by: Randy Kreisel

Solar lights have been around for quite some time already.  The image that comes to most peoples mind when discussing solar lights is a cheap plastic looking landscape light and eminates barely a glow at night for just a few hours.

Much like the hybrid car, solar lights have improved over the years with improved technology and have moved from a novelty item to a suitable option in terms of looks and function.

A solar light is made of a few major components.  The first is the photovoltaic (PV) that captures the suns rays.  The second component is the storage of the energy, normally in a battery.  The third component is light bulb.  The final component on most solar lights is a light sensor that senses it is dark and time to turn on the bulb.

The quality of any solor light, other than the housing, is going to be how efficeint the photovoltaic cells, how much energy the battery can store, and how efficient the bulb is using the stored power.