It’s important to remember that solar lights will still charge in winter, though it will not be as quickly or as efficiently as during the summer months when the hot sun sends out all those intense light waves for more hours.
Ultraviolet light from the sun will penetrate the clouds and still hit those solar panels in the yard on just about any day, even in wintery, cloud-covered months.
If you get snow in your region during the winter months, you’ll need to do a few things to keep the light powering up the panels.
First, you’ll need to regularly clear the snow from your solar panels and light faces. This simply requires a gentle removal of the snow with a brush that has soft bristles or a soft cloth that won’t damage the solar cells.
Second, during winter months, you may want to relocate your solar panels to avoid shadows. Winter days have shorter daylight hours, which means longer, more frequent shadows.
Position the solar panels to the south to collect the most light.
If you have panels that swivel or tilt, you can reposition them throughout the day (generally at noontime as the sun shifts toward a descent) to ensure the panel gets as much sunlight as possible.
It’s not just that the sun is out for less time in the winter…it’s the fact that snow can cover the panels, rendering them useless! Make sure to clear yours of snow as often as possible. (And be safe!)
