FAQ
- How does solar lighting work?
A solar panel (a "solar generator") converts light to electricity. During daylight hours (even on cloudy days) the solar panel charges long-life high-capacity batteries which store the electrical energy until it is needed.
The electrical energy that is generated by the solar panel and stored in the batteries is then used to power a specially-designed high-efficiency light that is mounted in a super reflective housing and equipped with a high energy ballast.
These lead acid batteries and gel batterries are designed to recharge and charge and have very little memory, making it easy to restore and use energy.
- What information does Greenshine need to offer you the best customized solar lamps?
Generally, Greenshine needs those questions answered.
1) The sunshine hours per day or the exact city the street lights will be installed
2) How many continuous rainy days in the raining season there? (It matters because we have to make sure the light can still work in 3 or 4 raining days with little sunshine)
3) The brightness of LED lamp(50Watt, for example)
4) Working time of solar light every day(10 hours, for example)
5) The height of the poles, or the width of road
6) It is best to offer the pictures on the locations where the solar lamps going to be installed. - What is an LED driver?
An LED driver is a self-contained power supply that has outputs matched to the electrical characteristics of your LED or array of LEDs. There are currently no industry standards, so understanding the electrical characteristics of your LED or array is critical in selecting or designing a driver circuit. Drivers should be current-regulated (deliver a consistent current over a range of load voltages). Drivers may also offer dimming by means of pulse width modulation (PWM) circuits. Drivers may have more than one channel for separate control of different LEDs or arrays.
- What is a sun hour?
A sun hour is a unit of measurement of the intensity of sunlight on the earth at a given time that can be used for generation of solar power, recognizing factors such as climate and weather. A full sun hour is measured as the intensity of sunlight at noon, whereas less than a full sun hour will result during the hours before and after noon.
- How does the light know when to turn on and turn off?
Greenshine's solar controller uses a photocell and/or timer to control when the light will turn on, when the sun goes down, and to turn off when the sun comes up. The photocell detects when the sun comes down and when the sun comes up again. Greenshine can make the lamp last anywhere from 8-14 hours, and this varies on the customer's needs.
The solar controller utilizes an internal timer that is pre-set for a specific number of hours to determine when to switch the light off. If the solar controller is set to leave the light on until dawn, it determines when the sun rise (and when to switch the light off) by means of voltage readings from the solar panel array.
- Can I use existing poles?
If desired, solar powered light fixtures can be added to an existing light pole provided:
The existing light pole is in good operating condition
The existing light pole is designed for and rated to support the additional weight and wind loading that results when the solar light is added to the pole
Often however, existing light poles are not appropriate for re-use for solar powered lights - What happens if there are cloudy days?
Electrical energy is stored in the battery each day, and some of that energy is used to operate the light at night. Generally, we design your system so that the battery will operate the light for five nights without charging. This means that, even after a series of cloudy days, there will be plenty energy in the battery to power the light each night. Also, the solar panel will continue to charge the battery (although at a reduced rate) even when it is cloudy.
- What is the typical maintenance schedule for a solar lighting system?
There is no regular maintenance required for a solar lighting system. However, it is helpful to keep the solar panels clean, especially in a dusty climate.
- How does shading from trees and buildings impact the solar lights?
Solar powered lighting requires a clear, unshaded view of the southern sky. Shade from trees and buildings is detrimental to solar lights and can lead to the light not working at the specified intensity for the specified amount of time.
- Do I have to charge the batteries?
Batteries are shipped 85% charged. The batteries will be at 100% charged within two weeks of proper operation.