The world is moving toward sustainability in every field, and one of these fields is the solar-powered streetlight. The hefty electricity bills and the significant carbon footprint with electricity production make solar energy a good option.
Explaining Solar Powered Street Lights
Solar streetlight is a type of light source that is powered by solar panels. They are attached to the top of the poles, and these poles also have integrated lights that are illuminated with the help of the power generated by the panels. These lights turn on and off automatically in the night and during the day respectively.
Today, with the advancement of science and technology, these come with wireless technology, auto control, and less maintenance making them one of the most opted renewable light sources for countries all around the world. The solar-powered streetlight will have a solar panel, a rechargeable battery, a lightning source such as an LED, and a pole where everything is fixed. To know more about the solar-powered street lights, click here.
Advantages of Solar Powered Street Lights
There are numerous advantages of these streetlights that are being installed all around the world. Some of these are mentioned below:
- Sustainable and Environment-Friendly
The most significant advantage of having these streetlights is its impact on the carbon footprint. It is a sustainable source of energy and the most environment-friendly option that one can go for. It substantially reduces the use of electricity that takes a lot of fuel for production. Hence having this streetlight is a step towards sustainable development goals.
- Easy To Install and Less Maintenance
The panels for the streetlight do not need any wiring to install. They need to be connected to the light bulb and the pole. No long wires are joining them to the power source. Hence it is much easier to install. Also, maintenance is more manageable. Since there are no wires, the incidents or broken cable are very little, reducing the maintenance on that front.
There is also lesser maintenance overall with these streetlights once installed. Additionally, there are lesser chances of accidents caused due to short-circuiting or while fixing the wiring of the light source.
- Not Dependent On Any Source of Electricity
The normal streetlights are dependent on electric power. However, these are only reliant on the sun. Hence even if there is a power cut or shortage, these will work and illuminate the area around your neighborhood. One of the biggest advantages of having these streetlights is that these are independent of any electricity source, making them much more useful.
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- Long Term Economic Advantage
The solar panels, once installed, give unlimited energy. Hence these lights, once installed, will be your source of illumination forever with some maintenance. Also, since these are powered by the sun, which is free of cost, no electricity cost has to be burnt by you or your local authorities.
Anything that runs on solar energy has a long-term economic advantage to provide the user as the only investment you make here is the one that is done during installation and maintenance.
Are There Any Disadvantages?
There are two faces to a coin; advantages come with some disadvantages. The disadvantages of these lights are, however, manageable and are easily overridden by the advantages and hence making them better options than the normal streetlights. Some disadvantages that people experience include:
- Risk Of Theft
As we mentioned in the advantages, there are no wires on the panels. This means that they are much more prone to get stolen. One of the biggest disadvantages of installing these is that it becomes very easy for the thieves to take these away and sell them in the market since the parts used to make the panels are priced high.
- The problem in Operation Because of Weather Conditions
Another disadvantage can be the problem caused due to various weather conditions such as snowfall, humidity, strong winds, and another such natural phenomenon. These things can hinder the working of the panels and hence make them useless until fixed. However, there are solutions to each of these issues where a lot of companies design solar panels that can sustain even harsher weather, such as strong winds and typhoons.
- High Initial Investment And Constant Maintenance
Another disadvantage of solar streetlight is that it has a high cost of installation. The solar panels are costly and hence makes the overall cost of installation higher than the normal streetlights. In addition to this, the batteries in the panels also need replacement and maintenance regularly, which can be a hassle for some people. A lot of people consider these streetlights to be of high maintenance and hence avoid installing them.
A lot of companies such as Caribbean Solar Street Light solutions provide good products that can be suitable for hurricane-driven areas, and even if there are more investments required, the cost-benefit analysis makes it worth the money.
All of these disadvantages can be considered as technological disadvantages that come with any new or old technology. Despite them, solar-powered lights are suitable for all kinds of places around the world that receive regular sunlight.
Once charged, it can work continuously for two to three days, depending on the size of the panel attached to it. With the world moving towards a much more sustainable future, it is imperative that we should also start adapting to the new renewable sources of light, such as solar power, and create an eco-friendly environment.
Summing It Up
It can be seen above that there are a lot of advantages of solar-powered streetlights and installing them in your neighborhood means having night lights throughout the night without having to depend on electric power.
A lot of different solar panels are designed by companies that are suitable for different weather conditions and can be installed, keeping in mind one’s special needs. So, everyone should consider getting solar-powered streetlight for their neighborhood.
