How to make lighting on solar panels?

The device and the principle of operation of the

The first thing you need to know about is how solar street lighting works and what it consists of. On an example of an ordinary solar lamp we will consider these two questions.

The design of the luminaire is quite simple and consists of the following elements:

• lighting unit( usually an LED mounted in the housing);
• solar battery( photoelectric module that converts solar energy into electricity);
• controller( controls lighting - turns on and off at the right time);
• built-in battery( accumulates electricity during daylight hours for its consumption at night);
• support or attachment.

Based on the purpose of each element, you can understand the principle of solar lighting: the battery is charged in the afternoon, and at night its charge is consumed by an LED lamp. Also in the design may include additional devices, for example, a motion sensor, which will turn on the lamp only when a person is detected in a certain area.

Advantages and disadvantages of

The second, no less interesting question is what are the advantages and disadvantages of street lighting on solar panels. Both the pluses and minuses of the system are quite weighty and make you wonder whether it is worth holding such a highlight in your dacha.

So, among the main advantages are:

• Lamps and lanterns can be quickly installed with their own hands. Do not pull the wiring under the ground to each support, thereby destroying the landscape design of the site. At the same time, you do not need to understand in the electrician, in comparison with the option when you need to connect a spotlight or a street lamp on the
• column. The light from the solar lamps does not strike your eyes and gently floods the surface throughout the radius of action.
• Significant energy savings, becausethe lighting of the villa will require at least 3-5 lamps, power from 50 watts. By simple arithmetic calculations, you can find out the monthly electricity consumption, which can be completely reduced by making autonomous street lighting on solar panels with your own hands.
• The system will be fully automatic, which is very convenient if you come to a suburban area only on weekends. In the rest of the time, the lamps will be a kind of guarding the territory from intruders.
• Lighting on solar panels does not pose a threat to the environment and humans. As for the latter, this means that there is no need for grounding of the fixtures, becausethey work from a safe voltage.
• Care of the system is minimized - you should occasionally wipe the diffuser and the battery itself from dirt and dust.
• Long system life. For example, the lifespan of LEDs reaches 100 thousand hours, the battery - up to 25 years( depending on the manufacturer and quality), the solar battery - up to 15 years. Total, once in 15 years will have to replace the device with new ones.
• They have a high degree of IP protection from 44 to 65, therefore they are not afraid of rain and other unfavorable weather conditions.

As for the flaws, there are not so many, but they are weighty:

• Use only lighting on solar panels at the dacha will not work, becauselamps will not give a bright highlight of the territory. In addition, the charge is enough no more than 8 hours, if the whole day was sunny weather. All the same, important areas of the territory will have to be illuminated by streetlights that run from the power grid - the gates on the street, the entrance to the house, the parking zone, etc.
• The cost of high-power luminaires is high - from 12,000 rubles and above. Far from everyone can afford such luxury, especially for installation in the country.
• There are customer testimonials that in poor weather, solar street light lamps do not work well or do not work at all. Immediately it should be noted that in cloudy weather charging will occur almost 2 times slower, that is, at night the light will work only 4-5 hours.

As you can see, the advantages and disadvantages of the system are really weighty and here you already have to decide whether to buy this option for your home. Usually everything depends on material possibilities.

A variety of lighting devices

But the information provided below may still affect the fact that you will close your eyes to some of the shortcomings of street lighting on solar panels. The matter is that for today there is a wide assortment of lighting devices, which can be of different power, shape, purpose and even method of installation.

Of those models that are recommended for use in dachas and gardens, it should be noted:

• Solar lamps on short legs. Ideal for backlighting garden paths and also have the lowest cost. The installation of products is pretty simple - the sharp leg is pushed into the lawn where you want.
• LED Floodlights. Such devices can be more than 10 W, which is analogous to a 100 W incandescent lamp. Ideal for lighting the fence, the porch of a country house and even a garden.
• Suspended lanterns. Can be fixed on tree branches, in a gazebo, on a fence. Used for landscape design of the site and for creating colorful festive lighting, as shown in the second photo.
• Street lights on poles or legs. Suitable for highlighting a large area - parking, front of the yard, garden. There are devices with a power of up to 60 watts, but they are often used for autonomous road lighting.
• Wall light with solar panels. Can be used for architectural illumination of the facade of the house, as well as for lighting the recreation area - an open terrace, gazebo, patio.

As you can see, there are many modern lighting devices of different design, purpose and power. For a summer residence it is possible to choose easily the most suitable variant on cost, design and quality!

How else can I use batteries?

A more expensive but powerful system is a solar power plant for the home. This option will generate electricity not only for street lighting, but also for the functioning of electrical appliances in the house, as shown in the picture.

The cheapest and weak kit from the manufacturer will cost from 30,000 rubles and it will be enough for the functioning of the backlight, TV and low-power equipment( laptop or charger).A fully-fledged power station for a cottage will have a price of 300 thousand rubles. For this issue, we will definitely select a separate article to understand the feasibility of using a power plant at home.

The description of autonomous solar lighting can be seen on this video:

That's all I wanted to tell you about how to make street lighting on solar panels by yourself. As you can see, nothing is complicated and the system does have more positive moments than negative ones!

Related materials:

• Cheapest electric heating at home
• How to connect a motion sensor for lighting
• How to make street lighting in a country house