# Question about Solar Lights?



## masawyer (Dec 31, 2010)

I was wondering if the solar outside walk way lights can be used indoors? Are there any that are strong enough to read by? Are the solar lights at Walmart junk?

Thanks,

Marsha in WY christian homeschooling mama to 9 grammie to 2!


----------



## 10ecn (Mar 12, 2010)

I've done it in the past. It's really just another routine chore, to take them out in the morning, for recharging. Never really had any that would serve well for reading, but they will provide a reasonable amount of indoor light, just for general usage. Much safer than candles, or oil lamps. The cheap ones available at chinamart are just that. Cheap. They will work for a few months, but don't have much longevity. By looking around, you can probably find some, reasonably priced, that will give you pretty good service. You just have to use the old method of trial and error, but you can probably find something that will serve most of your needs. Good luck with it.


----------



## Windy in Kansas (Jun 16, 2002)

masawyer said:


> I was wondering if the solar outside walk way lights can be used indoors? Are there any that are strong enough to read by? Are the solar lights at Walmart junk?
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Marsha in WY christian homeschooling mama to 9 grammie to 2!


Marsha in WY, welcome to the forums. I hope you will enjoy all of them. 

Not answering your question at all, but a thought-----

Something I have done in the past is to use a vehicle battery with a 12 volt to 110 volt inverter to then power a low wattage fluorescent bulb in a task lighting fixture such as swing arm desk lamp, etc.

I simply charged the battery while driving and never took it out of the vehicle, just hooked to it while there. Most inverters have a low voltage shut down feature which still provides enough energy in the battery for vehicle starting. 

Doesn't take much of an inverter to power a 10-15 watt bulb.


----------



## 10ecn (Mar 12, 2010)

I do the same, with a battery and inverter. It's just the thing for lighting a work area, or reading lamp. I forgot that the effectiveness of the solar lights will vary from season to season, but I don't tend to stay up very late, and they last long enough for a normal evenings activity. Also, a dual battery system, with an isolator, similar to what is used on a snowplow, is a good idea. No matter how low your utility battery gets, your starting battery will still have a full charge. On those really cold mornings, a really hot battery is nice to have.


----------



## masawyer (Dec 31, 2010)

Thanks for the help.

Marsha in WY


----------



## Valleyguy (Jan 5, 2011)

I posted a reply a couple of days ago but it never made it :shrug:. 

Anyway, we tested some solar lights from either Lowes or Home Depot. The only problem with reading by them was the light was bright but somewhat diffused. I don't know about the Walmart light though. 

Are you off the grid or looking for light where there is no practical power?

Rick
*Homepage*: www.power-talk.net
*Forum*: forum.power-talk.net/


----------



## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Junk . . .yes
Read . . . .no .. it will not be good for your eyes to do so.
Yes they do a good job lighting your "pathway" (in or out) . . but thats about all.

The market for LED lamp 'bulbs' is expanding rapidly.
Both 12vdc and 120vac . . . . .
They are a heck of a good way to go........


----------



## halfpint (Jan 24, 2005)

I would suggest purchasing a rechargeable LED light for reading by. My son accidentally left mine on one night, and I found it on the next morning, still burning brightly. Mine is about two years old, and we use it for camping, when the power goes out, and when we have to check the chickens at night, so it gets used pretty frequently. I charge it up about every two weeks.

We put a battery back-up on our entertainment system (TV, DVD, stereo) so that they would not have to be reset each time the power flickered off, and also had a floor lamp with a flourescent bulb in it. One time the power went out we had the lamp on for four hours (we did not have the TV or stereo on) before the power came back on and it never dimmed.

For our fan on our fireplace insert, we run with a car battery and inverter. If the power is off for a while we crank up the generator to run the TV (to see the news) and run the freezer and refrigerator and recharge the flashlights, car battery and back up power supplies.

Dawn


----------



## Valleyguy (Jan 5, 2011)

Dawn,

Are you referring to the LED headlamps. We also find those extremely useful in the winter for such things as you mentioned, outdoor tasks and such. Curious, are you off-grid??

We have a cabin without power and my daughter always absconds with mine when she visits so she can read at night. 

Forgot about that use of them, which is what Masawyer was originally looking for. 

Rick
*Homepage*: www.power-talk.net
*Forum*: forum.power-talk.net/


----------



## How Do I (Feb 11, 2008)

We use some we got on clearance for when the lights go out. The ones we bought, you can take the stake out of the bottom and they will sit on a flat surface. I guess if you put two or three close together and had 20/20 vision you could get away with reading by them. I just charge the batteries in the battery charger, then put the batteries back in with the tabs back in place that came with them. When the lights go out, just pull the tabs out and you'll have enough light to get by until the lights come back on. These are the ones we have, but I don't know if you can find them any more. I don't think I'd put much stock in those little stick lights in the cardboard display boxes that Wal-Mart is carrying right now.


----------



## Esteban29304 (Apr 29, 2003)

Cheap ones ARE CHEAP. Buy better quality, brighter ones on sale & it is beter. I have used those when power is out just to light the way around the house & carry from room to room. Tough to read by though.


----------



## halfpint (Jan 24, 2005)

Valleyguy said:


> Dawn,
> 
> Are you referring to the LED headlamps. We also find those extremely useful in the winter for such things as you mentioned, outdoor tasks and such. Curious, are you off-grid??
> 
> ...


No, I am not off grid, but we are discussing making our basement lighting and entertainment system run off solar & batteries in the future, since our power usually goes off a couple of times a year - often when tornado warnings are active and we need to know what is going on.

My light is similar to this one http://www.autobarn.net/vecwlb26b.html?site=google_base , although the model of mine is WLB26B and I got it for Christmas about two years ago.

We also have a Coleman rechargeable lantern that gets used a lot - especially for camping.

Besides camping, we use our lights to check the property at night - mainly when there is a commotion on the back of the property near the chicken coop.

Our boys often have friends over to camp on the back of the property, and we feel better letting them use the rechargeable lanterns than using the ones with coleman fuel, primarily since they like to use them in the tents.

Dawn


----------



## Valleyguy (Jan 5, 2011)

halfpint said:


> No, I am not off grid, but we are discussing making our basement lighting and entertainment system run off solar & batteries in the future, since our power usually goes off a couple of times a year - often when tornado warnings are active and we need to know what is going on.
> 
> My light is similar to this one http://www.autobarn.net/vecwlb26b.html?site=google_base , although the model of mine is WLB26B and I got it for Christmas about two years ago.
> 
> Dawn


Oh yes, I forgot about tornadoes. Parents were from AL, Wedowee and Roanoke area, then from growing up in Memphis, tornado alley....yep. None in AK though. It wouldn't be too hard to have a backup 120 volt power supply to run the equipment you mentioned. There are various ways to to it.

The light stick you are referring to is a very useful light. We have 3 of them, purchased from Sams Club and they are in daily use during our dark times. As you indicated the long battery life is rather nice.

Rick
*Homepage*: www.power-talk.net
*Forum*: forum.power-talk.net/


----------

