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Power Outages happen. Usually at the worst time.
If you remember the images of people trying to recover after Hurricane Sandy, you understand the difference a power source can make by allowing for re-charging of cell phones and other electronic devices.
More than that, I liked the idea of having a power source that could get re-charged by the power of the sun, rather than using a loud (and often unreliable) generator that required a supply of fossil fuel.
While you could put together a kit yourself (the "DIY" way) by using a solar panel, charge controller, deep cycle battery and inverter, I was intrigued by the seemingly complete Goal Zero Large Extreme 350 Adventure Kit.
A 30 Watt Solar panel would be sufficient to charge the battery in the power pack during a normal, sunny day. The Extreme 350 power pack was supposed to store 350 Watt of power and the different available outlets on the unit or the inverter offered flexibility to connect and re-charge devices via the USB port (iPhone), 12V DC port (Laptop with 12V power supply) and even 110V AC devices like a pump etc. Just what I was looking for.
Before I made the purchase, I checked with the folks at Goal Zero to make sure the unit was protected against over-charging and reverse charging (rather important features) and proceeded once I had confirmation.
When the unit arrived, I unpacked it right away and wanted to get it charged up.
A sunny day provided direct sunlight, the Boulder 30 panel was adjusted to just the right angle as per the instructions, both the blue power LED and green charging LED lit up and the LCD display started blinking the "20" symbol. That was it. The display didn't change for 2 days, but went blank when I unplugged it.
So I contacted customer service and was told the power pack was probably in a state of hibernation and to reset it by pulling the fuses out for a few minuted.
Not what I had hoped to hear, but I followed the instructions. Instead of the solar panels, I used the 110V power adapter this time to try to charge the pack and indeed, that seemed to work. Multiple symbols started to blink on the LCD display, indicating it was charging, and after a few hours, it looked like the unit was fully charged.
And indeed, the USB port now provided power to charge an iPhone, the 12V DC port was able to power my Laptop and the Inverter produced enough AC to power a 110V AC light fixture.
At the same time I had bought the Extreme 350, I bought a Goal Zero LED lamp, so I tested the unit to make sure it would power the light at least through the night.
So I connected the light (Goal Zero proprietary DC connector) and left it on all night.
By the next morning, the light was off and the LCD display empty, so I took it that the battery had completely discharged again.
Like before, having the solar panel connected all day long didn't get the battery charged up again, even though I tried the "pull the fuses" trick once more.
So the next night, I plugged the unit into the AC power supply again and let it charge all night. Apparently a really bad idea!
By the next morning, the unit was spreading the scent of rotten eggs, was very hot to the touch and some sort of liquid had escaped the case. The inverter was dead as well.
Not really the reliable performance I would have expected from a device that I had purchased for emergencies and needed to trust to work in such a situation.
Unfortunately I only discovered that Amazon has a policy of not accepting returns on this product, due to the HazMat nature of the battery pack, after this fiasco.
That's when it got interesting: I tried contacting Goal Zero for help with their broken product.
Sent an email early on Monday. No response.
Called on Tuesday and was on hold for more than 20 minutes before my call was terminated in a voice mailbox, where I left my contact details and phone number. Nothing though, nobody called me back.
Tried calling again on Wednesday and left my information. Again, nothing.
Finally, 3 days after that, I got a response to my original email. Answered the questions from their customer service rep. and waited.
5 days later a response from yet a different staff member with the same questions I had already answered.
After 2 weeks finally the statement "we'll send you a replacement".
Another week later, still nothing, so I gave up on goal Zero.
I have never seen anything as chaotic as this in my life. They must not have any structure or CRM in the customer service dept. at Goal Zero.
Ball dropped constantly. Left hand not knowing what the right hand was doing. Nobody ever called me back at the number I left and in all that time, they didn't manage to address my problem and replace their defective product. Customers must not be important to them. Or they are overwhelmed with warranty issues, I can't tell.
If it hadn't been for a friendly soul in Amazon customer service that understood the nature of the problem and replaced the unit for me, I would have been stuck with a piece of junk that had cost me a lot of money, with no real support by the manufacturer.
So thank you Amazon, your customer service is first class!
As far as Goal Zero and the Extreme 350 product, I hope my experience is an exception and not many more customers have to go through what I went through.
Problems with products happen. It's how a manufacturer stands by the product when problems happen and how they make it right with customers that experience problems.
And that's exactly where Goal Zero dropped the ball for me.
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I have several Goal Zero products and I am thoroughly pleased with all of them. I use the Goal Zero 350 power pack to charge many portable devices and power my Traeger grill (requires power to operate). It takes a good while to charge this power pack with one solar panel. The solar panel that comes in the package is 30 watts and the power pack is 350 watt hours, so some simple math says that in perfect conditions it's going to take at least 12 hours of full sun to accomplish 0-100% charge cycle. I have several Goal Zero panels and string them all together (very easy to do with their products) and my power pack charges in 6-8 hours (winter sun angles and partly cloudy). VERY GOOD PRODUCTS. You have to understand the limits of a battery... You aren't going to be able to run really power hungry devices, but for what this is designed to do, it does it VERY WELL and is EASY to use. I wish they were less expensive, I'd be able to buy more and chain the batteries together.
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I like this product and got it for use around the house to charge things like laptops cell phones and other portable electronics and as an emergency power source. I had considered the Xantrex Xpower Powerpack 600HD Portable Power Source which is a lot cheaper than the Goal Zero Extreme 350 and also more versatile but I wanted to try the 350 for myself. I like the overall design although the inverter could use some work. The inverter is annoyingly loud and when I received it it was cracked open, not broken just dislodged, I was able to snap it back in place but it's very cheaply made. I wish the extreme 350 had built in usb ports or all the ports were built in without having to attached the inverter and a quieter less annoying fan with maybe a heat sink to limit the fans usage. The 350 appears to be reliable and lasts as long as it is rated for based on continuous usage. I tested it with a device that uses 90 watts continuously and the 350 ran for about 3.5 hrs which isn't bad at all.
Honest reviews on Goal Zero 39002 Silver/Black Large Extreme 350 Adventure Kit
I purchased the Goal Zero Extreme 350 Adventure Kit. It is awesome. I totally recommend it. I teach Food Storage and Emergency Preparedness Classes. It is easy to set up. It is easy to use. It works great!!!! I have also purchased Goal Zero's Solar flash lights. They work great. i never need batteries again. They are crank & solar run. I have 4 of the lights. One light will light up your living room. You might need two if the room is large. Goal Zero is the best!!!
Find helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Goal Zero 39002 Silver/Black Large Extreme 350 Adventure Kit
No instructions, manuals, or any connecting cable came with this unit. Solar panel has no connector, power invertor has no cable, unit is useless to me. Trying to contact amazon is worse than contacting the Pres. Even GoalZero has ignored my plee. Amazon, if you even read these, how bout contacting me or at least complete my order. Ps. Retuning item is difficult. Amazon has it listed as hazardous material. UPS delivered it.
