solar panals
I am a careful consumer. I work hard to make my money and there are few things that I dislike more than wasting money on consumer products that don’t do what they say on the packet. If the thing is broken or faulty I can take it back and get a refund. If, however, it sort of works, but poorly and nowhere as well as I was led to believe by the marketing spiel I get furious.
So to prevent this happening, and to spare my family my moods, I try to thoroughly check out a product before I purchase. For sometime now I have wanted to put a light in my shed. It seemed a big job to run a line from the house to the shed and waterproof it. So instead I hit upon the idea of using green energy; to install something that could run independent of the main power supply. I hit upon just the product when I stumbled upon the Designers Edge L949 10 LED Rechargeable Solar Panel Shed Light on a really good website promoting environmentally friendly consumer products for the house and garden.
Next I checked the reviews on Amazon and a few other sites. The only complaints that people made about the solar panel and LED light was that the cord that came with it was 16ft and not the advertised 20ft in length, and that the box contained an L-frame which seemed irrelevant to the mounting. I thought that I could live with these minor glitches – after all, I only needed about 12ft of cord and I was sure I could attach the light to the ceiling of my shed somehow. And what really decided it for me was the price – only $23.96.
So I went ahead and ordered the Designer Edge 10 LED Rechargeable Solar Panel Shed Light. It arrived a few days later and I immediately set to work installing it on my shed.
The box contained: the solar panel with a 16 foot cord attached; an exterior mounting bracket; the 10 LED light with attached mounting; screws; and the odd L-shaped rod I had read about.
I set to work the following Saturday morning and I had finished the installation by lunch time. What a result. It was easy to drill a few holes and attach the solar panel to the roof and drill a few more and put the light on the ceiling. I turned it on and it worked fine. It comes with 3 AA rechargeable batteries that had plenty of ‘juice’ in them on arrival, so I could test the light out immediately.
I could see the batteries were charging because a little red LED light came on. Thus the solar panel was gathering energy from the sun and turning it into electricity to charge the batteries.
The light has two settings: you can either have 5 or 10 of the LED lights on. I tried it the same night on both settings. The 5 light setting seemed a bit dim, but was enough to stop me banging into things. The full, 10 LED light setting was fairly bright. Good enough for my needs.
Since that Saturday I have had no problems with either the LED lights or the solar panel. The batteries stay well charged despite the hit and miss weather that we have in this part of the North. The instructions inform me I can expect 100,000 hours of light from the LED lights. I’m not counting the hours of illumination but I have had two months of light whenever I have needed it for my shed and I’m more than happy.
The absence of disappointment has also made my family very happy.
Solar Panel Shed Lights save money and fossil fuels.
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Designers Edge L-949 10-LED Rechargeable Solar-Panel Shed Light
$22.50 ... |
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Sunforce 50048 60-Watt Solar Charging Kit
$279.95 Dead batteries got you down? Soak up some sunshine with this 60 - watt Solar Kit! Solar power: efficient, abundant and FREE. Looking for a little juice? Solar may be the answer! These super-efficient crystalline Solar Panels were designed for use with cabins, outbuildings, RVs, boats... anywhere running electrical line is not practical. A 7-amp charge controller and 200W inverter help use the sun'... |
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Parmak DF-SP-LI Solar Pak 6 Low Impedance 6-Volt Battery-Operated 25-Mile-Range Electric Fence Charger
$164.99 Parmak Model DF-SP-LI- 6 volt - Solar/Battery Operated America's first solar-powered electric fencer ? New more powerful solar panel ? Exclusive built-in performance meter ? Will operate for 21 days in total darkness ? Weatherproof, outdoor model with on/off switch ? Low impedance ? Sealed rechargeable 6 volt battery ? Charges up to 25 miles of fence ? 100% American made ? UL Listed ? 100% solid s... |
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Mr. Long Arm 1009 Pro Curve Solar Panel Cleaning System Kit
$279.99 ... |
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Do It Yourself Solar Panels for Swimming Pools, Spas & more
$34.95 Solar Panel Instructional DVD & Plans for water heating. A simple step-by-step, DIY, easy to follow solar panel construction DVD. No special tools required. Sleek design, professional look and ease of fabrication. Heating system fully integrates into your existing pool piping network. 3500 watts (12,000BTU) of free solar power per panel. 10+degrees F increase in water temperature in one day. Engin... |
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Solar Powered Dancing Flower
$1.99 This solar powered desk toy sways happily to and fro, making you calm and relaxed whether at home or the office. The Dancing Flower does not need batteries! Thanks to its little solar panel, this cheerful plant will carry on swaying until the sun goes down! A great way to cope with stresses at work, place our Dancing Flower on your work desk for an instant lift. No watering, no greenfly, no worrie... |
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V-dimension Helius Solar Powered Backpack
$89.99 V-DIMENSION HELIUS... |
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Eton Mobius NSP300B Rechargeable Battery Case w/ Solar Panel for iPhone 4 and 4S (AT&T and Verizon models)
$73.01 Mobius iPhone 4 solar charging case/backup battery; extends the battery life of iPhone 4 up to or over 2x Enhanced monocrystal solar panel rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack durable protective case slim form factor. *Mobius has been apprved to be patible with the iPhone 4S by Apple. Black... |
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Sunforce 22005 12-Volt MotoMaster Eliminator Folding Solar Panel
$95.00 Imagine being able to charge your cell phone, MP3 player or portable video game console while you catch some rays on the beach. This versatile and portable solar power panel can recharge the batteries on many consumer electronics, or simply power them outright. Sunlinq Folding Solar Power Panels are lightweight, flexible, weatherproof and durable CIGS (copper indium gallium diselenide) solar cells... |
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Sunforce 39810 80-Watt High-Efficiency Polycrystalline Solar Panel with Sharp Module
$499.95 The Sunforce 39810 80-Watt High-Efficiency Polycrystalline Solar Panel Module will give you several more reasons to love the sun. It provides the power you need, while helping you save money and protect the environment. This panel is ideal for homes, cabins, remote power, back-up power, and 12-Volt battery charging. This panel comes with compatible wiring, accessories and a voltage tester to help ... |
