You'll Get a Charge Out of This

Yesterday was the last day of Daylight Savings Time (DST) across Canada and the United States. Today at 2:00 a.m. we turned our clocks back (Fall back) one hour and began using local standard time, a big reminder that the days are getting shorter and darker earlier.

With less sunlight, we've learned to manage our power up at the cabin. Our electrical system has grown from one solar panel to three, backed up by a wind generator (for stormy nights). We've also grown from two to ten deep cycle batteries to store the energy for cabin use. But it isn't enough, especially during short cloudy winter days.

Consequently, we use alternative light sources for evenings. One is propane, but it isn't bright enough for reading. Thus, we turn to battery powered lights. But we were using lots of batteries and were concerned about both cost and the environment.

Now we use rechargeable reading lights. With bright LEDs they give plenty of light and have lots of power to last through long winter nights.

The first ones we got (on the left) were made by NexxTech from The Source in Powell River. We still like them best, but they're no longer available. Last Christmas, Wayne and I (unknowingly) got each other new ones made by ReLight from Amazon. They have four LEDs and are OK, but aren't quite as bright.

So, if you're a reader and need a little extra light, go rechargeable and help our environment at the same time. -- Margy