guessing.
Amazon.com : 35 Watt Solar Panel Kit, Build Your Solar Charger In One Stop (1A 35W Kit) : Garden & Outdoor

 

[Oaktree]

Do you have any recommendations for HF solar chargers that work?

I would avoid the $15 HF one. I picked one up to use on an ATV that isn't used much. When I needed it, battery dead. Checked the output of the panel, just a fraction of a volt. Took it apart, and found a bad connection between one wire and the panel. It was held in place with some sort of goo...neither the cheap Chinese wire nor the panel itself would accept solder.
Finally used real wire and epoxy to hold it in place. Works, but I don't really trust it.
I haven't tried any of their other panels.