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Start Small
Exterior Path Solar Lights
Do you feel safer if your business or residence is lit at night? Many of us do. Here is a nifty idea the Queen got from studying the structure of airports. During your next visit to the airport, note the long distance between light poles. So much cable to run for individual lights. Did you know some airports have solar powered lighting? ‘Tis true, and with good reason. The lights leading up to the terminal are far away from the power source anyway, so why not take them off the grid? The decision is generally based on a wise cost analysis of the situation. An exterior stand alone lighting system consists of a solar photovoltaic panel, a battery system, a controller to tell the lights when to turn off and on and of course the light itself. You can have one light, or you can have multiple lights, each with its own panel.
The key to a good exterior solar lighting system is to get the maximum amount of light – or lumens – for the minimum electricity or Watts needed. This is tricky since some lights illuminate as a byproduct of heat and use lots of electricity (relatively speaking) to the amount of light produced.
A champion for lots of light produced for not much electricity is the LED or Light Emitting Diode. Some of these little guys are just a little bigger than the tip of a ballpoint pen. (By all means if you are feeling up for a really technical discourse, go look up LED’s on the web.) One bulb is suitable for a small flashlight and would nicely illuminate the living room of a hamster, but at the moment there is no such thing as a really big LED light bulb. In other words you won’t find an affordable LED household bulb till about 2020 – they’re still working on it. However, the fact that they draw so little wattage and like DC electricity makes them ideal for our application.
The Queen has known all this for some time, and has searched and searched for an external lighting system that could deliver the goods. The good news is, she found it! And recommends it so highly she has outfitted her own home with these systems. Remove the bulbs honey – we’re going solar!
The beauty of this system is that it uses multiple LED bulbs in a highly reflective fixture. It is hard to believe this system can possibly put out as promised, since the solar panel is quite small (about a foot square), but it does. The Queen will be honest here, the light fixture itself is no work of beauty. No art deco style – this is utilitarian. The system comes out of the box ready to go with the light, the battery and the controller together in one housing. Just plug the panel into the light, put the panel in the sun and you are ready to go. As always, a solar panel should be mounted on a south facing surface. This light needs only 4-5 hours of sunlight per day for a full charge – though the Queen’s has operated on less. The light comes on at sunset and turns off at dawn. And if there is not much sunlight for a few days? The light still shines, but is more dim.
The only slight advantage or disadvantage (depending on your point of view) to this system is mounting. The advantage is that the system can be portable. Charge with the panel during the day, and you have a big powerful light ready to go at night – wherever you want it. The disadvantage is that if you want to mount the system permanently, it can require a little bit of work. However, in most cases, you can do the work yourself if you want, no solar contractor needed.
Want a larger system? That is possible as well. Solar lights are used in places you’d never guess. Contact the Queen for more information on larger systems.
Order Exterior Solar Lights – look on website for prices www.queenofgreen.net/store/
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