The development of high-efficiency LEDs has made solar powered garden lights extremely practical. Whether you need lights for a pathway,  extra security at night or the perfect patio lights for entertaining friends, there are a variety of solar powered outdoor lights to choose from. Each of these outdoor lights stores the sun’s energy during the day so that it can shine bright light at night, providing an inexpensive and easy way to illuminate your garden.

How Solar Lights Work

Basically, solar cells at the top of the light fitting charge the battery during the day, while at night, the battery is used to power an LED light. The light is entirely self-contained in the housing, not having any need for wires to an external power supply. They most common type of solar light come with a long ground spike at the bottom, so that they can be easily planted anywhere in the garden.

Internal Battery Type

I have to be honest with you and the downside of solar lights is generally the battery and rechargeable batteries will only last a few years at best. Ideally, try and go for the solar lights that use rechargeable AA batteries so that they can be easily replaced when necessary. Unfortunately, information on the type of battery used is not often available, especially when buying online, so please make sure you do your research. If you’re buying from a shop, permission can be obtained from the sales staff to open up a display unit to check if the battery can be replaced. Online forums can also be researched for information and you can always try emailing the seller if information os not available for an online purchase.

Performance

Solar lights that have enough energy to last the whole night are rare and expensive. A few hours of illumination can be expected at most, which can reduce as the batteries age. Performance will also be reduced if there isn’t enough light to fully charge the battery, for example in shady locations, winter and rainy/cloudy weather.

Danger of Theft

Easy to install also means easy to remove. Solar lights can be easily stolen simply by pulling them out of the ground, so if this is a concern (especially at the front of your home), you can cement them into place just like ordinary lights.

Environmentally Friendly Lighting?

All lighting systems have some environmental impact:

• Fluorescent bulbs contain mercury, causing disposal problems
• Incandescent (tungsten filament) bulbs use more electricity
• Solar lights use rechargeable batteries, which need to be replaced every few years

Solar Garden Lighting

However, solare powered lighting will ddd a new dimension to your garden. Appropriate outdoor garden lighting and landscape lighting are wonderful accessories that further enhance the beauty of your garden. And you can choose from traditional lighting designs to patio party lights to decorate your garden, it is incredible how a carefully considered lighting scheme can transform your garden…

• Add Character
  Express your style and add personality to your outdoor area with unique solar lights, there’s some really stylish and quirky options on the market
• Create a Focal Point
  Highlight a beautiful fixture such as a water feature or ornament and let it take centre stage with an outdoor solar spotlight
• Add Ambience to Your Patio
  Imagine sitting out on your deck in the evening with softly glowing deck light creating the perfect atmosphere for an outdoor dinner party
• Go for Function and Style
  Many outdoor lights do more than simply provide light, so look for the special features. You can get multi-coloured lights that let you set the mood, multi-directional so that when fixed you can still shine light to different parts of the garden and you can even get lights that keep bugs away from your patio

Lighting pathways, adding ambience, highlighting a stunning areasolar lights can do it all. By using the sun’s energy, they provide a smart and eco-friendly solution for completing your garden.

Types and Benefits:

• Deck Lighting
  These lights are suitable for decking, gravel, paths and garden borders and ideal for safety highlighting of edges and steps. These lights are energy efficient and economical to run. They are available in stainless steel, natural copper and brass finishes.
• LED Lights
  These LED lights offer low-level discreet illumination and never need replacing. They are highly suitable for decks, paths, steps and driveways. High intensity LEDs are capable of producing 65536 colours at 256 levels of brightness.
• Hanging Garden Lights
  These hanging lights are compact and can be fixed in walls or pillars. These lights look fabulous while hanging from trees or a pergola.
• Rope Lights
  These flexible lights are weather and force resistant. They are ideal for highlighting the edges of steps, decking, trellising and water features of your garden. Rope lights are ideal for parties.
• Spot Lights
  Spotlights are used for lighting up walkways or highlighting trees and landscapes at night. They are available as LED spotlights; miniature spotlights and pole mount spotlights.
  Solar Lights
  You can brighten up your garden with solar stakes and solar mini lights to light up the garden path. The solar panel recharges the batteries. These lights automatically turn on at dusk.

Solar Power Water Fountains

Solar power is not just restricted to lighting, fountains and water features can also powered by solar energy. Again, they do not require any mains wiring and, unless they use a battery, do not operate unless the sun is shining. The solar panel that provides energy for the fountain can be part of the fountain base (although this tends to look a little clumsy) or a separate panel located at some distance from the fountain (preferably in a location which catches the sun all day).

Tags: Environment, Furniture, Garden, Green, Lighting, Patio, Solar Power