How Do Solar Garden Ornaments Work?

If you have a yard and have ever thought about lighting it up at night, then you may have heard of solar garden lights. They are still fairly expensive, but the advantage of them is that you don't have to run wires for them. As long as there is direct sunlight somewhere, you can light a light there in about 15 seconds.

These lights are very interesting because they are almost like miniature satellites. They generate and store their own electricity during the day, and then release it at night. It's like a satellite that stores solar energy when it's on the sunny side of the Earth and then uses that energy when it's on the dark side. In this article, you'll learn exactly how it happens!

What is a solar panel?

The solar panel itself is a flat surface that is made up of silicon sheets called PV (photovoltaic) cells. These cells are stacked in layers on top of the solar panel, with a piece of metal on the back. When sunlight passes through these layers, various changes occur rapidly within the silicon structure, which ultimately causes that piece of metal at the bottom of the panel to become electrically charged. The wires you can see in the picture above connect the metal base to the battery, where all the electricity is stored.

When does the light come on?

It's called a photoresistor, and it's not one of those things that people avoid taking photos of. This is a little device that controls the circuitry inside the solar light depending on how bright or dark the area you place the light is. Basically, during the day, the solar panel will happily charge the battery, but the photoresistor will prevent the light from turning on. When night falls and the photoresistor detects that there is little or no light, it activates the battery and the light turns on. It does all of this automatically, like some kind of micro-circuit overlord. Although it's only a little thing, the photoresistor controls almost everything inside.

Are solar panels weatherproof?

Since solar panels are really only used outdoors, they are indeed weatherproof. We just recommend giving them an occasional wipe with a clean cloth to remove any dirt or debris that may have settled on the surface of the panel, as this may slightly reduce the charging efficiency of the solar cells inside.