Jun 03 2010
Solar Garden Light
Enhancing the outdoor garden area with lighting doesn’t have to include increasing the monthly power bill budget. The addition of a solar garden light system will provide the lighting desired without affecting the monthly utility bills.
Installing an outdoor lighting system that is solar powered does more than save money, it also preserves natural resources from being depleted. This is important for future generations and is the right thing to do for the environment.
The popularity of the solar garden light has forced manufactures who design lighting to be competitive with electrical light fixtures available. In fact, there are some designs that are easier to install and plan around than their electrical counterparts are.
An example of this can be seen in the pathway stones that have embedded lights in them. The electrical version of these stones require underground wiring or other innovative ways of getting the power cords out of the way and not displayed on the lawn.
On the other hand, solar powered pathway stones with embedded lights require little more than being placed in a sunny area and the other normal installation steps that pathway stones require, such as leveling the ground.
In the past, the use of solar energy required that the light fixture be placed in direct sunlight. Technology has made it possible to install a solar garden light fixture in areas that don’t always receive direct sunlight. These solar lights do require creative planning to hide or secure the wiring that connects the solar panel to the light fixture. However, the benefit of using these solar powered lights far outweighs this minor detail.
Solar garden lights are able to take advantage of their placement in the sun by gathering the sun’s energy and storing it in solar panels that contain solar collector cells. These solar cells convert this energy into power that is transferred to and stored in nickel cadmium batteries. These batteries then power the lights, which are controlled by photocells that turn them on and off at dawn and dusk based on the presence or absence of light.
This overall process of creating solar energy is simple and occurs without input from the homeowner. The batteries typically last for several years, as do the light bulbs. The photocell’s ability to automatically turn the lights off and on is part of their longevity. Typically, homeowner’s simply need to keep the solar panels free from debris so they can collect as much of the sun’s energy as possible.
This energy is a renewable energy, meaning that it isn’t going to be depleted, at least not as far as man knows. Using the sun’s energy to power lights, hot water heaters and other solar panel equipped items is highly encouraged to help preserve the Earth’s natural resources and allow people to continue to enjoy the comforts they have become accustomed to.
Quite simply, the use of solar garden lights is the smart thing to do for everyone. It saves the individual money and it save the Earth’s resources.
-Sharon Chapman
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