About, and how these numbers are checked
A compatibility verdict is only worth acting on if you can see where the numbers came from. This page explains the source of every rating, the arithmetic behind each verdict, the test suite that has to pass before a page goes live, and the cases where you should not trust any calculator at all.
What this site is for
SolarPortCheck is an independent engineering check for one specific decision: can this solar array be connected to this portable power station, and what will it actually deliver. It is not a shopping guide, not a review site, and not affiliated with any of the brands it names. Brand and model names appear only to identify the hardware being checked, which is the only way to talk about a 60 V input that belongs to a specific product.
Where the port ratings come from
Every station entry in the preset library is transcribed from the manufacturer's published user manual, and each record carries the manual reference and a link to the brand's own specification page. Four fields are recorded for each unit: the MPPT start voltage, the absolute maximum input voltage, the per-port current ceiling, and the per-port power ceiling. Where a unit applies a lower current ceiling below a voltage threshold — the Jackery Explorer 1000 v2 holds 8 A below 17.5 V, the Anker SOLIX C1000 holds 10 A below 32 V — that is recorded as a separate pair of fields rather than averaged into one number, because averaging would hide the exact behaviour that decides a verdict.
Panel entries are STC figures from the label or datasheet: watts, Voc, Vmp, Isc, Imp, the Voc temperature coefficient and the native connector. STC numbers are nominal by definition. Two panels of the same model can differ by a percent or two, a used panel may have been mislabelled by whoever sold it, and a folding panel's printed figures are often optimistic. The calculator is only as good as the label you feed it.
The generation problem, stated plainly
The most dangerous thing about this product category is that manufacturers reuse names. "Explorer 1000" has shipped as a 12–30 V unit with a 200 W ceiling and as a 12–60 V unit with a 400 W ceiling, in different chassis, with different barrel connectors. "AC200" covers a 35 V-start model and a 12 V-start model. A panel that is correctly sized for one is over-voltage on another and useless on a third.
So every entry in the library states its generation in the record itself and in the preset label, and no two generations are ever merged into one averaged entry. If a model is not listed, treat its numbers as unknown rather than assuming the family's reputation applies; averaging two generations would produce a number that is wrong for both.
The arithmetic
There are three formulas and they are all on the pages that use them. The cold-voltage calculation follows NEC 690.7(A)(1): the STC open-circuit voltage, multiplied by the series count, multiplied by one plus the absolute value of the temperature coefficient times the difference between 25 °C and the design temperature. The coefficient is treated as a magnitude, because the minus sign on a panel label means the voltage rises as temperature falls, and a formula that reads it as a subtraction produces a confident SAFE verdict on a string that will destroy the charger.
Clipping follows the behaviour of a maximum power point tracker: current is limited to the port ceiling, the product of voltage and current is then limited to the power ceiling, and the result is multiplied by 0.82 to estimate real-world harvest including irradiance below STC and cable loss. That 0.82 is a working figure, not a specification, and it is shown on the page so you can adjust it in your head for a flat-mounted panel in winter.
Charge time divides the energy the battery must absorb — capacity divided by 0.88 for charger and management losses — by the array's output, giving equivalent peak-sun hours rather than clock hours.
How the numbers are verified
The formulas live in one module, and that module is the only place they exist: the pages inline the same code the tests import, so a page cannot drift from its test. The test suite runs before every build and includes hand-worked reference cases with numbers that can be checked on a phone calculator: a 48 V panel at −15 °C opening at 53.8 V, two of them in series reaching 107.5 V against a 60 V limit, a single 18 V panel failing to start a 35 V input, and the 8 A versus 15 A cable comparison at both 19.2 V and 41 V.
Separately, every data table on the site is recomputed from its declared formula by the publishing pipeline. A row whose value disagrees with the formula by more than the stated tolerance stops the build. That catches the mistake this kind of site is most likely to make: a coefficient transcribed one column off, or a unit mixed between volts and amps.
What these calculators do not do
- They do not measure anything. Every number is arithmetic on figures you supply or pick from the library. A meter on the finished string is the only way to know what is actually there.
- They do not model cell temperature. A panel in full sun runs 20–30 °C above ambient, which helps in winter and does not change the cold-morning case that sets the voltage limit.
- They do not verify wiring, polarity or fusing. The wiring list counts parts and sizes fuses to 1.56 × Isc; it cannot see whether you crimped a connector properly.
- They do not cover every model. The library holds twelve stations and eight panels, each with its generation stated. Anything else has to be typed in from your own manual, and a wrong input gives a wrong verdict.
- They do not replace a licensed electrician for a fixed installation, a permit-inspected system, or anything involving a house's wiring.
Safety, and the limits of a browser tool
Low-voltage DC looks harmless and is not. A 60 V array at 15 A is 900 W of available power, enough to weld a connector, start a fire in dry grass, or destroy a charger in a way that is not covered by warranty. The failure this site is built to prevent — over-voltage into an MPPT input — happens in under a second and is unrecoverable.
So treat a SAFE verdict as permission to check further, not permission to connect. Read the input rating on your own unit. Read the label on your own panel. Measure the string's open-circuit voltage on a cold morning with a DC meter rated for the voltage, before the array is connected to anything. If the measured figure is within a few volts of the port maximum, reduce the series count.
Independence and funding
SolarPortCheck is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by EcoFlow, Jackery, Bluetti, Anker SOLIX, Renogy, BougeRV, Rich Solar, Canadian Solar or any other manufacturer. There are no sponsored rankings, no paid placements and no brand-supplied verdicts. The site is free to use, runs entirely in your browser, and stores nothing about you; when affiliate links are added for adapter leads and panels, they will be marked, and they will never change a computed result.
Corrections are welcome and are the most useful thing a reader can send: if a manual has been revised, or a model's input window has changed without the name changing, that is exactly the kind of error this site cannot detect on its own. The library records a verification date next to every entry so you can see how current it is.
Estimates, not instructions. Everything here is an engineering estimate built on published specifications and standard correction methods. It is not a manufacturer instruction, a warranty statement, or a substitute for the manual that came with your equipment. You are responsible for what you connect.