How can I tell if my Nomad 27 is working?

ScottH

Hi all, so assume the following:

I have 1 Nomad 27 folding solar panel and 2x Sherpa 100's. My original logic (I bought this stuff a long time ago in a galaxy far far away) was in a worst case scenario (ie bugging out or having to live out of my car) I would have power to have light, charge batteries, charge cellphone, and charge laptop.

So the Sherpas are fine, I use them to charge batteries and for light during blackouts. Haven't used the solar panel at all, how do I know if the panel is working? Do I have leave the Sherpas turned on?

Another question I have, my Toshiba laptop died, so I ended up getting a Lenovo Yoga, I noticed on the Sherpa there is a laptop port. Now I have the AC extension for the 1 Sherpa, so I guess I can just use that. But would there be a better option like a (not sure what port is on the Sherpa to USB-C)?

I'm trying to move quickly on this (before the BRICS announce thier gold backed currency) which will most likely drive up inflation in the US. Making everything more expensive.

Thanks in advance,

Scott

jg164

@ScottH,

You should be able to charge the Sherpas in their on or off states.

I am not familiar with the Nomad 27 but there is a Nomad 28 on the User Guides page ( can be found at the bottom of goalzero.com.

We also have manuals for the Sherpas too.

After reading the manuals and testing out your solar panels with your sherpas, let me know if you need any more guidance!

jg164

@ScottH,

Moving the follow up question here to keep it all together

Hi all,

Sorry to keep asking questions... So I connected my Nomad and my Sherpas together and put my Nomad in a window. Is it safe to just leave them there? The Sherpas are already charged. It would be kinda embarrassing if the house burned down while I was at work.

Just noticed something, the Sherpa the Nomad is plugged into is on, but the other Sherpa (connected via cable seems to be off). I wonder if I should turn it on?

Another stupid question, the Sharpa 100 has a laptop port on it, my old Toshiba's speakers died, so I bought a Lenovo Yoga (power input is USB-C). What cord would I use to connect the Sherpa to the Lenovo?? The Sherpa has a laptop port (but it's round and I have no clue how to connect anything to it).

Thanks in advance,

Scott

PS: This weekend I need to buy some Goal Zero AA batteries. I wonder if any other rechargeable AA batteries can be used?

You can leave the Sherpa charging all the time but I personally like to only charge right before use and then every now and then to keep the batteries healthy.

Describe the second Sherpa situation a little more. What cable? Have you turned it on and off to see how its doing?

If the Sherpa is the original ones with the snap on inverter, I am not familiar with them.

Will you please reply to this thread and attach pictures to help us get a better idea what you are using?

I am guessing you are talking about the Guide 10 Plus or similar for the AA question? If so, its product page says you can use other rechargeable NiMH batteries (AA or AAA size with the adapter):

ScottH

Attached is a pic, of my Nomad/Sherpas setup.

Hope this helps,

Scott

IMG_20230726_191431063.jpg

jg164

@ScottH,

Thank you for that picture, it helps so much!

I am surprised you are getting any amount of power through the window. Maybe try swapping which Nomad is connected to it in case one of the Nomads is getting less sun.

Try taking your setup outside temporarily and see if that second Sherpa gets more power. Here are some explainers on why to try this:

• Most windows on homes and vehicles have UV blocker treatments applied to them. You may be able to get some charge power from the sun through a window but it will be reduced power.
• Each solar panel is made of solar cells connected in Series and Parallel to make larger modules even a single Nomad. If a Single cell is getting less light than the rest, it can become the weak link and pull down the power output of the rest of the solar panel.
• When solar charging, arrange the panels so every cell has the same amount of sun with no shadows from cords or grass. Even haze, fog, clouds and smoke can reduce the power a solar panel can put out to zero.
• Once you have the panels in full sun, if the face of the panels are directly pointed at the sun you will get even closer to the max power output. This changes over the hours of the day so repositioning a more often helps stay at peak power.
• In most areas of the world, available solar radiation spectra that match monocrystalline silicon solar cells does not become very powerful until about 10am then peaks around noon and then becomes to weak again around 3pm on average. Winter is much less and summer has more.