Customer Rating: 
Summary: 5w panel sturdy; weather resistant (sealed)
Comment: (orig 7/27/2008)
I just received the 5 w panel. I find that it is very sturdy. It is under a
glass panel and surrounded by aluminum sides. The two wires are about 12 inches. In full sunlight,
on a clear day, I measured about .32A (that's 320mA). If you cover one cell in the panel, the
current drops to less than a few mA. So avoid shadows.
The aluminum frame has predrilled holes
and comes with strait brackets (two holes).
When I placed the panel on the dash board of my
car, the current measured was 180mA.
So, I plan on mounting them on top of my car. I think it
has a blocking diode inside the panel.
The panel is sealed with what looks like caulking.
/>I didn't understand the price until I received the product.
EDIT:
/>10/27/2009
Its been a year and change (7/22/2008).
The solar panel sits out in the
parking lot in the hot summer and in the freezing cold winter.
I paired the panel with a 12V
26AH (26000mAH) AGM SLA battery (Lead Acid). It powers small electronics like a clock, mp3 players,
cell phone charger, GPS, etc... Its on a separate circuit from the rest of the car.
So far
this experiment has been working out fine. I got my Garman GPS powered by the charged battery for
about an hour a day and my mp3 player for at least two hours a day while I'm driving. I've been
trying to drain that battery, but solar panel keeps it topped off.
Not bad for the 10 hours of
low angle sunlight I get here in the north.
Excellent product if you know what to do with
it.
EDIT:
6/17/2010
Unit out in the sun all day and still alive.
/>
Customer Rating: Summary: CDT Solar Panel - 5W (CDT-5)
Comment: This is simply the best 5W panel you will find - anywhere. Very rugged build quality w/ an aluminum
frame and epoxy sealed tempered glass (this thing is *NEVER* coming apart!). The power output also
tested better than rated. Compared to other plastic 5W products (which I've also owned while they
worked), this is a far superior product. My next project will be much larger and I will definitely
be ordering from CDT again. This was one of the better amazon.com purchases I've made.
Customer Rating: Summary: High-Quality Product
Comment: I was looking for a few-watt solar panel for my little home project. The idea was to run a couple of
ventilation fans in my house's crawl space, using solar power. Both decent price and thorough
technical specs of CDT panel have attracted me. And this product really satisfied my expectations!
Panel produces current/voltage as specified. It is sturdy, easy to mount. Thanks to its sealed
design, it has survived all kinds of weather during the winter - snow, ice, cold, etc. And right at
this moment, it is running those fans! Highly recommended!
Customer Rating: Summary: 5w solar panel CDT
Comment: Best price I found from 6 suppliers. It has already more than trippled the life of my battery
operated gate opener. I live in WA state where the sun does not shine every day. Also trees shade it
for half the day. It is still keeping the battery topped off just above 12 volts. Before I installed
it I had to disconnect the battery and bring it into the shop and charge it every month. I am now
into my 4th month and it is working great with no external charging other than the CDT 5w solar
panel. The 1.5w charger I started with did not work for my application. This one is great I am very
pleased.
