Does anyone have any experience with solar power lighting. I presently have street lighting provided by our power company (6 lights) that are costing me about 2K per year. What I am looking for is a decorative option I can place on front lawns that do not require hard wiring.
I would be looking to replace the 6 lights with a dozen decorative triple head pole mount lights spread throughout the community if such a product exists…
Another possible solution is seeing if your power company would convert the lights to LED? Requires a ballast change and about ~$150 light, but are twice as bright.
My power company began a year long effort to replace these city-wide as they last exponentially longer and reduce their labor long term. They finally replaced them on the ones outside my house and are amazing.
Problem with our system is that the majority of the cost is not the hydro usage it is the rental fee and power delivery cost. The actual hydro usage is very little. This is the reason I need my own lights. Unfortunately with having mostly paved laneways and considering the distance necessary to run placing buried wire of my own is not a option.
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Came across this post doing a search
Greg if you’re still interested, I’ve heard about these:
I was looking at some of these for my park - the issue though is the largest $1000 option is only rated for 900 lumens. I’m not a lighting expert, but that appears to be only a fraction of the light output from a traditional LED street light. I was curious if anyone had tried these before and how it went.
Thanks for the info, I am still looking.
We used the Gama Sonic LED lights in our park and was initially very excited to get street light in the park.
However, the residents were not at all happy with the lighting. Your lighting needs may be different than ours.
What was it about the lighting that your residents did not like.
My community already has street lighting provided by our hydro company however the rental cost is quite high at $1800/year so I am looking to reduce my annual costs
We have used Gamma Sonic decorative lamp posts and they work great and residents love them. Our first units are about 4 years old and still working great. However, they are purely decorative and not an alternative to actual security lighting.
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I agree with Frank. The lights are NOT a replacement for real security lights. Just more for esthetics.
Gama Sonic here - just wanted to join the conversation and address some points here.
Gama Sonic offers a variety of residential and commercial grade solar lighting options. All are aesthetically pleasing, and some are brighter than others. We are always manufacturing new and brighter solar lights that cater to our customers’ unique requirements. We have engaged with hundreds of mobile home park owners over the past 7 years. We listen to what their wants and needs are and develop different lights to fit those wants and needs. For example, we offer solar lights with a duration and brightness that will last up to 8 nights with fully charged batteries.
Concerning the lights Frank Rolfe purchased, he is correct. The Victorian series is a great light and very pretty. However, it is indeed purely decorative and not very bright (150 lumens/roughly 25W).
But we do have lights that are designed to be decorative and bright. For example, our brand-new commercial grade Centennial Post Light (model number GS-100) is 900 lumens (roughly 150W). It covers a 40’ diameter spread of light on a 10’ pole.
Another more purely utilitarian example that comes to mind is our Security Light with Motion Sensor (GS-201), which emits 1440 lumens of light.
If you’d like more information about which solar lights suit your mobile home park best, please contact Matt Cohen (Director, Commercial Sales for Gama Sonic Solar Lighting, matt@gamasonic.com). Matt will be happy to help you choose the appropriate lights with the correct brightness for your exact needs.
You can buy motion activated LED lights on Amazon, 2 for $20. You can also set them to stay on all night. They’re plenty bright and our residents like them.
This is the one we’ve got before: Amazon.com
We are purchasing high brightness solar street lights from a Korean company. We did extensive testing to arrive at this solution. We have also put together an install manual (see attached). I hope it’s helpful for everyone. You can reach out to our project manager, Fletcher@saratogagroup.com for any questions.
Total solution costs us $900 fully installed and has 5X the brightness of the Gamasonic lights. We tested Gamasonic and they simply weren’t bright enough for our needs. SGC_Solar_Street_Light_Installation_Manual_Final.pdf (2.2 MB)
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That’s insanely helpful as I was doing my DD for a mass order of street lights. Didn’t even know about them. I sent your project manager some questions. Thank you so much.
How’s their durability long term and cost in items and installation compared to GS?
Search for a solar street light that is made with premium quality. Pick options that are sturdy and built to last. Since the fixtures will be used outdoors, go for the ones with tough casings or shells.
Besides, inspect if the solar lights are made with anti-scratch, anti-corrosion, and UV resistant features.