What is the life span of solar lights?

Many times the question pops up regarding the life span of solar powered lights. How does one ensure the best performance and prolong the life of solar lights? After a while, you might notice that your solar lights are not as bright as when you first bought them. And without knowing the basics of solar lights, you may become confused about what exactly happened. Could it be that your solar lights got old and need to be recycled or is there something that you just need to know about the maintenance of your solar powered products?

Solar lights need four essential components to function:

1. A rechargeable battery to store the power generated by the energy from the sun.

2. A small photovoltaic cell or solar array that captures sunlight during the day and converts it into electrical energy. The solar array is usually built right into the light fixture. Some light designs have separate solar arrays connected by a thin wire allowing the light to be located in a shady area while the solar array itself is placed in a bright, sunny location.

3. A “charge controller” to ensure the batteries don’t get overcharged in bright sunlight as well as to monitor the amount of light in the surrounding area and turn the LED (light emitting diode) light on and off.

4. An LED (or a series of LEDs) which provides the light.

10-Pack NiCd AA700mAh 1.2V Rechargeable Batteries at http://www.yoursolarlink.com.

Image by Your Solar Link.

Rechargeable Solar Light Batteries are the major cause of failure in solar garden lights (5 main reasons why your solar lights are not performing as well as new.)

Rechargeable solar batteries will self-discharge which means that over time the batteries will discharge to a point where they no longer work.

It is important to ensure you charge your solar lights at least every three (3) months to ensure the battery stays in good shape and lasts its life span, generally 1-2 years.

Replace your old batteries when they run their life cycle.

When you purchase your solar lights, the rechargeable batteries are often already included in the fixture. After 1-2 years (or a matter of months in some cases) it is quite normal to see their performance decline. Once you notice that the lighting time is considerably diminishing and the lights are not as bright as before, it’s probably time to replace your rechargeable solar garden light batteries.

Another reason of reduced lighting time and brightness can also be that the solar light batteries are not charging correctly.

For the best charging performances the solar panel needs to be cleaned on a regular basis. Dust and other accumulated residues can considerably affect the charging procedure. They form a coating layer on the solar panel and block the sunlight.

10-Pack NiCd AA600mAh 1.2V Rechargeable Batteries at http://www.yoursolarlink.com.

Image by Your Solar Link.

An easy way to check if the rechargeable batteries are dead is to test them by briefly replacing them with regular batteries, just long enough to check if the light is working. If you are testing the solar light during the day, don’t forget to cover it, or place the light in a darkened room. This will allow the photocell to trigger the light to its “on” position. If the solar light turns on with normal batteries it means that the rechargeable batteries are faulty and you will need to buy a new set.

Important: don’t forget to pay particular attention to the location of the solar lights.

Batteries will not charge properly if the solar panel is in the shade, they rely on the energy of the sun to charge.

There is another simple test you can do before replacing the solar light rechargeable batteries. Place your solar lights under direct sunshine for a day or two and see what happens. If, after this duration, the illumination time is back to normal, it means that the solar panel was not getting enough light from the sun. Commonly, solar lights should be in direct sunlight for at least 4 hours a day to adequately charge the rechargeable batteries.

If you store your solar lights for long periods of time, take the batteries out!

When you had to store your garden solar lights for a long period of time (during winter months, for example), did you take out the batteries? If you did, your solar light batteries will have a longer life span.

10-Pack NiMH AA1000mAh 1.2V Rechargeable Batteries at http://www.yoursolarlink.com.

Image by Your Solar Link.

Replacing solar light batteries is not a difficult task.

All you have to do is to locate the solar light battery cover, remove it, take out the defective batteries and replace them with new ones. If no battery cover can be found, the solar light needs to be taken apart, usually with one or two screws. On most models you’ll find the screws on the top or bottom of the light. Once the unit is open you’ll have access to the batteries.

Types of rechargeable batteries.

Most solar garden lights need between 1 to 4 batteries to work. 2 types of batteries are usually used in garden solar lights: AA size – NiCad(Nickel Cadmium) 1.2 V / 500 to 900mA, and AA size – NiMH (Nickel Metal Hydride) 1.2 V /1000 to 2000mA.

When it is time to change the solar light rechargeable batteries, the choice of battery also plays an important part in ensuring the enhanced performance of your solar lights.

Nickel-metal hydride batteries (NiMH) will have up to three times more capacity than the same size Nickel-cadmium (NiCd) battery, meaning they are capable of lasting longer and more reliable.

NiMH batteries in your solar lights may cost a little extra but they are more environmentally friendly than NiCd batteries. NiMH batteries are more environmentally friendly because they use a dry liquid, which can be disposed of more easily. They will also withstand greater temperature fluctuations operating in temperatures ranging from -20 to 60 degrees Celsius (-4 to 140F). Ni-MH batteries have a “non-memory effect” which means they will continue to charge on cloudy days. The battery performance will not be diminished by these partial charges, as what can occur with lead acid batteries.

10-Pack NiMH AAA900mAh 1.2V Rechargeable Batteries at http://www.yoursolarlink.com.

Image by Your Solar Link.

Solar light replacement batteries are standard and can be found easily. If you know these solar lights basics, with minimum maintenance effort you will enjoy your solar powered lights for years.

The Indian Space Research Organization and US National Space Society launched a joint forum to develop partnership in harnessing solar energy through space-based solar collectors.

Image by NASA. An orbiting tower of solar panels, shown extending into space, could gather power to use on Earth.

Just like a solar satellite in the 2002 Bond movie “Die Another Day”, they are planning to launch giant, possibly inflatable structures of photovoltaic arrays and antennas that catch the suns rays and create a focused microwave beam back to collectors on Earth. A special receiving antenna on the ground — called a rectenna — would then turn the microwave energy back into electricity, which would be fed into the power grid.

Image from New Scientist. Sunlight is reflected off giant orbiting mirrors to an array of photovoltaic cells; the light is converted to electricity and then changed into microwaves, which are beamed to earth. Ground-based antennas capture the microwave energy and convert it back to electricity, which is sent to the grid.

The initiative, announced Nov. 4, is spearheaded by former president of India A.P.J. Kalam and the National Space Society, a nonprofit dedicated to making humanity a space faring civilization.

Space-based solar power has the potential to turn Earth into a “clean planet, a prosperous planet, and a happy planet,” Kalam said during a Thursday press conference announcing the Kalam-NSS Energy Initiative.
Addressing the press at the National Press Club in New Delhi, Dr Kalam said, “By 2050, even if we use every available energy resource we have: clean and dirty, conventional and alternative, solar, wind, geothermal, nuclear, coal, oil, and gas, the world will fall short of the energy we need.”

One of the major advantages of space-based solar energy harvesting is that it is not a ground-based solar energy resource. An array of solar panels stationed in a geostationary orbit around the world will receive sunlight for 99 percent time of the year. Plus there are no losses due to atmospheric interferences.

This partnership between the two countries is likely to gain strength as the United States has now removed some technology-transfer limitations which were forced on some scientific research organizations in India after the 1998 nuclear tests. Organizations like the ISRO and Bharat Dynamics will now have access to some sensitive and unique technology.

The U.S. military has already experimented with solar energy beaming and ways to deliver power to remote areas of the globe. For the US, the deal would potentially create thousands of jobs. For India, the project would mean huge amounts of clean energy which it could use to electrify its rural areas and help its economy to thrive.

It is fun and easy to create Halloween settings with Solar String Lights.

Solar String Lights Decoration Ideas.

Wrap them around some tree branches and hang them around your doorway.
Find some creepy branches at the park (maybe carve your own branches out of cardboard or create your papier-mâché masterpiece), spray paint them with black and orange paints, wrap white or color solar string lights around them for a nice effect at night.

Image from ehow.com. Learn how to make your own Halloween Tree here. Or watch a video on how to Make a Halloween Tree with Paper here.

You can also hang a few Halloween ornaments from these branches, creating your own Halloween version of a Christmas tree!

Nice Halloween Tree idea from Martha Stewart. Learn how to make a Glittered Halloween Tree at marthastewart.com.

Decorations like these can also be used inside, just make sure your solar panel is close to a sunny source (window, etc.) Solar String Lights make quite a statement when used in tabletop centerpieces or a big vase wrapped around some branches in a room corner. The great thing about using them for inside decor is that you don’t have to keep them close to an electric outlet. Just charge them during the day and use all night.

Colorful Birds Solar String Lights.

You can also throw your Solar String Lights on your trees and bushes outside to compliment your other Halloween decorations.
Another great idea is to put your solar string lights inside your carved pumpkins to light them up at night. Or just wrap them around your carved pumpkin heads.

Image from countryliving.com


Image from countryliving.com

Most importantly, be creative and have fun with your Halloween Decorations!

Don’t forget to change your Color Changing Solar Post Lights mode from white light to color.

Boeing is developing a solar-powered unmanned aircraft that can remain in the air for five years non-stop.
The airplane is named SolarEagle and is designed to fly in the upper atmosphere for long periods of time, providing surveillance and intelligence information to the ground.

Image from www.FoxNews.com.

The US military has given Boeing a $89 million contract to develop a SolarEagle demonstrator vehicle which will make its first flight in 2014.
During testing, the SolarEagle demonstrator will stay in the upper atmosphere for 30 days, collecting solar energy during the day that will be stored in fuel cells and used to provide power through the night.
The amazing solar-powered plane will have highly efficient electric motors and propellers. Its wings — spanning some 400 feet — will be covered with solar panels, which will power propellers and feed fuel cells during daylight hours.
“SolarEagle is a uniquely configured, large unmanned aircraft designed to eventually remain on station at stratospheric altitudes for at least five years,” said Pat O’Neil, Boeing Phantom Works program manager.
“That’s a daunting task, but Boeing has a highly reliable solar-electric design that will meet the challenge in order to perform persistent communications, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions from altitudes above 60,000 feet.”

The last solar-powered aircraft to break the record for an unmanned plane was the British-designed Zephyr in July. Designed by British defense firm QinetiQ, the Zephyr flew for two weeks non-stop above a U.S. Army range in Arizona before finally landing.

Zephyr by QinetiQ: Credit: QinetiQ.

Watch Zephyr by QinetiQ video.

Beyond SolarEagle, Phantom Works is developing several other unmanned prototypes, such as the Phantom Ray – a fighter-sized, advanced technology demonstration scheduled to make its first flight in early 2011.

Boeing’s Phantom Ray: The wing is the plane. Credit: Boeing.

Watch Boeing’s Phantom Ray video.

The Phantom Eye, a hydrogen-powered, high-altitude aircraft designed to stay in the air for up to four days, is another also scheduled to debut in 2011.

Boeing Phantom Eye: Credit: Boeing.

Watch Boeing Phantom Eye video.

Source: www.foxnews.com

The first rebates issued in San Diego from the new California Solar Initiative’s ( CSI) Thermal Program were awarded in July to three residents who purchased Solahart solar water heating systems installed by Solar Services of San Diego in Santee, Calif.

Solahart solar water heating systems. Image from www.carssaipan.com

According to Katrina Phruksukarn, CCSE’s manager for CSI-Thermal, the rebates varied from $814 to $928 based on the type of solar water heating system, location, shading and other design factors. All three homeowners have an electric water heater as a back up to the solar system to boost water temperatures on cold or cloudy days. The average rebate for electric-displacing systems is expected to be around $1,000, while a typical homeowner with a solar water heating system displacing a natural gas water heater can expect a rebate of about $1,500 at the initial incentive level. Incentives will decline over time as the program meets certain benchmarks, so customers are encouraged to apply for their rebate early, Phruksukarn said.

Incentive recipient Bob Stanberry of San Diego said the solar water heater installation went well, only taking about three to four hours, and that the system supplies more hot water than he and his wife need on a regular basis. Not only would he recommend solar water heating, he already has to several people including his brother who is considering it.

Cindy Becker of Fallbrook explained that there had been an old-style solar water heating system on their house when she and her husband Wayne moved in about tenyears ago, but it soon quit working correctly. She said Solar Services of San Diego did all of the paperwork for the CSI rebate and made it easy to lower the purchase price. The third recipient was Mavis Smith of San Diego.

In a recent development, the California Cash For Appliances Program has approved an additional rebate for qualifying systems that will continue until the money is used up. The program offers a rebate for solar water heating systems of $750. The program is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Stimulus Fund and is administered by the California Energy Commission. Details about the program can be found online at: www.Cash4Appliances.org.

The best way to learn about solar water heating technology and rebates is to take a free workshop for homeowners at CCSE. For information on how you can take advantage of rebates for solar water heating, go to www.energycenter.org/swh or call (877) 333-SWHP. Enter to win a solar water heating system at Sustainable Energy Week!

Watch video demonstrating Solahart Solar Hot Water Heater below:

Source: http://energycenter.org