After many years of promising potential, solar energy is beginning to make a big difference in all of our lives. A good instance of this phenomenon is the sheer number of solar powered lights that have recently come onto the marketplace.
Every year we see more and more types of solar power lighting devices at expos and even in stores. And, lately, it seems that the type drawing the most attention and interest are the LED lighting. Most of the time, for those looking for lighting efficiency, fluorescent lights are the favoured choice over incandescent lights. However, LED solar lights have a number of advantages over even fluorescent lighting.
So what are these advantages? Well, one of the biggest ones is the fact that LED lighting can operate continuously nearly as much as ten times longer, or more, than equivalent fluorescent lighting. This is especially important if the light will be placed in an area that is hard to reach such as a 20 foot high neighborhood street lamp. These lights are particularly efficient in cold weather where the efficacy of fluorescent lights can begin to wane.
Another advantage of LED lights is that they put out more light than the average fluorescent light. For example, a LED light that is rated at forty-five lumens per watt can give as much light as a fluorescent that is rated at seventy-five lumens per watt.
And, lastly, you need less energy to power an LED light. So, the same sized solar panel can power a large LED light than a fluorescent light. This allows the overall lighting unit to be smaller. An added benefit is that your battery capacity requirements will also be lowered.
With solar powered lights, you usually need some sort of storage unit for the light. This is because, even in the areas with the most sun, it can sometimes be cloudy, sometimes rainy, or some other condition which makes it difficult for the solar collectors to collect energy from the sun.
At times like this, it is always good to have a reserve of power to draw on until the sun reappears. If you don't have a place to store energy, when the sun goes out, so does your light
But, you can't make do with just any sort of storage battery. You need one that has been designed to perform well in the area of the country where it will be placed. For example, if the area where it will be housed tends to have a lot of cloudy weather, the unit will have to be large enough to sustain the light for those periods. Whereas, in areas with a large percentage of daylight hours, the battery can be smaller.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.NewAgeLivingArticles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
