Ah, Earth Day. If there’s one piece of tech that exemplifies my desire for sustainability in my daily life, it’s none other than solar power. I bought my first home a little more than three years ago, and one of the smartest decisions I made was installing Ring’s solar powered lights.
As much as I support how some of the best phones tout their sustainable efforts — like how they’re designed with more recyclable materials than ever before — it doesn’t quite have as direct of an impact on me like these solar powered lights I’ve been using. That’s because my lights are using less power than comparable incandescent lights, while offering additional peace of mind security that you wouldn’t get from a standard light source.
But if you’re not convinced about the benefits of solar-powered lights, then you’ll want to know how much money I saved from having to hire an electrician.
Goodbye inefficient light bulbs
The first solar powered light I installed was the Ring Wall Light Solar, which casts up to 800 lumens of white light when it’s activated. I needed to light a portion of my backyard deck because I didn’t want to deal with the old floodlight fixtures I couldn’t access at the time. Also, the incandescent light bulb from one of the outdoor fixtures didn't provide enough illumination to light the area.
Everyone knows how inefficient incandescent light bulbs are compared to CFL (compact fluorescent lamp) or modern day LED lights, which was the main incentive for me to install the Ring Wall Light Solar.
At the same time, I was looking to brighten up the walkway in front of my home in a way that would be relatively easy and add more light beyond the existing porch light. That’s why I installed the Ring Solar Pathlights on the side of the pathway closest to my home.
What I like about these pathlights is that they stay lit at a dim setting until their motion sensors are triggered. Then, they'll immediately blast into full power.
Now, instead of being completely in the dark, I’m able to actually see what’s around thanks to these solar lights. Best of all, they charge during the day when the sun’s out, gaining enough power to run at night. What’s really impressive in the 2-plus years since I’ve installed the Ring Wall Light Solar, it’s yet to run out of power. Not once have I needed to manually charge it!
Savings in the most unexpected way
You’d think that using solar lights would save you substantially in the long run at cutting down on electricity use, but you’d be surprised how that may not necessarily be the case. For starters, you have to remember how much these solar lights cost. Let’s take the Ring Wall Light Solar as an example, as it costs $60.
I asked Google Gemini to calculate how much it’d cost to power an equivalent 800 lumen incandescent light bulb for 1 hour a day for 10 years. It came back with a total cost of $41.61 based on the $0.19/kWh average rate for electricity in my state. That’s still less than buying the Ring Wall Light Solar.
So where do the savings come from? It’s not from buying the solar light based on Gemini’s calculations.
Instead, the real savings come in the form of convenience — the convenience for anyone to install the Ring Wall Light Solar where they need light without much effort. Before I settled on going with solar lights, I used Angie’s List (now Angi) to get estimates from electricians who could install light fixtures around my home. Since it would involve putting down new wires, I was getting some really high estimates. I’m talking about $500 from one company, while another was asking $1,500.
Rather than shell out the dough I didn’t have at the time, I settled on the Ring solar lights instead — and that’s a decision I don’t regret. Not only is my home properly lit, but they also work with my Ring Alarm system to alert me whenever they’re triggered.
Best of all, they’re all low maintenance for the most part. I’ve only had to charge a couple of the pathlights since installing them because they were more in the shade than the rest. Apart from that, they prove how worthwhile solar-powered lights can be over traditional energy-guzzling bulbs.
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