Broken solar cells from ebay

I recently won some broken solar cells from a seller on ebay, just wondering if anyone here has experience of making up panels from broken cells?

[Gotwind Ben]

Hi microgreen, a first name would be of use ;)

The general consensous on such purchases is bad I'm afraid.
You may well be able to solder together a string of 36 cells in series to provide a 12v battery charging system.

The trouble begins with sealing them efficiently I believe, others here have a better knowledge I know.
Just offering some general advice.

Personally, I would find a Chinese panel, not the greenest of options, but probably the most cost effective :roll:

Hi Ben,

Thanks for the feedback, the cells were cheap (£19 inc postage), and the seller reckons that should make a 17 to 21 watt panel. At that sort of price I'll take a chance just for the fun of it and to experiment. I'll report back on progress when I get them, I have some ideas about how to mount them into a panel, not sure if it will work or not but happy to try and see what works (or what doesn't work). From what I've seen of these type of cells they dont fare too well if exposed to damp.

John

Update - the cells arrived today. They are surprisingly thin and appear very delicate. I havn't fully unpacked them yet but they appear to all be in very good condition, much better than I expected. I will try to get some photos posted up if anyone is interested.