We often have people telling us our solar lights are too bright or work for too long and that they don’t want to offend the neighbour by their garden being lit up all night long and are fearful of planes landing in their back garden. So we’ve put together a few tips on how you can reduce the performance of your solar lights or even stop them working altogether:
How to Achieve The Worst Possible Performance of Your Solar Lights:
1. Under a Bush
Solar panel Under a bush or in a tree. Any bush or tree will do but the best reduction in performance is achieved by thick foliage conifers are the best trees for reducing performance as they keep green all year round.
2. Next to a Fence or Wall
Solar panel next to a fence or Wall – best reduction in performance is achieved by putting the light immediately adjacent to a solid fence or brick wall, if you place the light at the base of a brick wall and on the north side you should be able to get your light to stop working in the winter months.
3. Solar Panel Under a Car
Parking your car over the top of the solar panel will stop all light getting to it and should result in the light not operating.
4. Solar Panel Facing North
Facing the solar panel in a north direction reduces the performance significantly.
5. Solar Panel facing the Floor
If you want to stop your light working you could try directing the panel downwards facing the floor.
6. Disconnect the solar panel from the Light
A light with no power will never work if you are able to disconnect the panel from the light you will remove all energy and completely disable the light from working some lights have the batteries separate from the panel so you may need to drain these down before complete failure is achieved.
7. Solar panels behind glass
This is a great way to stop lights from working as not only are you restricting the amount of light the panel will get by the shadow effect you are also blocking the UV rays as modern windows are designed to prevent the energy required for solar power getting through.
8. Solar panels in a conservatory
Not as effective as a window sill as less shadow effect however you still have UV protection so should be able to reduce the performance of your solar light significantly.
9. Solar Panel Under Snow
This is like putting your solar panel in a shadow; performance will be reduced but unfortunately a good quality solar product will still work a little in this situation.
10. Solar Charge by Moonlight
If you only try and charge your lights on bright moon lit night the light will fail, make sure you remember to bring the light in before dawn and lock it a way in a dark cupboard during the day though.
11. Solar Panel in The Arctic Circle
This is a good way to reduce the performance of your solar lights but that is all it will do the further you get from the equator the more successful at stopping your light working will be.
12. Solar Panel Underwater
This will pretty much guaranteed failure of your light because not only is it difficult for UV to pass through water but the water will also seep into your panel and destroy it from within. This will of course mean you will never be able to get your light to work again.