Why would you pass up the opportunity to purchase high-quality solar lights? Consider the benefits of outdoor solar lights if you’re thinking about going in a different direction with your landscape lighting. To begin with, solar lights have no effect on your electric bill. In making this decision, consider what amounts to virtual residual income. Regularly wired lights will continue to add dollars and cents to your electric bill day after day, month after month, but solar powered LED lights will never. Second, solar energy lights can be as aesthetically pleasing as other designer lights. If you want to create an atmosphere or a specific style for your yard, you can do so with the many options that are currently available. Another reason to go solar is that you’re doing something good for the environment. Everyone wants to be able to claim that they are going green. This is your chance to add a new dimension to your dinner party conversation while also saving energy. Remember that if you go with solar, you won’t have to deal with wiring or burying cables beneath the ground. You won’t need a transformer along these lines. Traditional lighting requires a lot more setup.
The high cost of outdoor lighting becomes a serious issue at a time when municipalities and states are scrambling to meet budget requirements. Reducing this energy consumption lowers electricity costs while increasing demand for renewable energy. With many states implementing plans to rely more heavily on renewable energy, solar lighting is one way to achieve these objectives. It’s also useful for remote construction and work crews that rely on diesel-powered generators for power. Solar lights can be used to replace any type of outdoor lighting, from a porch light to a streetlight to a road sign or billboard spotlight. Solar panels on top of parking lot shelters at the University of California and the National Institute of Standards and Technologies illuminate the areas at night. Solar panels are used to illuminate bus shelters and public parking lots in Florida and San Diego.

If you’ve recently driven down a mountain highway, you might have noticed road signs with a small black box perched on top. The solar panel box charges during the day and illuminates the sign at night, obviating the need for electricity in remote or rural areas. Portable solar panel generators, such as GreenTow, have been developed to provide non-fossil fuel power to emergency response teams and remote construction sites. The panels can be towed to a location and used to power generators with a diesel backup in the event of a problem.

Outdoor solar street lights can be more entertaining than a garage roof liner or a tow trailer. Solar Mallee Trees, a form of solar light art, has been in operation in Adelaide, Australia, since 2005. They generate 864 kWh of energy while only using 125 kWh to illuminate their surroundings. The excess electricity is fed back into the grid for future use. Similar solar light structures can be found in Pittsburgh, PA and Vienna, Italy, and are typically in the shape of a tree or a flower, with the petals and leaves sporting solar panels on one side and lights on the other. These lights add artistic value to their cities, generate power for the grid, and reduce reliance on expensive nonrenewable energy sources.

Energy efficiency is becoming increasingly important in all sectors of the economy, both as a cost-cutting measure and as a means of meeting efficiency targets. Because of the public nature of this service, it is heavily influenced by citizens.