It is a known fact that solar lights are trending a lot. While they may be most known for being cost-efficient, by installing and using them, you are also doing your part in conserving and saving the planet.

That said, it can be quite frustrating to find your solar powered lights not doing its job right. The most common issue being solar lights not working at night. But do you know that fixing it is rather simple?

Solar light works on sunlight, and if there is a lack of it or it is inconsistent, that could lead to lights either working inconsistently or not working at all. That, however, is just one reason your solar lights may not be working at night. There are several reasons your solar lights aren’t functioning optimally, and if you are looking for solutions, we have got you completely covered.

Solar Lights Not Working at Night: Possible Solutions 

We have listed several causes of why solar lights are not working at night, along with a solution for each.

1. Checking if the Unit Is Turned On

Let’s start with the obvious. As silly as it may sound, most of the time, even the simplest things could be the reason why things are not working properly.

What’s worse is that we often ignore the possible basic problems. People tend to assume that once they are done installing their lights, they are good to go.

Generally, solar lights have a button you need to switch on the first time for the lights to work at night. Check thoroughly if the switch is turned on. If it is on and the issue continues, we need to move on to the next tip.

2. Pulling the Tab on the Battery

A lot of people don’t know this, but when you buy a solar-powered light for the first time, there will be a pull tab on its battery. For the light to function normally, this tab must be removed. Take a look at whether the tab is still present or not on the battery; if it is, you need to pull it out.

3. Covering the Solar Panel

By logic, solar lights stay off during the day to convert light into energy and store that in the battery and then turn on during the night when it gets dark. If the lights haven’t turned on even after it has become dark, you can try covering your solar panel. If the lights finally turned on, then it is fairly clear that there is another source of light hitting the solar panel and tricking it into thinking that it is still daylight.

For example, if you have placed the solar panel too close to a street light, it can confuse that with sunlight. The solution is relatively simple. All you need to do is tweak the panel in such a way that no other light is hitting it. This should help the light to function normally again.

4. Changing the Position of the Solar Panel

The way you position your solar panel also makes a huge difference in the way the light works. For the solar lights to work normally, its panel should be positioned in a manner that is capable of absorbing as much sunlight as it can during the day. For the light to work in optimal conditions, the solar panel needs to be under direct sun for a minimum of six hours.

The best position to place the solar panel is by facing it towards the south. This way, the sunlight can be absorbed all day long from sunrise to sunset.

What also makes a difference is the angle you position it at. This becomes particularly important during winters where sunlight becomes lesser in the sky. If your solar light features an adjustable panel, then simply get it up to a 45-degree angle.

5. Cleaning the Solar Panel

Solar lights are mostly placed outside the house, which means that the panel gets covered in dust and dirt quite often. This dust and dirt can hinder or even prevent the panel from absorbing the sun’s rays. This makes a significant impact on the amount of the charge the battery can receive, which in turn affects the way the lights work.

As such, you must clean the solar panel every week. You can use a damp paper towel to wipe the dirt and dust away.

For more hardened dirt, you can dilute dishwashing liquid in water and gently wipe the panel clean. Make sure that you are not too aggressive with the cleaning, as you may end up damaging the solar panel. 

Solar Lights Not Working at Night? Here Are Some Solutions

It is a known fact that solar lights are trending a lot. While they may be most known for being cost-efficient, by installing and using them, you are also doing your part in conserving and saving the planet.

That said, it can be quite frustrating to find your solar powered lights not doing its job right. The most common issue being solar lights not working at night. But do you know that fixing it is rather simple?

Solar light works on sunlight, and if there is a lack of it or it is inconsistent, that could lead to lights either working inconsistently or not working at all. That, however, is just one reason your solar lights may not be working at night. There are several reasons your solar lights aren’t functioning optimally, and if you are looking for solutions, we have got you completely covered.

Solar Lights Not Working at Night: Possible Solutions 

We have listed several causes of why solar lights are not working at night, along with a solution for each.

1. Checking if the Unit Is Turned On

Let’s start with the obvious. As silly as it may sound, most of the time, even the simplest things could be the reason why things are not working properly.

What’s worse is that we often ignore the possible basic problems. People tend to assume that once they are done installing their lights, they are good to go.

Generally, solar lights have a button you need to switch on the first time for the lights to work at night. Check thoroughly if the switch is turned on. If it is on and the issue continues, we need to move on to the next tip.

2. Pulling the Tab on the Battery

A lot of people don’t know this, but when you buy a solar-powered light for the first time, there will be a pull tab on its battery. For the light to function normally, this tab must be removed. Take a look at whether the tab is still present or not on the battery; if it is, you need to pull it out.

3. Covering the Solar Panel

By logic, solar lights stay off during the day to convert light into energy and store that in the battery and then turn on during the night when it gets dark. If the lights haven’t turned on even after it has become dark, you can try covering your solar panel. If the lights finally turned on, then it is fairly clear that there is another source of light hitting the solar panel and tricking it into thinking that it is still daylight.

For example, if you have placed the solar panel too close to a street light, it can confuse that with sunlight. The solution is relatively simple. All you need to do is tweak the panel in such a way that no other light is hitting it. This should help the light to function normally again.

4. Changing the Position of the Solar Panel

The way you position your solar panel also makes a huge difference in the way the light works. For the solar lights to work normally, its panel should be positioned in a manner that is capable of absorbing as much sunlight as it can during the day. For the light to work in optimal conditions, the solar panel needs to be under direct sun for a minimum of six hours.

The best position to place the solar panel is by facing it towards the south. This way, the sunlight can be absorbed all day long from sunrise to sunset.

What also makes a difference is the angle you position it at. This becomes particularly important during winters where sunlight becomes lesser in the sky. If your solar light features an adjustable panel, then simply get it up to a 45-degree angle.

5. Cleaning the Solar Panel

Solar lights are mostly placed outside the house, which means that the panel gets covered in dust and dirt quite often. This dust and dirt can hinder or even prevent the panel from absorbing the sun’s rays. This makes a significant impact on the amount of the charge the battery can receive, which in turn affects the way the lights work.

As such, you must clean the solar panel every week. You can use a damp paper towel to wipe the dirt and dust away.

For more hardened dirt, you can dilute dishwashing liquid in water and gently wipe the panel clean. Make sure that you are not too aggressive with the cleaning, as you may end up damaging the solar panel. 

6. Dodging the Shadows

It is always best to avoid shadows, especially those falling on the solar panel during the day. Every three or four months, it is recommended that you monitor your solar panel throughout the day. That is to see whether at any point are there any shadows falling on the panel.

Solar panels installed at the peak of summer when the shadows tend to be shorter are most susceptible to the shade that seems to come out of nowhere as the sun gets lower in the sky.

7. Checking the Water Ingress

Water ingress is an obvious design flaw that solar light can suffer from. Well designed solar lights coming from expensive brands typically don’t face this issue. Nonetheless, you can look out for the light’s IP rating to know how well it can withstand against it.

Water is not necessarily a big problem since some solar lights allow the water to drain away without it reaching into areas of the unit that are sensitive to it. If you believe that water is the culprit why your solar lights are not working at night, then there are a couple of things you can try out.

For starters, remove any cover present since that could be holding in the moisture. Store all the parts, including the light, in a dry and well-ventilated area so that they can completely dry out. When you reassemble the unit, make sure all the parts are fully dry and double-check whether or not the batteries are properly seated.

If water ingress is the real reason for this issue, it is advisable that you check with the manufacturer since a properly installed solar light with a warranty will cover water ingress.

8. Replacing the Batteries

Solar lights have regular rechargeable batteries in them. All the energy that the solar panel gathers by absorbing the sun goes to that set of batteries.

Modern solar lights have Li-ion batteries, and these batteries must be rechargeable because they charge during the day and get discharged during the night when the light is turned on. Over time and use of the batteries, they will end up losing their charging capability.

The initial signs will be the runtime of the light reducing little by little even after charging for hours on a sunny day. After a point, the battery will be unable to even turn on the light at night. A good battery will last you anywhere between one or two years.

There have been batteries in solar lights that have worked perfectly for more than five years without replacing. We recommend replacing the batteries the minute you realize the light is not functioning correctly.

9. Deep Charging the Batteries

If so far, none of the tips worked out for you, then, you can always try out deep charging your batteries. Deep charging is basically a technique where you switch off your solar light from 72 to 96 hours. The solar panel continues to absorb the light even with the power is switched off and will continue charging the battery.

Regularly deep charging your batteries can prolong the life of the battery and make the light work better and last longer too. Nonetheless, it is necessary that you only do this technique when your lights are not working correctly.

10. Battery Seating or Stripping 

Speaking of batteries, another possible reason your solar lights may not be working at night is that the batteries are not appropriately fixed during the installation process. If the batteries are not touching the terminal contacts, all that sunlight the solar panel is absorbing is going to waste as the battery is incapable of getting charged.

If the loose battery is indeed the issue here, then you must deep charge your batteries before it can supply power to the light to function.

11. Check for the Presence of Animal Bites

It is not very uncommon to find the wildlife becoming a bit peckish and just nibbling any wires present in the solar lights. As annoying as this can be, the damage can easily be fixed by using electrical tape.

12. Tweaking the PIR (Passive Infra-Red) Dials

With a more advanced solar-powered light, especially solar powered security lights, you will find adjustable dials that can fine-tune any motion detection sensitivity. This helps the unit in stopping birds, cats, or other wildlife from unnecessarily triggering the light.

This isn’t a one size fits all sort of solution, though, since the height you are installing the light, the light’s distance from the motion that you want to detect, and even whether or not the motion is moving across the PIR’s field of view can altogether affect how this needs to be set.

To put it in simpler words, if the light is not activating when you require it to then, you need to start with maximum sensitivity and then start working back from there so that the solar light gets activated only when necessary.

It is quite clear that this process will need a bit of trial and error and also preferably with another person who can help in providing the motion when you are up the ladder so that you can get the job done as quickly as possible.

13. Using a Mains Charger

You could also try plugging a mains charger into the light or remove the batteries and charge them. While this may be a good idea, it can easily all go downhill if you aren’t using a compatible mains charger that you bought along with the light.

Keep in mind that solar panels tend to have a specific voltage. An incompatible mains charger may end up frying the circuitry or overcharging the batteries. If this happens, you have to kiss your solar lights goodbye and purchase a new one. If you are not sure and have certain doubts, always refer to your user manual or try to seek some clarification from the brand you got the solar light from.

14. Charging the Lights Behind a Glass

When we sit behind glass, we can feel the full effects of the sun, but this does not necessarily apply to solar panels. Double or triple glazed windows are becoming fairly common nowadays, and if you have placed the solar light behind glass, then the sun’s rays hitting the panel will be completely useless.

It is always a good idea to place the solar panel outside of any glass and in a spot that receives a good amount of sunlight. Keep in mind that the lesser the obstructions there are between the solar panel and the sunlight, the better the batteries will charge. This, in turn, will ensure that the lights stay lit all night long. 

When All Else Fails

If you have tried several of the tips above, but still, your lights do not work at night, then the best solution is to get in touch with the manufacturer and ask them to help. It is important to note that each brand tends to have a specific function that can be looked at by a professional only from that company. They will be able to decipher the issue and find a solution far more quickly.

Conclusion

Solar lights not working at night is not a big issue, and we are quite sure that at least one out of the several tips we have provided you with will definitely work. Make sure that you maintain your solar lights regularly so that they work in an optimal condition.