Electric Tampa

Solar and batteries for a Tampa Bay house

Rooftop solar is an installer's job, and without a battery it shuts off when the grid does. What you can buy and use yourself is portable solar that refills a power station. Here's both sides, with five panels compared.

Solar panels on a house roof

Which kind fits

Rooftop systems and portable panels solve different problems.

Outage, carry-out

Portable panels

Fold out on the lawn and refill a power station between storms. Nothing to install, permit or file with the utility.

12 V systems

Rigid panel kit

Fixed panels and a charge controller for a 12 V battery: a shed, a boat, an RV.

Lower bills

Rooftop, grid-tied

Net metering credits what you export. Florida's rule requires it to shut off when the grid goes down.

Outage and bills

Rooftop with battery

A home battery and a backup gateway keep chosen circuits running and recharge from the roof. How it works.

Quick picks

The short answer for common situations. Each links to the full card below.

Compare five portable panels

Specs from each manufacturer's page. Open-circuit voltage matters when you wire two panels in series: the total has to fit your station's input range.

Product links on this page go to Amazon. If you buy through them, Electric Tampa earns a commission. How we pick and earn

Portable and kit solar panels, by rated watts
ModelRatedOpen-circuit VWeightWater ratingMade forLink
BLUETTI 200W Solar PanelFolding panel, 200 W200 W24.6 V17.15 lbIP67BLUETTI and other MC4 inputsAmazon
Anker SOLIX PS200 BifacialFolding panel, 200 W200 WNot published10.6 lbIP68Anker SOLIX stationsAmazon
Renogy 200W 12V Starter KitRigid panel kit, 12 V2 × 100 W22.79 V each13.0 lb eachRigid, framed12 V batteriesAmazon
EcoFlow 220W Bifacial Portable Solar PanelFolding panel, 220 W220 W21.5 V15.4 lbIP68EcoFlow stationsAmazon
Anker SOLIX PS400 BifacialFolding panel, 400 W400 WNot published21.9 lbIP68Anker SOLIX stationsAmazon
BLUETTI 200W Solar Panel

Folding panel, 200 W

BLUETTI 200W Solar Panel

BLUETTI 200W (SP200L)

A monocrystalline folding panel with standard MC4 connectors, so it works with BLUETTI stations and most others that take MC4.

Rated output
200 W
Cells
Monocrystalline, 23.4%
Voc / Isc
24.6 V / 10.8 A
Connector
MC4
Weight
17.15 lb
Water
IP67

Suits: BLUETTI owners, or anyone who wants a panel that is not tied to one brand of connector.

Weigh: Heavier than the bifacial panels at about 17 pounds, IP67 rather than IP68, and a 12-month warranty.

View on Amazon
Anker SOLIX PS200 Bifacial

Folding panel, 200 W

Anker SOLIX PS200 Bifacial

Anker SOLIX AS320

A light bifacial N-type panel at about 10.6 pounds, with a five-year warranty and an XT-60 cable.

Rated output
200 W
Cells
N-type, 25%+
Output
48 V ⎓ 4.16 A
Weight
10.6 lb
Warranty
5 years
Water
IP68

Suits: Anker SOLIX stations, and anyone who has to carry the panel out and back each day.

Weigh: Anker does not publish its open-circuit voltage, so check your station's input range with Anker before wiring two in series.

View on Amazon
Renogy 200W 12V Starter Kit

Rigid panel kit, 12 V

Renogy 200W 12V Starter Kit

Renogy RNG-KIT-STARTER200D-WND30-US

Two rigid 100 W panels, a 30 A charge controller, mounting brackets and cables, for charging a 12 V battery that stays put.

Panels
2 × 100 W N-type
Controller
30 A PWM
Voc per panel
22.79 V
Panel size
34.1 × 22.8 in
Weight per panel
13.0 lb
Output
About 500 Wh/day

Suits: A shed, a boat, an RV or a 12 V battery bank; Renogy rates the kit at about 500 Wh a day with 5 sun-hours.

Weigh: It charges a 12 V battery, not a power station directly, and its controller takes at most 25 V of panel input. Mounting on a roof is a permitted, wind-rated job.

View on Amazon
EcoFlow 220W Bifacial Portable Solar Panel

Folding panel, 220 W

EcoFlow 220W Bifacial Portable Solar Panel

EcoFlow 220W Bifacial (N-type)

A folding N-type panel that also collects reflected light from the back, rated 220 W on the front and up to 175 W more on the rear.

Rated output
220 W (+175 W rear)
Cells
N-type TOPCon, 25%
Voc / Isc
21.5 V / 12.4 A
Weight
15.4 lb
Folded
24.2 × 23.2 in
Water
IP68

Suits: Recharging an EcoFlow power station; two of them refill a 1 kWh station on most Tampa Bay days.

Weigh: Made for EcoFlow inputs. Bifacial gain depends on a bright surface under it, like concrete or sand, not dark grass. 12-month warranty.

View on Amazon
Anker SOLIX PS400 Bifacial

Folding panel, 400 W

Anker SOLIX PS400 Bifacial

Anker SOLIX AS340

One 400 W bifacial panel instead of two 200s: fewer cables, and enough on its own to refill a 1 kWh station on an average Tampa Bay day.

Rated output
400 W
Cells
N-type, 25%+
Output
48 V ⎓ 8.33 A
Weight
21.9 lb
Warranty
5 years
Water
IP68

Suits: Larger Anker SOLIX stations with high-voltage solar inputs.

Weigh: About 22 pounds and nearly 39 inches long folded. Anker does not publish its open-circuit voltage; confirm your station's input window first.

View on Amazon

How many panel watts you need

In Tampa, NREL's PVWatts model puts usable output at about 4.3 kWh per day for every 1,000 W of panel, averaged over the year, dropping to about 3.8 in December and July. So about 230 W of panel refills a 1 kWh station on an average day, and 260 W covers the cloudier months. The numbers and the wiring rules are in our guide to solar for a power station.

Solar and batteries guides

A flexible solar panel wired to a battery

Solar panels for a power station: what a Tampa Bay day refills

Tampa's sun-hours by month, how many panel watts refill a 1 kWh or 2 kWh power station, why rated watts aren't what you get, and how to wire two panels without exceeding the input.

Solar panels on a house roof

Will rooftop solar keep the lights on in a Florida outage?

Why most rooftop systems shut off with the grid, what it takes to keep power through a storm, and what Florida's net metering rule, tax exemptions and HOA law say in 2026.