Solar Living News

You have a beautiful yard with many landscape features that deserve attention day or night. Now you have decided to install lights in your yard to capture the beauty of your garden’s unique features and bring them to life after the sun goes down. Now you have to decide which type of lights will best meet your needs. Solar powered landscape lights or an electric system also including a low-voltage system. Both styles offer benefits and drawbacks so hopefully this information can assist in creating a the perfect lighting backdrop to help your yard stand out.

Cost: When selecting a style of light fixture for your yard from a series of accent lights to line a drive or walkway to spotlights or floodlights, there will be many options to review to help your purchase be the right one. Solar used to offer very limited styles of landscape lights with very plain designs being the norm when they were first introduced on the market. As far as the actual fixtures are concerned there is not a lot of difference in purchase price. However, solar power lights have a huge advantage as they do not require any operational costs as harnessed sunlight by day results in free lighting at night. With electric lightis, even lov-voltage styles, there wll always be a need to supply electricity no matter how efficient they operate. If you live in an area that receives regular sunlight, solar lights will be much cheaper to own.

Illummination: In this area solar powered garden lights will not be as bright as their electric styles. Electric lights will shine brighter and many versions can operate off a low-voltage system. Electrical spotlights are especially brighter than solar but their high intensity bulbs also create a lot of heat and they require strategic placement to prevent damage to plants. Solar is not as bright and its illumination fades as the morining sun approaches but they do not radiate any heat thus providing a safer operating light option.

Solar Landscape Lighting Installation: This is a big advantage for solar powered lights as they are easily installed anywhere in your yard as long as direct sunlight isavailable. With electrical lights they require access to electricity via an external outlet which are not always convenient to your needs. Elctircal lights require the use of lines which must be buried and can be easily dug up, tripped over, and affected in time by poor weather.  A simple tapping of a mounting stake in any area througuhout your yard is all that’s needed to install a solar light.

With many environmental concerns and changes, we are in the midst of a world-wide movement to protect our eco-system with energy saving technologies, recycling, and the protection of natural resources are all huge topics of discussion within the “green” movement. It will take concentrated efforts and continued education from industrialized nations to develop a global preservation plan if we are to help protect the generations to follow.

A positive development is the amazing technological advancements in the conversion of the sun’s energy into useful forms of clean energy with tremendous benefits both on social and environmental levels. Solar energy can be converted to heat energy (thermal) and is useful for heating spaces, like your home or a building, or for heating water. Solar energy is also converted into electricity in two ways, through solar power plants or through Photovoltaic (PV) solar cells. It’s amazing to ponder the advancements that have been made in this field but it remains a far cry from our current dependence upon fossil fuels for energy. In time, perhaps the pendulum will swing towards the utilization of solar energy on a more level playing field and reduce our consumption of waste emitting energy sources. All things may be possible when you consider the power of the sun. Here are some solar facts that you may not be aware of.

The sun is simply a star and it’s smaller than some of the stars you view at night but it’s much closer to earth than many stars. The sun is 93 million miles from earth and is much larger than earth. The earth could fit inside the sun a million times! If we could all of the energy emitted by the sun it would provide enough power for everybody.

It takes about eight minutes for the sun’s rays to reach earth. If you drove 60 mph in a car it would take 176 years to get there. It is estimated that the sun is more than 4 billion years old. In several more billion years scientists believe the sun will have burned all of the hydrogen that’s present then it will expand 100 times its size and burn helium. Ever wonder how hot the sun is? At the core it is about 10 million degrees and around 6,000 degrees on its surface.

With all that mass and intensity it only makes sense that we try to harness what sun provides for us day in and day out.

When solar lights first hit the market many years ago they were generally very dim and frankly, not overly reliable. They have advanced remarkably with the development of ultra-bright LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) which have replaced the original filaments bulbs that were traditional to solar fixtures. These LEDs are able to generate substantial amounts of light without emitting heat like their original predecessors. This allows for more efficient operation resulting in a reliable and long-lasting light bulb.

Additional advances in solar lighting include the efficient and cost conscious Photo Voltaic cell (PV Cells). This improved solar technology, with more efficient batteries, can generate light on a year-round basis despite colder weather and shorter days, without sacrificing performance. When you are ready to purchase solar lights remember that they have varying functions and intensities to match multiple purposes. There are three primary outside solar lighting categories to consider: accent lights, pathway lights, and spotlights.

Great option for mulitple placements in your garden landscape

Accent Lights Accent lights are a great landscape accessory as they provide a simple glow to your landscape features. They are designed to provide a low level illumination not as a safety feature. With this lower output, accent lights often last longer than other styles of solar landscape lighting. Also these lights can often operate for multiple nights on a single day’s charge. Another bonus for these accent lights is their ability to charge even on cloudy days or in areas partially covered by shade. Another element to consider is the color or shade of the accent light’s LED. White LEDs are brighter than amber colored lights which provide even softer lighting. As a result amber uses less electricity resulting in longer illumination times. Accent lights are very useful for many landscape features such as highlighting attractive features around your yard or property or to highlight possible hazards that could be stumbled upon at night. Overall accent lights provide the lowest output of all the solar lights and are the most affordable.

Pathway Lights

It’s obvious that the primary purpose of this solar light category is to illuminate pathways, driveways, sidewalks, and other elongated areas that are part of your landscape. These lights are often displayed in uniformity with multiple fixtures lining the edges of the specific path. Often these lights are installed or mounted on stakes that are inserted directly into the ground. Many will hang off the stakes or have a direct attachment for display. Often there are multiple display options or positioning options but the purpose most often is to illuminate downwards. Some of the path style lights include on-off switches allowing for the conservation of energy and a lengthy run time. More sophisticated models may include color lenses, timers, or allow for varying levels power use. These lights fall in the medium range among solar lights for both light output and cost.

Spotlights

Spotlights are the brightest category of solar lights and are most often the most expensive. They are made to supply a bright beam of light on your home or landscape features. Although they are brighter and more intense than the other solar lights, they certainly are not as strong as an electric flood light. Top-quality solar lights with strong LEDs can produce a beam comparable to a 40-watt incandescent spotlight.. Not bad for a completely eco-friendly light that is free to operate. Many of these solar spotlights are flexible with multiple display or mounting options and should include the necessary hardware for all available options. Also the solar panel can be adjusted or mounted separately so the light may shine in any direction. With this application the solar panel can be mounted where sunlight is constant while the light fixture can be mounted where the light is needed after the sun sets. The spotlights are usually very durable with the most heavily constructed fixtures.

An added benefit of using solar lights featuring LEDs is their ability to emit brighter light as the temperature drops. This is due to the solid design of the LEDs. In this matter solar lights are a great choice compared to low voltage landscape lights or fluorescent lights which operate poorly as the temperature drops. LEDs also have an average life span of 100,000 hours compared to 3,000 hours for the typical incandescent light. Solar lighting is an outstanding option for the home gardener and the do-it-yourselfer. There are many brands and types that should meet all of your outdoor lighting needs.

When solar lights first hit the market many years ago they were generally very dim and frankly, not overly reliable. They have advanced remarkably with the development of ultra-bright LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) which have replaced the original filaments bulbs that were traditional to solar fixtures. These LEDs are able to generate substantial amounts of light without emitting heat like their original predecessors. This allows for more efficient operation resulting in a reliable and long-lasting light bulb.

Additional advances in solar lighting include the efficient and cost conscious Photo Voltaic cell (PV Cells). This improved solar technology, with more efficient batteries, can generate light on a year-round basis despite colder weather and shorter days, without sacrificing performance. When you are ready to purchase solar lights remember that they have varying functions and intensities to match multiple purposes. There are three primary outside solar lighting categories to consider: accent lights, pathway lights, and spotlights.

Accent Lights
Accent lights are a great landscape accessory as they provide a simple glow to your landscape features. They are designed to provide a low level illumination not as a safety feature. With this lower output, accent lights often last longer than other styles of solar landscape lighting. Also these lights can often operate for multiple nights on a single day’s charge. Another bonus for these accent lights is their ability to charge even on cloudy days or in areas partially covered by shade. Another element to consider is the color or shade of the accent light’s LED. White LEDs are brighter than amber colored lights which provide even softer lighting. As a result amber uses less electricity resulting in longer illumination times. Accent lights are very useful for many landscape features such as highlighting attractive features around your yard or property or to highlight possible hazards that could be stumbled upon at night. Overall accent lights provide the lowest output of all the solar lights and are the most affordable.

Pathway Lights
It’s obvious that the primary purpose of this solar light category is to illuminate pathways, driveways, sidewalks, and other elongated areas that are part of your landscape. These lights are often displayed in uniformity with multiple fixtures lining the edges of the specific path. Often these lights are installed or mounted on stakes that are inserted directly into the ground. Many will hang off the stakes or have a direct attachment for display. Often there are multiple display options or positioning options but the purpose most often is to illuminate downwards. Some of the path style lights include on-off switches allowing for the conservation of energy and a lengthy run time. More sophisticated models may include color lenses, timers, or allow for varying levels power use. These lights fall in the medium range among solar lights for both light output and cost.

Spotlights
Spotlights are the brightest category of solar lights and are most often the most expensive. They are made to supply a bright beam of light on your home or landscape features. Although they are brighter and more intense than the other solar lights, they certainly are not as strong as an electric flood light. Top-quality solar lights with strong LEDs can produce a beam comparable to a 40-watt incandescent spotlight.. Not bad for a completely eco-friendly light that is free to operate. Many of these solar spotlights are flexible with multiple display or mounting options and should include the necessary hardware for all available options. Also the solar panel can be adjusted or mounted separately so the light may shine in any direction. With this application the solar panel can be mounted where sunlight is constant while the light fixture can be mounted where the light is needed after the sun sets. The spotlights are usually very durable with the most heavily constructed fixtures.

An added benefit of using solar lights featuring LEDs is their ability to emit brighter light as the temperature drops. This is due to the solid design of the LEDs. In this matter solar lights are a great choice compared to low voltage landscape lights or fluorescent lights which operate poorly as the temperature drops. LEDs also have an average life span of 100,000 hours compared to 3,000 hours for the typical incandescent light. Solar lighting is an outstanding option for the home gardener and the do-it-yourselfer. There are many brands and types that should meet all of your outdoor lighting needs