What Makes A Solar Powered Flashlight Work?
When you look at the outside of a solar powered flashlight, you won't see a lot of difference between it and a regular flashlight. There's a simple...
When you look at the outside of a solar powered flashlight, you won’t see a lot of difference between it and a regular flashlight. There’s a simple switch to turn it off and on. And on one end of the flashlight, there’s a glass-cover over a lamp, and when you turn the flashlight on, it puts out enough light to let you see in the dark, or into a darkened area.
Using sunlight energy, a solar powered flashlight converts that energy into electrical power in a solar photovoltaic (PV) cell or panel that sits on the outside cover of the flashlight. The solar generated power is stored in a battery. A Light Emitting Diode (LED) lamp is generally used in a solar powered flashlight instead of an incandescent light bulb, because LED’s last longer, and take less electrical current to operate. LED’s, on average last for about 10,000 hours, compared to an incandescent light that has lasts about 1,000 hours.
Solar charged batteries, like the LED’s are much more effective than their conventional counterparts, the nickel lithium or cadmium batteries one usually finds in flashlights. A solar charged battery will last about two years, or 2500 hours, while the single use nickel, lithium, or cadmium batteries are really good for about 15 hours of regular use.
To maximize the usage of your solar charged batteries, you should leave the flashlight on for 15+ hours at least once a month to fully expend the charge. Rechargeable batteries have a memory effect. Therefore if you continually use the flashlight without ever fully discharging it, it will eventually only recharge to a lower (memory) level, and never return to 100 percent of its available power.
For best results, keep your solar powered flashlight on a window sill when it is not in use, where the solar panel is exposed to the maximum amount of sunlight. If you’re not using it regularly, be particularly mindful to turn it on…and leave it on…as described above, at least once a month.
You can find solar powered flashlights in most hardware stores today. They’re great for camping and emergency use. Every vehicle and every home should have one. If you wonder why…think about those times that you’ve needed a flashlight in a hurry only to find that the batteries were dead, and you had no spares…or didn’t know where they were!
Now, you can find some extremely clever solar flashlight designs. Additions like flashers, cell phone chargers, and sirens, even, as well as just the basic solar flashlight. Plus, you’ll also find a number of cool solar flashlight key chains on the market today. As for price, it really varies. Like most items, you’ll pay for the uniqueness of the style, the additional functions, and the outside case.
And if you’re into “spreading the light” from a solar powered flashlight, check out bogolight.com. The name for this website came from “Buy One, Give One.” The company that operates the BoGoLight Program, called SunNight Solar, is a limited liability company founded by Mark Bent in 2006. Mark served in the American Diplomatic Corp in various developing countries, and saw the need for light in many places. So he set about finding a way to provide. Purchasing one solar flashlight at BoGoLight, or one of its affiliates, like InHabitat, sends another identical solar flashlight donation to a non-profit organization set up to collect and ship the flashlights throughout the world to areas where they are needed.
Shining a little light, in a very solar way, is a unique and wonderful method to help others who sit in the dark at night be able to see…even after the sun’s gone down.
Want to find out more about , then visit Timothy Peters’s site at:
Related posts:
- What Solar Powered Lights Are Best For Your Decorating Needs Do you have curb lighting, driveway lighting, or patio lights...
- Solar Powered Hybrid Cars Former CIA Director James Woolsey says it so well and...
- Solar Power Homes In The Third World Creating an intense demand for energy, the third world is...
- What’s In A Solar Energy Panel? Sugar and spice and everything nice...or snakes and snails and...
- Key Facts About National Solar Power This is almost embarrassing to say out loud...the United States,...
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.