Solar Garden Lights Are Cheap and Easy to Install
There is no doubt that one of the biggest advances in garden lighting in recent years has been the advent of solar garden lights. There are many upsides to solar lights for gardens, they are easy to install, require little upkeep, only incur upfront costs, and are friendlier for the environment. However, there are also many downsides to solar powered lights that can leave you in the dark if you aren’t careful. Make sure you do all your research and plan out your lighting design before you fix yourself on installing a system based entirely around outdoor solar lighting.
The first aspect of solar lighting that you need to be careful of is the fact that solar lights need direct sunlight. Not only do they need direct sunlight, they need direct sunlight for several hours a day. This means that you most likely will not be able to place solar lights around a tree on your property to do uplighting or backlighting. The lights may work in these situations, but they will not shine as brightly or as long as if they were in direct sunlight. If this is fine with you, then you can install these lights here, but make sure you take this into consideration before you sink money into a solar system.
To avoid problems with direct sunlight, look at your yard and where you plan to install lights at different times of the day. Do to the areas you want to install solar lights in get sunlight for a large portion of the day or just an hour or two? Does the sun dip behind the neighbor’s oak tree very early, casting a shadow that could cause your solar garden lights to turn on during the day? If you are unsure about how a solar garden light might do in an area, one solution is to go out and buy one light instead of buying enough to install in your entire yard. Try the light out in different locations for a few days at a time and see how it does. If the light performs up to your standards, you can go and buy the rest of the lights. If not, it may be time for you to look into installing low energy lighting.
Another concern with solar lights is that there is somewhat of a lack of options for lighting fixtures. There is no end to the amount of styles of mushroom lamps, tiered lamps, or lanterns that you can find powered by solar light. This is because these lights all have a sizable surface on the top of them where a solar panel can be conveniently and inconspicuously placed. But outside of these and several other styles of fixtures, solar powered lights are harder to find. You won’t find many underwater lights or recessed uplights powered by the sun. If you attempt to base your entire garden lighting plan around solar power, you may end up with fewer options and less effective lighting than you wanted. A better option would most likely be to base the parts of your system around solar lighting that you could and the other parts on a conventional, low voltage system.
Solar garden light is extremely useful and puts affordable exterior lighting into the hands of most every homeowner. However, it is important that you know the limitations of solar powered light fixtures if you are going to start designing your own landscape lighting scheme.
