Solar May NOT be Your Best Option

We live in a part of the country that has a lot of sun (Austin, Texas area). And “solar power” is the hot new buzz word for shrinking your environmental footprint and contributing to a greener planet. I get it – we love the earth, too! But sometimes going solar isn’t necessarily the best choice for our green planet (or the green in your wallet).

Let me first say that I still don’t know of a good solar light fixture for a landscape lighting application.  There is not a single solar light on the market right now that I know of that produces enough light, with a nice color, that lasts long enough to do a good job for my clients.

However, we do build solar collection systems which can be used to operate the low voltage LED landscape lighting products that we use every day in our designs.  So far we’ve only done this on rare occasions because these systems are not always the best solution for putting in a GREEN outdoor lighting system.

A week or so ago we were contacted and asked if we could provide a solar lighting system for the entry to a subdivision near Austin which wanted to be very green. They really wanted to go with solar lighting and preferred not to utilize the regular electrical service in the area.  We were, as usual, very excited about the possibilities.  That is — right up until I arrived on site and took a look around.

There had been a high quality low voltage lighting system installed a couple of years ago, when the development first began.  When I say quality system, I mean that the installer used a really good transformer and a couple of great fixtures.  They put in good wire, as well, to all of the areas where lighting is needed.  The only problem was that they didn’t install it properly, so it just didn’t do a good job.  The homeowner’s association was willing to scrap the whole thing and start over with a new solar powered system — until I talked them out of it.

I explained that yes, solar can be an earth-friendly solution for lighting, but so is LED (which pretty much needs to be used in a solar system anyway).  I told them that I could design a beautiful lighting system at their small, nicely landscaped entryway using less than 100 watts of energy, which would be a very green lighting system indeed.  I said that I could use the current electricity supply, transformer and wire, instead of wasting those expensive materials, if they were willing to let go of the solar option. Re-use and re-cycle is a very green principle!  I further explained that the solar equipment they wanted to have installed would include a couple of pretty large batteries which would have to be replaced about every 5 years or so, which would not be very green.  AND there would be the extra cost of having to build the solar collection system needed for this project.  In this situation, the solar option would never pay for itself.  It was very evident that the greenest thing to do was to re-use some of their existing infrastructure, and install new quality LED lighting fixtures the right way instead of going with the solar option.  Of course, my company would have made a lot more money installing a solar system, but it just would not have been the right thing to do for them — or the environment, really.

We actually have a solar lighting system being installed very soon at a location where solar is indeed the best option.  There is no electrical service for a very long way, and putting in electricity would cost much more than the solar system.  The environmental impact of adding the electrical service would also be much worse.  In the subdivision location I spoke of earlier, this work had already been done, and the impact on the environment was already there; and replacing batteries every five years would have just added to that footprint.

Sometimes you have to look past the buzzwords to take in the whole picture and know what being green ultimately means. When looking at going green on a project, understand that taking a more conservative approach might be better for you and the earth than just being trendy. Check with experts before you make your final decision. Be smart, think long-term, and seriously consider which options can be the most effective with the least damage to the planet overall. Sometimes it might be greener to not be quite so green.

If you are in the greater Austin Texas or highland lakes area and you would like an objective opinion on whether a solar lighting system is what you need, contact us here.