[Rabble]

Recently I purchased one of those solar charged motion activated flood lights, and mounted it under my detached metal carport. It came with about 12ft of wire so I was able to position the solar panel in the sun. I mounted the flood light under the car port in the dead center and now, when I pull in at night, it comes on, and when I enter the carport on foot it also activates. It has about the same light output as a 60 watt bulb.
This gave me another idea. In the Northern Tool catalog, there are several solar powered shed lights and land scapping spot lights, sidewalk access lights and such. These would make great power outage light sources! All one would have to do is place them outside during the day to charge, and bring them in at night for light. The small accent lights that have a stake for driving into the ground, only put out about as much light as a candle, but it is safe clean no heat light. These can be bought with several per package. Remove the stakes and you can carry them around the house like candles. The flood and shed lights can light an entire room very well.

 

[shag]

Be weary of cheap solar powered lights. they are cheap because they have ... crap rechargeable batteries and solar cells.

Both those mean a short life span.

 

[New_Pollution1086]

we (me and pops) had some a few years ago.

they break really easily, and dont put out much light.
maybe if you get some good ones but i think a flashlight is just as good.

T

 

[Guerrilla]

I modded a bunch of solar lights this summer, wired about 8 feet of 22ga wire to the LEDs, allowing me to put the light indoors with the panel on the roof. I will say though, those lights rarely last more than a season.

 

[dayliterun]

I thought about putting some of the solar charged motion activated flood lights at the front of the driveway pointing them at an angle towards the house so I could see them light up at night if someone attempted to approach, so they couldn't sneak up on me.

 

[7.5mas]

We have some that stake in the ground type we put around my wife's flower garden in the summer.
I'm not sure where she got them but they are genuine "Solar Glass Lanterns" granted we bring them
in during the winter but they have lasted for 3 summers. I have taken them off the stake and
used them as a lantern to walk around to the back of the house. I have mentioned to her that
we should set them out during the day whenever we have bad weather and a chance for a power outage.

 

[contact00]

Instead you could buy a good quality deep cycle boat/RV battery, and a quality solar charger for it. You could then run lights, an inverter or other items off the battery when needed.

 

[7.5mas]

Instead you could buy a good quality deep cycle boat/RV battery, and a quality solar charger for it. You could then run lights, an inverter or other items off the battery when needed.

I have several charged batteries but need to get a good solar charger,
even a generator will/could run out of gas.
It's always good to have several ways to do things you need to do,
whether it's lighting , water, food , fire , etc.

 

[ZigMund]

Instead you could buy a good quality deep cycle boat/RV battery, and a quality solar charger for it. You could then run lights, an inverter or other items off the battery when needed.

I am working on a setup for emergency powering my ham radios. This would be easily made for lights. a small solar panel could charge sealed gel cell or lithium ion batteries. with a charge controller, and using LED lights, you could have power for quite some time, and it could also be very small.

 

[cugir321]

bulbs

Get a few energy saver florescent bulbs and screw into a desk lamp...40 watts of light...they only really draw about 15 watts of power. Your car jumper unit with a 12v receptacle and a small inverter will run it for days. (I have a 7 ah unit with a 750 watt inverter) You can charge the unit with the car. The bulb will give nice light for a bedroom. It's my hurricaine set up.

You can charge cell phones, walkie talkies, run small radios forever, small fans (walmart makes a neat chinese 12 " - 12v fan called "o2"...I clip two wired leads on a cordless drill battery, take out the fan's batteries and clip the gators on the contacts for the battery. It runs a lone time on low.) They also make a 5 " - 3.5v fan (cost 5.00) I use an invertor and adapter (use an adapter to take it down to 3.5v) ....runs forever..all night on a 12 v cordless drill battery. They both blow lots of air.

Instead you could buy a good quality deep cycle boat/RV battery, and a quality solar charger for it. You could then run lights, an inverter or other items off the battery when needed.