There are many benefits to buying solar garden lights. But like anything else, you will get what you paid for. If you opt for the cheaper models instead of spending a little bit more money to get a quality light, you’ll end up with more problems than you need. Instead of getting lights that give your garden subtle accents while running on the greenest energy source known to man, you’ll instead get dim lights that don’t give you enough light to accomplish anything and go out early enough at night. So how do you tell the difference between the cheap solar lights for gardens and the best solar lights? Here are four things to look for and to do to make sure that you get the most of your garden lights.
The first thing to look for on solar garden lights is the size of the solar panel. The larger the solar panel, naturally the more energy that will be captured, and this means brighter lights for a longer time at night. Smaller lights can get away with smaller solar panels, but if you want a large, bright light you’re going to need a nice sized one. Look at the quality of the panel as well. More expensive panels will be able to convert a greater amount of the energy that hits it into electricity, also giving your brighter lights.
One thing to look for, especially if you want to use solar garden lighting but want to have smaller light fixtures, is a set of lights attached to a single solar panel that they all share. There are many advantages to having your lights setup this way. For one, it allows you to place the solar panel in an area the gets large amounts of direct sunlight, but you can place the light fixtures in other locations. With solar lights where the panels are attached to the light itself, you have to place the light in an area that gets direct sunlight, limiting your design options. Second, the solar panels and batteries attached to these sets of lights are bigger and can capture and store more energy. You will be able to power brighter lights out of smaller fixtures with no problem.
The second thing you want to look for when trying to find quality solar powered lights is the brightness of the LED. LEDs are getting brighter and more efficient all the time, but if you want to use and LED bulb as a floodlight or other fixture that requires a lot of lighting, you will most likely need one that contains two LEDs. Also make sure that you look at the lumen output of the LEDs. Lumens are a measurement of the brightness of a light bulb. An old-fashioned sixty watt incandescent light bulb will emit around 850 lumens. If you use this as your baseline, you can determine how light a given LED will be. Try to find lights that are bright, but not too bright for the job you want them to do.
Next, when you’re looking for solar lights, check out the light sensor. This isn’t important as making sure the solar cell or the LED light that it powers are good quality, but it is nevertheless important. Make sure that it’s visible and won’t be easily covered up or broken. If you want more control over your lights, try to look for some with a manual override where you can turn off and on your lights at any time you wish.
The final component of any great solar lights for your garden is the battery. The battery must be high quality to be able to last for a long time. If you find lights with NiCd batteries, they can last for over 1,000 charges before they start to deteriorate. Since the batteries charge once a day, that’s almost three years of charging before any significant problems get noticed. Make sure that the batteries within the lights will be replaceable. You don’t want to have to buy an entirely new fixture every time a battery needs to be replaced.
Solar lights for garden areas are a very good option for most homeowners. They are easy to install and use and will save you money on electrical costs. However, to reap these benefits you need to buy quality lights. If you buy more inexpensive ones, you’ll be left with more headaches than you want. To make sure that the lights are quality, make sure that the four major components that the light uses, the solar cell, LED, battery, and light sensor are of high quality and big enough to power the light to the brightness you want all night long.
