Significant Things To Consider Before Installing Solar Bollard Lights

Solar bollard lights are ideal for outdoor lighting and landscape design because they are cheap and easy to install, eco-friendly, and do not increase your monthly energy bill. The growing solar market has spurred a lot of product growth, but it also helps consumers who are often new to the industry and don’t know what to look for when comparing models.

The efficiency of various solar bollards available in Australia varies greatly, from power storage capability to light intensity and service life. Asking the correct questions before making a purchase will save you money on an inefficient solar installation. Here is what you need to know before installing solar bollard lights.

Power Storage

Autonomy is essential, but power storage is also crucial; it tests how quickly a solar fixture can turn sunlight into a battery charge. A solar light with good power storage takes less time to charge a drained battery entirely and can continue to run successfully even though there are few daylight hours. The power supply is not the same as the setting time. A low-capacity battery can charge faster than a larger battery. Still, a high-capacity battery typically has a higher power storage rate.

Working Temperature

Some climates are more challenging for outdoor solar bollard light than others. Moisture combined with heat and cold extremes will wreak havoc on batteries and solar cells that are not adequately shielded. Commodity-level batteries are unlikely to last long if the site is scorching, smoking, or cold. You will ensure your system’s durability by choosing solar bollards with a defined high or low-temperature tolerance. Extreme temperatures typically allow the battery to fail first.

Solar Insolation

The amount of sunshine that a solar bollard gets in one day is referred to as solar insolation. The amount of solar insolation received by the bollard’s solar cells is affected by the field, weather conditions, and site shading. Solar bollard lights with sufficient power storage can work successfully with 4–5 hours of direct sunlight, ideally in the middle of the day. Ideally, this means that the bollards can be open to little shade between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

There are versions available that isolate the solar panel from the solar-powered LED light if the site experiences intermittent shade. While such models are a little more challenging to install due to the need for trenching, they allow solar illumination in places that would otherwise have to be connected to electric utility lines.

Light Distribution

Lights are usually available in two distribution patterns: symmetrical and asymmetrical. Asymmetrical lighting bollards provide light in a thin, elongated shape that is suitable for pathway lighting. Symmetrical lighting bollards offer light in a condensed, even circular pattern. Asymmetrical lighting is used to brighten walkways for protection purposes, while balanced lighting is used for landscaping purposes.

Illumination

Throughout its propagation pattern, every lighting device can provide light at various points of illumination. This means that light will appear more extreme at some delivery points than at others. Different distribution patterns will deliver light at differing intensities. Most solar bollards implementations in Australia are concerned with the average and minimum illuminance levels and the maximum to minimum uniformity ratio for the field to be illuminated.

Overall, solar bollard light merchants will typically have IES files that can be used to decide whether these bollards can fulfill the illuminance criteria for a project.