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Generally speaking, a solar powered flashlights looks quite like any ordinary flashlight. There’s a simple on and off switch. One end of the flashlight has an area that emits light…enough light to allow you to be able to see a small area at night, or into a darkened recess.
A solar powered flashlight uses sunlight energy, converted into electrical energy in a solar photovoltaic (PV) cell or panel that sits on the outside of the flashlight, that is then stored in a battery. Most solar powered flashlights use LED or Light Emitting Diode lamps rather than an incandescent light bulb, as LED’s take less electrical current to operate, and they last longer. While an incandescent light lasts, on average, for about 1000 hours, an LED lasts for an average of 100,000 hours.
Solar charged batteries, like LED’s that are used in solar powered flashlights, last much longer. A solar charged battery is generally good for around 2500 hours or two years. A nickel, lithium or cadmium single charge battery like one might normally find in a regular flashlight is generally good for about 15 hours of regular use.
If you want to get the most out of your solar charged batteries, leave your solar flashlight on for 15 hours or more at least once a month. This will fully expend the charge. Because rechargeable batteries have a memory effect, so if you keep using your flashlight without fully discharging it, it isn’t going to be able to return to 100 percent of its available power, and will eventually only recharge to a lower memory level.
A window sill is good place to keep your solar powered flashlight when it’s not in use. Placing the flashlight where the solar panel is exposed to the most sunlight possible, will maximize its power. But if you’re not using your flashlight regularly, don’t forget to turn it on, and leave it on, as previously described, at least once each month.
You don’t have to look very hard any more to find a solar powered flashlight in a hardware store. They’re great lights for emergency use, and for camping. It’s good to have at least one in your home, and in each of your vehicles. It’s a good idea if for no other reason than to lower your worry level. Remember all those times you needed a flashlight in a hurry, found it, discovered the batteries were dead and you didn’t have any spares…or at least didn’t know where they were?
Some amazingly innovative designs are being created for solar flashlights…with add-ons like siren, flasher, cell phone charger, etc… in addition to the basic flashlight design. There are also any number of solar flashlight key chains are on the market today. The price range varies, depending on the uniqueness of the style, the outside casing, and additional functions.
And if you’re into “spreading the light” from a solar powered flashlight, check out bogolight.com. The name for this website came from “Buy One, Give One.” The company that operates the BoGoLight Program, called SunNight Solar, is a limited liability company founded by Mark Bent in 2006. Mark served in the American Diplomatic Corp in various developing countries, and saw the need for light in many places. So he set about finding a way to provide. Purchasing one solar flashlight at BoGoLight, or one of its affiliates, like InHabitat, sends another identical solar flashlight donation to a non-profit organization set up to collect and ship the flashlights throughout the world to areas where they are needed.
Isn’t it awesome to shine a little light…in a very solar way…for those who sit in the dark at night and cannot see?
Want to find out more about solar power lights, then visit Timothy Peters’s site at: www.HomeSolarPowerExplained.com
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