Wind Turbine FAQs
-
Summary Checklist for Your Choice
Choose the SR or ST-1200W if you want portability, low noise, and minimal investment for camping or caravans.
Choose the ST-2000, ST-3000, or ST-5000 if you have a stationary house/cabin and want to supplement solar panels at night.
Choose the ST-10kW — the largest turbine we sell — if you have heavy agricultural power needs, acreage, and a budget for proper mast engineering.
The vertical axis wind turbines listed on the BushLine Outdoor Equipment catalogue are categorised by physical design shapes, which dictate their ideal applications.
-
No.Wind turbines generate "wild" 3-phase AC power that changes voltage constantly with the wind speed. Connecting it directly to a battery or a standard solar inverter will instantly destroy your equipment. Youmustwire the turbine into a dedicatedWind/Solar Hybrid MPPT Controller with an integrated Dump Load Resistor. The controller converts the power to stable DC to charge your batteries safely.
-
You must match the turbine and its hybrid controller to the exact voltage of your existing battery bank:
- 12V: Best for compact mobile setups like caravans, 4WDs, and camper trailers.
- 24V: Great for medium-sized setups like off-grid sheds, cabins, and motorhomes.
- 48V: The gold standard for full off-grid home systems. Higher voltage means less energy loss through your wires and allows you to use thinner, safer cables.
-
When your battery bank becomes 100% fully charged, it stops accepting power. If a heavy wind storm hits at night when your batteries are full, a turbine with nowhere to send its power will "free-spin" out of control and physically fly apart. A hybrid controller fixes this by automatically diverting that excess power into the dump load resistor, which burns it off safely as heat and acts as an electronic brake to slow the turbine down.
-
No,that is the main benefit of the vertical design. Traditional horizontal "propeller" turbines create a high-pitched, annoying "chopping" noise. Our ST Tulip and Flower series utilise advanced omnidirectional maglev-style bearings, making them virtually silent and completely vibration-free, all you will hear is the wind. They are perfect for suburban blocks, tight caravan parks, and areas close to neighbours.
-
It will turn, but turning is not charging. The blades start rotating at about 1.5 m/s — a light breeze. Charging starts once the wind clears the cut-in speed of about 3.5 m/s, and output climbs from there — the rated figure is measured at 13 m/s (about 47 km/h). A gentle breeze keeps the turbine ticking over; it takes real wind to push real power into your batteries.
-
You should connect the wind turbine to a battery bank first, via a dedicated charge controller, rather than directly to an inverter. Connecting a wind turbine directly to a standard inverter will damage the equipment or cause the system to fail.
🔋 The Correct Wiring SequenceTo safely capture and use the power, your setup must follow this exact order:
- Wind Turbine: Generates wild, fluctuating 3-phase AC power as wind speeds change.
- Hybrid/Wind Charge Controller: Converts the unstable AC power into steady DC power. It also protects the turbine from over-speeding by applying an electronic brake during high winds.
- Battery Bank (12V/24V/48V): Acts as a buffer to store the energy. It absorbs sudden power spikes from wind gusts and provides a steady source of energy.
- Off-Grid Inverter: Connects to the battery, converting the stored DC battery power into standard AC power for your household appliances.
⚠️ Why You Cannot Skip the Battery
- Unstable Voltage: Wind speeds change second by second. Without a battery to absorb and smooth out these massive fluctuations, a direct-connect inverter would constantly turn off and error out.
- Turbine Destruction: When a battery is full or disconnected, a wind turbine loses its "load" (resistance). Without that resistance, the blades can spin out of control in high winds and physically destroy the unit. The charge controller uses the battery connection to safely dump excess power and slow the turbine down.
-
Wiring & Installation Requirement:This wind turbine generates 3-phase AC power andcannotbe connected directly to a battery, solar controller, or home inverter. To operate safely, it must run through a dedicatedWind/Solar Hybrid MPPT Controller with an integrated Dump Load Resistor. The dump load prevents the turbine from over-speeding and destroying itself in high winds once your batteries are fully charged.
-
It is almost always one of three common installation issues. Check them in order:
1. Your multimeter is set to DC (the most common mistake).
- The issue: measuring the three turbine wires with the meter set to DC volts.
- The reality: wind turbines generate 3-phase AC power directly from the stator.
- The fix: switch your multimeter to AC volts (V~). Testing these wires on a DC setting gives a false reading near zero.
2. The turbine is stalling because of a short.
- The issue: the blades turn heavily and slowly, or lock up.
- The reality: if any of the three AC output wires touch each other, or the controller’s internal braking diodes have short-circuited, it acts as a magnetic brake — the turbine can never spin fast enough to build voltage.
- The fix: completely disconnect the turbine from the controller. If it suddenly frees up and spins much faster, the problem is a short in the wiring or a faulty controller.
3. Voltage drop from thin cables.
- The issue: thin wire run a long way from the tower to the battery shed.
- The reality: thin solar or automotive cable over a long run (20 metres or more) loses the power as heat in the wire before it reaches the controller.
- The fix: use heavy cable between the mast and the controller on long runs — minimum 8 AWG, ideally 6 AWG.
-
Because the number on the box is a peak rating, not a promise. A turbine’s rated output is measured at a specific wind speed — for these models that is 13 m/s, about 47 km/h — and most sites see far less most of the time. Your display shows what the wind is delivering right now, so it will sit well below the rated figure and move second by second with the wind. That is physics, not a fault.
Where these turbines earn their keep is time: they keep charging through the night and through weather that shuts solar down. If the display shows 0 W while the blades are spinning, that is a different issue — see the 0 W question below.
-
Not necessarily — this is one of the most common questions we get, and it's rarely a faulty unit. It's usually a quick settings check, or (on a first-time install) how the wiring and start-up sequence were done. See our full Wind Turbine 0W Troubleshooting & Installation Guide for the complete walkthrough, or contact us and we'll help you sort it out.
-
Short answer: wire your bus bar and breakers before and after the controller, then power up in the right order — battery first, then solar, then wind. Getting the sequence right prevents almost all wiring issues, including the common “spinning but 0 W” problem.
Correct installation comes down to isolation and the right sequence:
- Fit a breaker before the controller (turbine/solar side) and after it (battery side), landing on a DC bus bar
- Keep the turbine-to-controller cable run to 2–10 metres to limit voltage drop
- Power up in this order: battery breaker first, then solar, then wind turbine last
See our full How to Install & Start Up guide for the complete step-by-step walkthrough and wiring diagram.
Folding Solar Panel Bag 40W or 60W with USB and DC Output
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Folding Solar Panel Bag 40W or 60W with USB and DC Output
Enough panel to keep a phone alive, not a house.
Day three out of range and the phone is on nine percent. The head torch is flat, the handheld is chirping at you, and the nearest power point is a two-hour drive back the way you came. A phone that dies out there is not a flat phone — it is no map, no weather, no way to tell anyone where you are. That is the moment a folding panel earns its space in the pack.
Here is the part nobody else selling this thing will put in writing. It is listed everywhere as 600 W and 1000 W, and it is neither. The supplier's own spec sheet gives 40 W for the four-fold and 60 W for the six-fold. Its own DC output, 18 V at 2.22 A, multiplies out to 39.96 W. Its own compliance certificates cover a model range that runs 40 W to 350 W and contains no 600 W or 1000 W model at all. Six hundred watts would need roughly 2.75 square metres of cell at the efficiency the supplier claims; the six-fold measures 0.33 square metres unfolded. The headline is out by more than ten times, so we publish the numbers that reconcile and leave the headline where we found it.
What you actually get is a fabric-backed panel that folds to about the size of a laptop sleeve, hangs off a pack by four steel eyelets, and puts out through twin USB or an 18 V DC lead with eight adapter tips. It charges phones, power banks, head torches, cameras and tablets, and it will trickle into a 12 V lead-acid battery. It is a top-up charger. It is not a power system, and it does not pretend to be one.
What It Does
- Keeps the small kit alive: phone, power bank, head torch, camera, tablet — through twin USB at 5 V and 2 A.
- Feeds 12 V gear: an 18 V DC lead and eight adapter tips, for topping up a 12 V lead-acid battery or running DC accessories.
- Packs flat and light: both versions fold to 280 x 190 mm and carry by their own handle, so the bigger one costs you nothing in pack space.
- Charges while you walk: four steel eyelets and two carabiners let it hang off the back of a pack with a bank in the lid.
- Works off the vehicle: the supplier lists cars, trucks, caravans, boats, motorcycles and camper batteries as intended uses.
Key Features
- Monocrystalline cells: supplier-stated monocrystalline silicon under a matte PET film surface.
- Two sizes: the four-fold opens to 945 x 280 mm, the six-fold to 1.175 m x 280 mm.
- Honest output: 40 W on the four-fold, 60 W on the six-fold — both the supplier's own figures, and both consistent with the panel area it publishes.
- Twin USB out: 5 V at 2 A, straight into a phone or a bank with no adapter.
- DC out: 18 V at 2.22 A, with a double-ended male lead, an extension cord and eight tips in the box.
- Four steel eyelets: two carabiners supplied, so it hangs off a pack, a roof rack or a tent guy line.
- Folds, not bends: rigid cell panels joined by fabric hinges, so it creases at the seams instead of flexing across a cell.
- Compliance paperwork shown: the supplier publishes CE, RoHS and FCC certificates of compliance for a product it calls a Solar Folding Bag. We have seen the certificate images, not the lab reports behind them.
Where This Fits
- Somewhere to put the power: the panel stores nothing, so it wants a power bank or a battery on the end of it — see Battery Power.
- More panel than this: if you are running a fridge, lights and a water pump off a caravan bank, start in Solar Power rather than here.
- Power after dark: solar stops at sunset and slows under cloud. A vertical axis wind turbine assists a solar array through the night and through weather — it is the other half of a real off-grid build, not a replacement for panels.
- Regulating a proper array: anything charging a battery bank in earnest needs a controller between the two — see Wind and Solar Controllers.
Limits
What this panel will not do, stated plainly, so nobody buys it expecting the wrong thing.
- It is not 600 W or 1000 W: the supplier's own spec sheet says 40 W and 60 W, its own DC output arithmetic says 40 W, and its own certificates list no model above 350 W. We are not publishing a number we cannot reconcile.
- It will not run a house: 40 to 60 W in full sun is a phone, a bank, a torch and a camera. It is not a fridge, not a kettle, not an inverter load, not a caravan.
- No charge controller in the box: the DC output is 18 V. For anything more than a short daylight top-up into a 12 V lead-acid battery, put a regulator between the panel and the battery.
- No IP rating: the supplier calls the surface weather resistant but publishes no IP number anywhere on its artwork, so we will not call it waterproof. Treat it as shower-resistant, bring it in overnight, and never submerge it.
- There is no battery in it: sun goes, output goes. Whatever you want charged has to be plugged in while the panel is lit.
- We publish no daily yield: real output depends on your latitude, the season, cloud, panel angle and cell temperature. Any figure we printed would be a guess with a decimal point on it.
- The efficiency figures disagree: the spec sheet says 21.8 percent and the artwork says 22.6 percent. Neither is independently verified, so treat both as marketing.
- Shade kills it: a branch, a guy rope or a pack strap across one cell panel drags the whole string down. It needs clear sky on the full face.
- No temperature data: the supplier states no working temperature range and no temperature coefficient, so we cannot tell you how much it drops on a 45 degree day. Panels always lose output as they heat up.
Q & A
Is it really 600 W or 1000 W?
No. Those are the supplier's marketing headline and they do not survive a check. The same supplier's spec sheet gives 40 W for the four-fold and 60 W for the six-fold, its DC output of 18 V at 2.22 A comes to 39.96 W, and its own CE, RoHS and FCC certificates cover models from 40 W to 350 W with nothing above that. Buy it as a 40 W or a 60 W panel and you will get what you paid for.
Which one should I pick, the four-fold or the six-fold?
Both fold to the same 280 x 190 mm, so the six-fold costs you no pack space, only length when it is open and 330 grams of weight - 0.83 kg for the four-fold against 1.16 kg for the six-fold, both the supplier's own figures. Take the four-fold at 40 W if it lives on the outside of a day pack. Take the six-fold at 60 W if you are charging a power bank as well as a phone, or if you are somewhere with short winter sun.
Can I charge my caravan or 4WD battery with it?
You can trickle into a 12 V lead-acid battery through the DC lead, and the supplier lists exactly that as an intended use. Two things to know: no battery clamps are supplied, only DC plugs and adapter tips, and there is no regulator in the kit. For a daylight top-up on a battery that is otherwise healthy it is fine. For anything ongoing, run it through a proper solar charge controller.
Can I leave it out in the rain?
Not overnight, and not deliberately. The supplier gives no IP number, which means nothing about its water ingress has been measured and published. A passing shower while it is out charging is what the fabric backing is built for. Standing water, a soaking or immersion is not, and neither are the USB and DC sockets.
Is there a battery inside it?
No. It is a panel and nothing else. You will see a nominal capacity figure quoted on some listings for this item; there is no cell in it to hold a capacity, so ignore that line. Pair it with a power bank if you want to catch sun during the day and use it at night.
How long does delivery take?
Delivery is free to Australia and New Zealand and runs 10 to 14 days from the day you order, not from dispatch. Allow up to three weeks. Regional and remote addresses take longer again.
Specs
| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Folding solar panel bag — portable solar charger |
| Cell type | Monocrystalline silicon (supplier stated) |
| Surface | Matte PET film over fabric backing |
| Rated power — four-fold | 40 W (supplier stated) |
| Rated power — six-fold | 60 W (supplier stated) |
| DC output | 18 V, 2.22 A — multiplies out to 39.96 W |
| USB output | Dual USB, 5 V at 2 A |
| Cell efficiency | Supplier quotes 21.8 percent on its spec sheet and 22.6 percent on its artwork. The two disagree; neither is independently verified |
| Unfolded size — four-fold | 945 x 280 mm |
| Unfolded size — six-fold | 1.175 m x 280 mm |
| Folded size | 280 x 190 mm, both versions |
| Individual cell panel | 255 x 155 mm |
| Number of cell panels | 4 or 6, depending on version |
| Weight - four-fold | 0.83 kg, as stated on the supplier's artwork |
| Weight - six-fold | 1.16 kg, as stated on the supplier's artwork |
| Packed weight | 1.5 kg in its retail box, as stated on the supplier's artwork. Box 220 x 300 x 35 mm |
| IP rating | Not specified by supplier — no IP number appears on any supplier artwork |
| Working temperature range | Not specified by supplier |
| Temperature coefficient | Not specified by supplier |
| Voc, Isc, Vmp, Imp | Not specified by supplier. Only the 18 V / 2.22 A DC output figure is published |
| Bend radius | Not specified by supplier, and not really applicable — rigid cell panels joined by fabric hinges, so it folds at the seams rather than bending across a cell |
| Charge controller | Not included |
| Battery | None — the panel stores nothing |
| Mounting | Four steel eyelets; two carabiners supplied |
| In the box | 1 x solar panel bag, 1 x 3-in-1 USB charging cable, 1 x DC double-ended male cable, 1 x DC extension cord, 2 x carabiner, 8 x adapter tip |
| Compliance paperwork | CE, RoHS and FCC certificates of compliance issued to the manufacturer by Shenzhen LST Technology for a product described as a Solar Folding Bag. Standards listed include EN 55014-1, IEC 62321-1, FCC Part 15 B and ANSI C63.4. Seen as supplier images only, not verified with the issuing lab |
| Certificate model range | 40 W to 350 W. No 600 W or 1000 W model appears on the supplier's own certificates |
| Free delivery | Australia and New Zealand |
Payment & Security
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Wind Turbine FAQs
-
Summary Checklist for Your Choice
Choose the SR or ST-1200W if you want portability, low noise, and minimal investment for camping or caravans.
Choose the ST-2000, ST-3000, or ST-5000 if you have a stationary house/cabin and want to supplement solar panels at night.
Choose the ST-10kW — the largest turbine we sell — if you have heavy agricultural power needs, acreage, and a budget for proper mast engineering.
The vertical axis wind turbines listed on the BushLine Outdoor Equipment catalogue are categorised by physical design shapes, which dictate their ideal applications.
-
No.Wind turbines generate "wild" 3-phase AC power that changes voltage constantly with the wind speed. Connecting it directly to a battery or a standard solar inverter will instantly destroy your equipment. Youmustwire the turbine into a dedicatedWind/Solar Hybrid MPPT Controller with an integrated Dump Load Resistor. The controller converts the power to stable DC to charge your batteries safely.
-
You must match the turbine and its hybrid controller to the exact voltage of your existing battery bank:
- 12V: Best for compact mobile setups like caravans, 4WDs, and camper trailers.
- 24V: Great for medium-sized setups like off-grid sheds, cabins, and motorhomes.
- 48V: The gold standard for full off-grid home systems. Higher voltage means less energy loss through your wires and allows you to use thinner, safer cables.
-
When your battery bank becomes 100% fully charged, it stops accepting power. If a heavy wind storm hits at night when your batteries are full, a turbine with nowhere to send its power will "free-spin" out of control and physically fly apart. A hybrid controller fixes this by automatically diverting that excess power into the dump load resistor, which burns it off safely as heat and acts as an electronic brake to slow the turbine down.
-
No,that is the main benefit of the vertical design. Traditional horizontal "propeller" turbines create a high-pitched, annoying "chopping" noise. Our ST Tulip and Flower series utilise advanced omnidirectional maglev-style bearings, making them virtually silent and completely vibration-free, all you will hear is the wind. They are perfect for suburban blocks, tight caravan parks, and areas close to neighbours.
-
It will turn, but turning is not charging. The blades start rotating at about 1.5 m/s — a light breeze. Charging starts once the wind clears the cut-in speed of about 3.5 m/s, and output climbs from there — the rated figure is measured at 13 m/s (about 47 km/h). A gentle breeze keeps the turbine ticking over; it takes real wind to push real power into your batteries.
-
You should connect the wind turbine to a battery bank first, via a dedicated charge controller, rather than directly to an inverter. Connecting a wind turbine directly to a standard inverter will damage the equipment or cause the system to fail.
🔋 The Correct Wiring SequenceTo safely capture and use the power, your setup must follow this exact order:
- Wind Turbine: Generates wild, fluctuating 3-phase AC power as wind speeds change.
- Hybrid/Wind Charge Controller: Converts the unstable AC power into steady DC power. It also protects the turbine from over-speeding by applying an electronic brake during high winds.
- Battery Bank (12V/24V/48V): Acts as a buffer to store the energy. It absorbs sudden power spikes from wind gusts and provides a steady source of energy.
- Off-Grid Inverter: Connects to the battery, converting the stored DC battery power into standard AC power for your household appliances.
⚠️ Why You Cannot Skip the Battery
- Unstable Voltage: Wind speeds change second by second. Without a battery to absorb and smooth out these massive fluctuations, a direct-connect inverter would constantly turn off and error out.
- Turbine Destruction: When a battery is full or disconnected, a wind turbine loses its "load" (resistance). Without that resistance, the blades can spin out of control in high winds and physically destroy the unit. The charge controller uses the battery connection to safely dump excess power and slow the turbine down.
-
Wiring & Installation Requirement:This wind turbine generates 3-phase AC power andcannotbe connected directly to a battery, solar controller, or home inverter. To operate safely, it must run through a dedicatedWind/Solar Hybrid MPPT Controller with an integrated Dump Load Resistor. The dump load prevents the turbine from over-speeding and destroying itself in high winds once your batteries are fully charged.
-
It is almost always one of three common installation issues. Check them in order:
1. Your multimeter is set to DC (the most common mistake).
- The issue: measuring the three turbine wires with the meter set to DC volts.
- The reality: wind turbines generate 3-phase AC power directly from the stator.
- The fix: switch your multimeter to AC volts (V~). Testing these wires on a DC setting gives a false reading near zero.
2. The turbine is stalling because of a short.
- The issue: the blades turn heavily and slowly, or lock up.
- The reality: if any of the three AC output wires touch each other, or the controller’s internal braking diodes have short-circuited, it acts as a magnetic brake — the turbine can never spin fast enough to build voltage.
- The fix: completely disconnect the turbine from the controller. If it suddenly frees up and spins much faster, the problem is a short in the wiring or a faulty controller.
3. Voltage drop from thin cables.
- The issue: thin wire run a long way from the tower to the battery shed.
- The reality: thin solar or automotive cable over a long run (20 metres or more) loses the power as heat in the wire before it reaches the controller.
- The fix: use heavy cable between the mast and the controller on long runs — minimum 8 AWG, ideally 6 AWG.
-
Because the number on the box is a peak rating, not a promise. A turbine’s rated output is measured at a specific wind speed — for these models that is 13 m/s, about 47 km/h — and most sites see far less most of the time. Your display shows what the wind is delivering right now, so it will sit well below the rated figure and move second by second with the wind. That is physics, not a fault.
Where these turbines earn their keep is time: they keep charging through the night and through weather that shuts solar down. If the display shows 0 W while the blades are spinning, that is a different issue — see the 0 W question below.
-
Not necessarily — this is one of the most common questions we get, and it's rarely a faulty unit. It's usually a quick settings check, or (on a first-time install) how the wiring and start-up sequence were done. See our full Wind Turbine 0W Troubleshooting & Installation Guide for the complete walkthrough, or contact us and we'll help you sort it out.
-
Short answer: wire your bus bar and breakers before and after the controller, then power up in the right order — battery first, then solar, then wind. Getting the sequence right prevents almost all wiring issues, including the common “spinning but 0 W” problem.
Correct installation comes down to isolation and the right sequence:
- Fit a breaker before the controller (turbine/solar side) and after it (battery side), landing on a DC bus bar
- Keep the turbine-to-controller cable run to 2–10 metres to limit voltage drop
- Power up in this order: battery breaker first, then solar, then wind turbine last
See our full How to Install & Start Up guide for the complete step-by-step walkthrough and wiring diagram.
