Jackery Explorer Portable (Solar) Power Station and SolarSaga Solar Panels

I’m sorry to say that I have not experienced anything like what you’ve described. I power a 40qt. Massimo fridge using the Jackery 1000 without issue and have powered my house fridge during power outages.

is it only when running DC to the Jackery? Have you tried running AC to the Jackery?

i mentioned that because sometimes those 12v dc connectors can shake loose pretty easily, so maybe a poor connection to the dc port on the Jackery?

 

It runs fine on the AC side of the jackery. It’s only when it’s plugged into the cigarette lighter. I have a friend bringing over his jackery tomorrow to see if its my jackery, Or just a slightly messed up power cord. I’m thinking one of the prongs may have gotten bent or something. Just enough to throw things off

 

Hvac guy here. Sounds like an over current issue when the compressor kicks on. Run it on the AC inlet, not 12v and see if the issue still occurs.

 

No problems when I run it on anything else. AC on the jackery works fine. It’s just the dc cigarette outlet

 

I've seen similar issues when running high current on inverter based backup generators. I would just stick to the AC side and not worry about it. I have 2 jackery 1000w and an ARB 50, I can give them both a run tomorrow and see if it happens to me. I've always run my fridge on the AC side so it's never happened to me.

 

It's not THAT old, and you came to the right place to ask this question.

I have not heard of anyone who has had this issue. Does the friend also have a fridge (that you could borrow the DC cable from)? My guess is that the cable is the issue. I have been running a 12v Iceco fridge from my 1000 for a while and never had anything like you described. I did have an issue with the ICECO 12v cable not staying seated in the Jackery. That was resolved by getting the ARB cable (which shares the same connector at the fridge side), but it seems reasonable to assume that you have an ARB cable since you have the ARB fridge.

While running it on AC is certainly better than having problems running on DC, you lose efficiency when running on AC power. That's because the Jackery has to use an inverter to convert the 12v DC to AC and then the fridge has to do basically the opposite and convert the AC back to DC. IIRC (and there is a good chance that I do not recall correctly, so someone correct me if I'm wrong), you can lose up to 10% with each conversion.

10% of 100 is 90.
10% of 90 is 81.

That equates to only being able to use about 80% of the capacity of the Jackery. Keep in mind, that's "up to" and not necessarily a set amount. Obviously it depends on the components involved and the environmental conditions. Now, if you can get enough supplemental charge where you aren't concerned about the Jackery running out of power, then by all means, just run it off AC and call it a day. On the other hand, if you are trying to stretch the amount of time between charges, you'll have better results running DC to DC (with no conversions).

 

An issue of sorts that I ran into with the 12v vehicle charging cable that came with my Jackery Explorer 1000.



I noticed a couple of times that it was not charging from the power port in the rear of the family hauler. I would sometimes use this method to charge it instead of using solar due to weather and the fact that the rear charging port on our Expedition will stay active for a while after the vehicle has been turned off. So for my Explorer 300, this means that I could essentially charge it from 20% to 100% after just a day of normal driving and running errands. Drive to the store, the Explorer would charge during the drive and also for a set time while we are in the store.

Well, I just sort of assumed that the cord had come loose when I noticed checked at the end of a day and the charge level had not increased. I then had a need to swap it into my truck for a day and power the fridge. I figured I'd get some supplemental charge while driving and keep the Jackery topped off and then let it power the fridge while the vehicle was off. Except I got no charge. I didn't immediately notice the issue on the end of the plug, so I swapped to the cigarette outlet....no dice. Still not charging the Jackery. Upon inspecting the plug, I noticed the tip appears to have melted.

I've inquired with the rep that I deal with and have not yet received an answer.

Obviously, it got hot enough to melt the plastic and it isn't functioning, so something internal got hot enough to melt. What I don't know is if it is something with the plug, or the receptacle in the back of the Expedition. (Certain year models, I believe 2021, are being recalled due to a fire starting at an unknown location in the rear passenger side of the vehicle. Source) The rear power outlet is in the same area where the fire is starting on these other year model Expeditions....I suspect those fires may be starting at this receptacle and my 2019 just hasn't been included in the recall yet.

Mine did not catch fire, thank goodness. I'm assuming there is some sort of fail safe built into the vehicle charging cable that prevented any damage beyond just the tip of the cable. I'll keep y'all posted if I get a response to my various questions.

 

The Pro 2000 looks to a game changer. Get two of those you could probably power your house all day long. Just throw some panels on the roof temporarily and you're good to go. I might try this.

 

Rather long winded but new tech designs.
https://youtu.be/JSKsggIlFVg

 

I do already have the ARB cable, but it may a faulty cable in some way. I know the jackery output has a history of not hugging 12v plugs as well as a car outlet would. So maybe there’s enough of an issue to cause problems with the jackery, but not enough to mess with the car outlet. So I’ll try out another plug. He has a different brand fridge, but it may be a compatible cord.

and that’s another reason I’d love to fix the problem of the 12v. Just for the efficiency of it.

 

What happens if you hold the plug in while the compressor it kicking on? That might narrow down if it is a connection issue, but wouldn't eliminate the cable as the problem.

 

We tried that, it didn’t really seem to make a difference.

 

Update:
I borrowed my friends jackery 500 and it worked just fine. So I’ve determined that it’s my jackery causing issues. I emailed customer service and they recommended doing a reset by holding the display button for 10 seconds. I did that and it still is giving me issues.

the second thing they told me to do is hard reset it by fully draining the battery and fully recharging it. Currently in the process of doing that. So we’ll see if that works

 

I don't see how that would have any impact, but it is good to run through their process.

Keep us posted.

 

Did what they said, no luck, so I emailed them asking what other solutions are. Shitty thing is, this was a gift from a client so I don’t have proof of purchase and they didn’t keep it either

 

So....I did a thing.

I got a Jackery Explorer 2000 Pro!

https://youtu.be/TUhO4gkGP9o

I'll start by saying that I was beyond impressed with the Explorer 1000. I looked at quite a bit of information before determining that Jackery was the brand of battery pack that I wanted to purchase. My original, and still my main purpose, is to power a 12v fridge while away from the house. The Explorer 2000 is overkill for that purpose.

If you live somewhere that regularly experiences power outages, or need to power your devices for extended periods of time, then you need a larger portable power station. Sure, you can get a traditional generator that will provide power in the event of a power outage or camping excursion. There are 2 drawbacks to consider. First is the noise. I've never seen (or heard) a quiet generator. They have gotten better over the years, but they all still produce some noise from the engine running. I absolutely HATE camping and hearing someone else's generator. The second major drawback is fuel, and that is sort of a cumulative drawback....it has to be available, it has to be affordable, it goes bad over time, and it releases toxic gases after combustion. Not to mention other mechanical issues. A combustion engine should really run periodically to stay lubricated and stay in working order. Gas reached over $4.50 per gallon last week where I live, and I've seen prices posted online closer to $10 in places like California.

All of those make for a fairly compelling argument for a "solar generator" (a.k.a. portable power station and solar panels). The Explorer 1000 is awesome. I don't have a single complaint with it, but I questioned how long it would last in a true emergency situation. As long as the sun is shining, the cost of gas is irrelevant.

When the power goes out, my main concern becomes keeping my cold food storage...well, cold. A household refrigerator can use a decent amount of power. Especially if it is opened and closed often, which you would try to minimize (obviously). A quick google search shows that the typical home fridge ranges from 300-800Watts when running. My side-by-side fridge looks to be on the higher end of that range, and I understand that could surge to double when the compressor kicks on. The Explorer 1000 can handle approx. 2000W surge, so starting a home fridge is no problem for it. However, 300-800W is going to run it down fairly quickly. What about charging it back up? It can take a full day to charge in less than ideal conditions (i.e. a cloudy day).

The initial charge on my Explorer 2000 was 22%. It took approximately 2 hours to charge to 97% with 6 200W panels. 2 of my panels were damaged in shipping, and I'm not sure they were doing me much good even though I had them hooked up. The readout on the display indicated that I was pulling in about 800W consistently. I think I saw it get up to 881W at one point, but I wasn't watching it consistently. This was on a day where there were virtually no clouds in the sky. I'm absolutely blown away at how quickly this thing charged!



An input wattage reading is pretty standard on other Explorer models. The 2000 pro has an estimated time to charge indicator right below the input. That's a cool little feature and I found it to be pretty accurate.

Another major difference between the Explorer 1000 (and smaller units) and the 2000 Pro is where the charging ports are located. The 2000 charges from the rear, whereas the input on the 1500 and lower models is on the front. I also found that there is no longer an external charger "brick." The new unit takes a standard computer or monitor cable that plugs directly into it. Those are commonly available if you ever lose the charging cable.




My next concern in an emergency situation is the temperature of the living space. You're typical emergency situation seems to happen when the weather is extreme. In my experience, either really hot or really cold. Heating and cooling living space can have a pretty high energy demand. According to a quick google search, a "portable" (i.e. window unit or stand-alone) AC can consume between 500W (small) and 1500W (large) with an average medium sized unit using around 900W. A small space heater fan typically consumes about 1500W. No worries there either.

So let's take the natural disaster situation out of the equation. I suspect people with campers who are off grid for a while are the more likely purchasers of an Explorer 2000 Pro. While it is the first Jackery that I've seen with a folding handle, it certainly isn't light. It's not going to easily fit on the floorboards of a Tacoma, but it could do nicely in a (covered) bed. So while it is techincally "portable", I don't want to lug it around very often. I certainly don't see my grandma, or even mom, picking this thing up. My grandpa probably would, but I don't really see him wanting to either.

Let's talk about output for a moment.

There are 2 USB-A connectors that can put out 18W each, and 2 USB-C connectors that can put out 100W each.



There are 3 AC outlets rated at 120V and 2200W. Also, worthy of note is that it appears that the ground plug is actually a ground plug. On smaller units, like the Explorer 300, the ground plug from your power cable would fit into an empty cavity on the Explorer and essentially be unused.



The DC 12V port is similar to previous models and is covered by a rubber protector on the right.



If you are out in the wild and need the flashlight, this one is considerably brighter than the one on the 1000. However, due to the weight, I wouldn't really carry this around for the purpose of having a light. Instead of a clear lense, it has an obscured covering to better scatter the light. I'm not sure the proper term, but it produces a smoother light (if that makes sense). There are multiple brightness settings and even an SOS feature....again, nice to have in an emergency.

The Explorer 2000 Pro will accept the 100W SolarSaga solar panels. Something to look out for: if you have an older 100W panel, it may not have the adapter on the end to connect it to the newer 8mm connector. I had a 100W panel replaced under warranty. The original one just had the standard 8mm connector on the end, but the replacement had an adapter with a sticker that stated it was for the Explorer 1500 and 2000. I'm sure it would be easy to get the adapter, but just something I noticed. Obviously, it will take longer to charge with a 100W panel, but you can hook up to 6 panels total with the included adapters that come with the 2000.



Another thing I noticed while charging is that an internal fan kicked on almost immediately. I'm not sure if that is standard due to the higher wattage of input, or if it is because it was a particularly hot day. I always try to put my Explorer models in the shade while charging. Even hiding them behind the panel will help keep it cool. Otherwise, they will get EXTREMELY hot when exposed to direct sunlight.

All those marketing campaigns and people on facebook/instagram/whatever other social media app that show pictures of them out in the open.....those are just for the pictures. I don't recommend doing it that way AT ALL. You'll kill your expensive purchase real fast. That's not to say that it can't handle it for a little while, but certainly not good practice.

Other differences that I noticed are in the panels. The 100W panels have a cloth backing and the charging cable is permanently attached. Not so with the new 200W panels. The edge of the panel is hard plastic and the charging cable plugs into a port on the side of the panel. I actually think both of these design changes are important and a step in the right direction. Remember when I said that I had a panel replaced under warranty? The cloth backing got stretched so tight that it was pulling away from the panel. I'm not sure if that was due to humidity or what, but it was certainly not due to misuse....at least, I don't think it was. Since there is no fabric on the new panels, they are less likely to constrict. Also, if the cable gets damaged, it can easily be switched for another.

Another difference between the 100W and 200W panels is the storage. The 100W has a magnetic closure and a zipper pouch physically attached. This is where the charging cable resides. The 200W still has magnetic closure, but comes in a zippered case that has an pouch to hold the removable cable. Given the design changes, the 200W is remarkably similar in size to the 100W panel when fully collapsed. It's when you unfold them that you can see the larger size of the 200W panel. The 200W panel is also significantly heavier than the 100W panel.

Here's a 100W in front of a 200W panel.


and a side-by-side showing the difference in how they fold up:


I hope this is useful for anyone who may be considering their options when looking at portable power stations. Any questions, please ask!

 

I've had similar experiences with my Goal Zero car charger and a 12V outlet that I installed in the back of my center console. There are two settings on that version for 5A or 10A. I had been running on the 10A setting for the most part because why not? The first car charger I got, I replaced the plug with a lower profile version. It felt noticeably lighter, but it had a similar construction and a 15A fuse so I figured it'd be good to go. The plug melted in a similar manner as yours after a couple of trips.

So I got a new car charger and it started acting up, but the plug looked good. It turns out it was melting through the socket and the + terminal had deformed and was no longer keeping contact with the plug. So I got a new 12V socket that looked to be higher quality, and after a few more trips the same thing happened! I've now switched to only charging on the 5A setting, and also just ordered one of these outlets that's rated at 25A. https://12vtechnology.com/collectio...2v-appliance-lighter-style-plug-socket-outlet

I'm not sure what to make of all of it. I'll probably keep it on the 5A setting for my situation

 

Cigarette plugs are garbage. Not meant for that application.

Cut them off and install powerpole connectors.

 

Yeah I think you’re totally right. I’m gonna do that on the plug that I fried. Benefit is its lower profile too. Thanks!

 

I have a spare outlet that I should probably mount on the back of my center console.

Dang it! I just threw that cable away. I didn't even think of cutting it and splicing in something else (like an andersen connector). What an idiot (i am)....