Many people find choosing lighting for a deck to be nearly as complicated as building the deck in the first place. You want lights that can withstand being outside but that still match the overall aesthetic of your deck. Thankfully, you can add lights to your deck that don’t require any complicated wiring, last a long time, and are cheap to run. Solar post lights for decks are a nifty invention that offers soft lighting to outdoor decks without the hassle of hooking up wiring or using electricity.

How Do Solar Post lights Work?

Solar lights work by converting sunlight into electricity and storing it in batteries. After the sun goes down, the lights turn on, sending out a beautiful glow to the surrounding area. Of course, with solar caps, you can’t expect solar power alone to fully illuminate your patio as well as during the day, but they do give off enough light to go out at night, have a barbecue, or even take your dog out.

The light of each sun pole hat is different, but in general, a sun hat can stay lit for 8-12 hours after a day of playing in the sun. Depending on the type of bulb, solar pole caps can glow yellow, white or even blue.

 

What Styles Of Solar Post Caps Do You Offer?

While “solar” may seem like a modern concept, we offer solar deck lighting in a variety of styles from traditional to contemporary. They can also be lamp styles, where they look like traditional lamps placed on your deck posts, and down styles, where the post doesn’t even look like a lamp post until the bulbs come on at night. There’s a wide variety of styles in between, so be sure to check out our collection of solar post caps for the wide variety of ideas we offer at Deck Expressions.

 

Will They Be Too Bright?

Since solar deck lights generally don’t have an on/off switch, you may be concerned about light pollution at night. If this is the case, we offer “downward” headlights. These are discrete solar powered lights that are barely noticeable during the day and glow downward at night, casting most of the light onto the ground. For example, for downward style solar pole lights, check out these majestic solar pole caps by Classy Caps or these handmade cedar pole caps from Nantucket.

Do solar lights last all night?

If your solar lights have had constant and direct sunlight throughout the day then you should get about 8 hours of light out of them throughout the night. The ideal amount of sleep that you should get during the night is 8 hours, so generally speaking, yes solar lights do last all night.

However, whether you will get this full amount of time, or not, depends on the amount of sunlight that the solar light receives.

Most solar lights will be exposed to the sun all day while the sun is up, however they will only get direct sunlight for about 6 hours.

This is why the majority of solar lights are designed to reach full charge after they have received 6 hours of direct sunlight. If your solar light receives 6 hours of direct sunlight then you will usually get about 8 hours of light out of it.

So strictly speaking, solar lights do not last all night, but they do last for the majority of this time. This means that if you are looking to buy solar lights and want them to last throughout the evening then the majority of solar lights will be able to do this.

 

Are Solar Post Caps Expensive?

If you think this high-tech stuff must be expensive, we’re happy to tell you that’s not true. When it comes to the price of solar cell caps, the price often depends on the material and how the product is made. For example, these 6×6 post caps from Deccorators cost close to $80 each, but they’re handcrafted and have real frosted glass instead of many solar post caps that use plastic — not to mention they’re the ones we’ve seen of the most ornate wooden post caps. However, we also have a variety of more affordable post caps that still work well and look beautiful.

 

Deck Lighting Is Easy With Solar Post Caps

With these modern deck lighting options, you don’t even have to think about lighting your deck. The sun works for you and the lights automatically turn on at night. These lights last a long time and require little maintenance other than an occasional wiping. Check out all the modern, traditional, and classic solar cap deck expressions on offer! Plus, with free shipping in 48 states on orders over $49.99, the solar cap will save you more than just electricity bills.

 

Outdoor lighting is a great addition to your home and one of the ways to make your backyard or front yard look better. If your driveway, patio or patio needs lighting, you should consider solar lights. They are an easy and affordable way to add lights around your yard. If you live in an area with very cold winters, you may be wondering if you can put solar lights outside, which is a good question!

 

You can keep your solar lights outdoors in winter as long as they are outside. Every solar light set you buy has an indoor or outdoor rating on the package. Cold temperatures, as well as rain, snow, and cold weather, can affect how well lighting works.

If you’ve read our outdoor lighting guide, you’ll know that there are many different styles of solar lighting to choose from, and each has a different level of performance. It is necessary to read the label on the package and choose the style and version suitable for outdoor use. Anything placed indoors outdoors can cause the light battery to drain completely.

 

While you can put your lights outside, it can affect performance if they are rated for outdoor lighting. Batteries exposed to light work best at room temperature. This means the closer to 68-72 degrees Fahrenheit, the better the performance. The hotter the weather, the better they work; however, when they are exposed to heat for too long, it can shorten their lifespan. The cooler an area is, the more work the battery has to do to heat up and perform well.

 

There are many types of solar lighting available for outdoor options. In fact, anything rated good outside can be outside year round. Depending on the season, the lights may be brighter or dimmer. You should not place your solar panel lights in a place where no light is exposing them. This will cause the battery to drain very quickly. This means you shouldn’t keep your solar lights in storage. If they are rated outdoor, they will last longer outside in winter.

 

When winter enters the northern hemisphere, that means the sun is further away from us. This is also why we have shorter days in summer when there is less daylight. Your solar light uses sunlight to charge the battery. When they are exposed to less sunlight, it means they have less time to recharge their batteries. This can cause them to lose power more quickly.

Cold air tends to damage batteries, even some of the best ones (on Amazon). However, these still work because the sun illuminates them to a decent temperature. Their internal components have to work extra hard, generating more heat. However, they may only work at 50% performance level. Many solar panel lighting options are only used at night, which means up to 8 hours. You need to read the packaging carefully to know the lifespan and coldest temperature of each set of lights.

 

An Example Of How Cold Weather Can Affect Batteries

Most people have heard of the Tesla brand. Most use lithium batteries that require frequent charging. Many Tesla owners have noticed that % of their cars are well below average after a cold 41 degrees Fahrenheit. Why? The cold destroys the battery a bit, but not enough to affect the car’s performance. Once the car starts to heat up and so does the battery, it stops losing percentage of the battery.

What To Do If You Get Tons Of Snow?

Unfortunately, some of us live in places with grey skies and a lot of snow. This can significantly damage your solar panel lights, and we recommend using battery-powered lights outdoors in this guide. Snow can actually cover the panels, which will block any light from getting through. You can wipe it down every day when it snows to get them working again. However, you may want to consider another lighting option. If you’re in an area with heavy snow and gray, solar panel lighting may not be the best.

 

Our Takeaway

Solar panel lighting options like this pair outdoors from post top ara lights  are a great way to light up your driveway, walkway, porch, or more. They’re great options for those who live in sunny locations, and many options are only available at night. If you live where there is a lot of snow and no sunlight, this may not be your best option. The best way to make sure you get the right lighting is to read the packaging. Find out what the lowest temperatures they can withstand, how long it takes to charge, and whether they should be used outdoors. This will help you choose the right solar panel light.