Solar Powered Xmas Lights

Wayne and I purchased NOMA solar powered outdoor Christmas lights at Canadian Tire. They seemed perfect for our off the grid float cabin. We love colourful lights at night, especially at Xmas, but our supply of solar and wind generated electricity is limited, especially during the winter with low sun angles and short (often cloudy) days. So, solar powered Xmas lights seemed just the ticket for us.

I purchased a string of 50 lights (32 feet long) for $24.99 CAD. The white ones were $29.99, but I wanted the multi-coloured ones anyway. The small solar panel can be mounted on a ground spike or attached to a wall. The lights use LED technology, so the amount of power needed is much less than traditional incandescent bulbs. The box said one day of solar charging would produce three nights of lights. That sounded too good to be true, but we thought it was worth a try.

Because we don't get a full day of direct sun in the winter, the Xmas lights last about an hour or so each evening. But in the summer there's plenty of colourful lights if we can stay up late enough to enjoy them. The system has an auto start and shut off feature. There's also a manual switch on the back of the solar panel. This is important if you want to conserve energy.

We love our Xmas lights so much that we have a strand outdoors on the porch and another indoors. Wayne purchased a simple switch and wired it between the solar panel and the lights. Now we can turn them on and off from inside the house. Thanks Wayne, to reach the switch outdoors was quite a stretch up for me. -- Margy