Coleman CL-100 Solar 1.5-Watt 12-Volt Battery Charger

Coleman CL-100 Solar 1.5-Watt 12-Volt Battery Charger
From Coleman

Price: $37.55 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com

Average customer review:

Product Details

* Amazon Sales Rank: #25875 in Home Improvement
* Brand: Coleman
* Model: CL-100
* Dimensions: 1.26" h x 4.41" w x 17.32" l,

Features

* Solar-powered charger engineered to maintain your vehicle's 12-volt starting battery
* Extends battery life using the sun's power
* Reverse current protection (won't drain your battery at night)
* Weatherproof panel ideal for use in all weather conditions
* 2-year limited warranty

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Product Description
Designed to protect against natural battery discharge and electronic drain in cars, light trucks, vans, ATVs, PWCs, small boats, snowmobiles, riding mowers, tractors and SUVs, the Coleman solar 1.5-watt 12-volt battery charger sends a constant maintenance level charge to the battery to insure against dead batteries.

The solar charger provides an immediate charge when exposed to daylight, even on cloudy day. The charger is plug-in-play compatible for quick connections, and a cigarette lighter adaptor and a battery clamp are also included with the panel. The charger is backed by a 2-year warranty.

What's in the Box
Solar panel, cigarette lighter adapter, battery clamp connector, instruction manual, and a set of mounting suction cups.

Customer Reviews

Disappointing - especially from Coleman
The product description states clearly that this little device can be used in all weather conditions.

When unpacked, this does not appear to be the case, and when you read the instructions, on the bottom of the page in small print it says that the product in NOT to be used outdoors unprotected!

For a device that is meant to keep a battery 'topped up', typically devices that are not near shelter (snow blowers, tractors, automatic entrance gates, etc) this seems like a fatal design flaw!

Other than that - the device seems to work fine as a trickle charger.

NOT WEATHERPROOF
Regardless of what the Amazon listing says (and I asked them to change it over a month ago and still haven't) this product is NOT weatherproof. When you open the package the literature about the product specifically states that it is "not for use outdoors". You have to pay more to get a weatherproof model.

This is not a charger.
I purchased one of these in the hope it could trickle-charge a car battery over a few days. It won't. It produces such a small current in full sunlight that it can only maintain the existing charge of a battery. If you have a flat battery and you leave this plugged in for a few days, you'll still have a flat battery.

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