Not ready to take the plunge just yet? Still a bit skeptical about making a purchase? It’s completely normal especially if you’re new to solar lighting. Below are a few factors to help give you the nudge.
Which solar deck lights are the best? That depends on what you’re looking for. Below, we take a look at the best solar deck lights for different uses.
1. Best overall solar deck light: Solar Deck Lights by Lansow
Put all of these styles together, and what is the best overall solar deck light? We’ll want to balance brightness with convenient installation, long-lasting and a diverse applicability.
Overall, the Lansow Solar Deck Lights from the “Best Solar Deck Step Lights” section is the winner here. It can be applied on steps, railings, posts or fences. These are IP65 rated with 20 lumens and will last all night. They’ll provide the ambience you’re looking for and are bright enough to provide some safety to your yard. One step installation and the good warranty seal the deal here.
Pros
- Easy installation anywhere on a deck
- Full waterproofing with the warranty to back it up
- 20 lumens for ambience AND safety
- 8-10 hours of lighting a night
Cons
- White plastic body
- Must be angled towards the sun
These may be advertised primarily as step lights, but they will easily mount wherever they are needed and will provide the ambience and safety that you are looking for.
2. Best Solar Deck Step Light: Solar Deck Lights by Lansow
Solar step lights need to be bright enough to let you see the steps, and out of the way enough to not trip you on the way up or down them. Plus, they should mount easily and provide ambiance to the space.
Lansow has provided a nice option here, with IP 65 rated waterproofing on their 20 lumens lighting. These warm white OR cool white lights mount easily on the vertical part of the stair with a slim profile. It’s best to mount them near the top of the stair to get them as much sun as possible. They can last 8-10 hours after a sunny day, and will turn themselves on at dusk.
Pros
- Proper weather proofing for durability
- 20 lumens is perfect for stairs
- Quick and easy installation
- Great warranty and guarantee
Cons
- The white plastic body is not the prettiest
- The angle of the solar panel might limit these to stairs that face the sun
Overall, these are hard to beat for the best solar deck step lights out there. Snap them in place and let there be light!
3. Best Solar Deck Lights with Motion Sensor: SEZAC Motion Sensor Security Lights
If you do not want your solar lights on all night, a motion sensor is a great addition to a solar deck light. The best solar deck lights with motion sensors will still have the ability to last for many hours and will be easy to install.
These bright solar deck lights from SEZAC is exactly what you need to keep your deck safe when you walk outside. They are quite bright, and have a 16 foot motion sensor range. This lets you feel comfortable that when you walk outside, the lights will come on and show you the way! They are aesthetically pleasing and easy to install. They can also be easily turned into “always on” solar lights with the press of a button.
Pros
- IP65 waterproofing
- Very bright for safety and convenience
- Single-screw installation
- Can be turned to “always on”
Cons
- Only turn on for 20 seconds without constant motion
- Battery cannot be replaced
With the right brightness and 16 feet of range, safety and function combine for a powerful motion sensor deck light. And if you want to sit under them for a while, a quick button press gets you consistent lighting at two brightnesses. What stops these from being “Best Overall” is simply that most deck lights do not need to be this bright!
4. Best Solar Deck Post Cap Light: Solar Post Cap Lights by FOOYANCHO
The top of your deck railing posts can be the best spot to place solar lighting. When looking for solar deck post cap lights, you will want to find easy to install bright lights with big batteries.
These 400 lumen lights from FOOYANCHO check all the boxes. They are IP65 waterproof and come with a large battery for a few nights of lighting from one day of charging. You can pick cool white or warm white based on your desires. The innovative and slick design allows for a very large solar panel while still being aesthetically pleasing. They will turn themselves on and off based on the light outside and will certainly add to the ambience of your yard.
Pros
- Durable materials and waterproofing
- Quick installation
- Removable light and solar panel section
- 3-5 nights of battery power!
- 3 year warranty
Cons
- The aesthetics may not be for you
The only thing stopping this light from being the “Best Overall” is the lack of applicability to anything other than posts. As a post light, it is unmatched.
5. Best Solar Deck Rail Lights: Solar Deck Lights by Melunar
Mounted right on top of a railing, the light shines down over onto your fence or stairs. The best solar deck rail lights provide accent lighting and a gorgeous atmosphere to your outdoor space.
Melunar has provided an inexpensive option that provides an interesting light pattern in warm white. These allow you to set them to rotate colors for more excitement around your deck. At 10 lumens, these lights are bright enough to provide some safety while not being distractingly bright. They’re waterproof and last 8 hours, turning themselves on and off based on ambient lighting!
Pros
- Replaceable battery
- Easy to mount on top of the railings
- Provides ambiance and interesting lighting patterns
- 8 hours of lighting every night
Cons
- 10 lumens may be on the low side
- Lighting is either white or rotating colors – can’t select a single color
- IP 55 is not as good as IP 65 for waterproofing
If you need a railing mounted light, this product is a strong choice. Not having IP65 rating is a concern, to be fair.
Material and build – Waterproof – Will it Last?
We have all been there before. You buy some adorable looking solar deck lights and you just can’t wait to put them up and start relishing their benefits. A few days later and they start flickering like crazy until they finally give in and stop working completely. It was probably because they were manufactured using cheap flimsy material. Durability is synonymous with quality. And so our best solar deck lights made from the best quality materials will naturally last a bit longer and save you the hassle of having to replace the solar lights every now and then. And even though they might not last a lifetime, they should at the very least be waterproof.
Warranty – Am I covered?
This one is a given. A no compromise if I might add. You might buy a flimsy solar deck light and have to return it for repairs or replacement and without the warranty, it’ll be a long shot. However, you should know that while there’s a 12-month limited warranty covering solar deck lamps, it doesn’t include halogen light bulbs and batteries. So, if those aren’t in working condition, you’ll have to churn out cash to get new ones.
DIY Solar Deck Lighting
With affordability in mind, you might want to look into whether you can do a DIY solar deck lighting. Awaken that inner DIY master in you and save yourself a little cash while at it.
Plug-n-Play Technology advantages
Solar powered deck lights have come a long way in recent years. And thanks to technological advances, poor quality solar powered lights are now close to non-existent. From attractive feature lighting to security, you should ensure that you keep an eye out for advancements in technology and their benefits.Related Article: Best Solar Power Bank
What Types of Best Solar Deck Lights Are There?
Solar Deck Post Lights – 4×4, 5×5 and 6×6 Post Cap Lights
These lights are meant to add style and light to your entrance, deck and backyard fence. You can choose between solar deck post cap lights 4×4, 5×5 solar fence post lights or the solar post cap lights 6×6.
Solar Deck Rail Lights – Safety In Mind
These solar deck rail lights illuminate your perimeter and help both you and your guests find their way to the entrance. They also enhance safety by brightening area’s that can be troublesome.
Solar Deck Step Lights – Garden Accents
Whether you want to accent your beautiful garden and flower bed, light the paths and stairs that led to your house or just pump up security by a notch, the solar deck step lights are your best shot. Moreover, they also light your porch, deck, and driveway too and save you tons of money that you would have otherwise spent on electricity bills.
Solar Deck Lights Flush Mount – Gorgeous Soft Glow
Solar deck light flush mounts are solar powered lights that mount flush to the deck to provide ample lighting without obstruction. They allow for a gorgeous soft glow without any electricity or wiring. All you need to do is mount and install them for ambient lighting. They come with in-built sensors that automatically turn on the light when darkness sets in and provide up to 10 hours of light when fully charged.
Solar Fence Lights – Low Maintenance
Effective, affordable and low maintenance. That’s a great place to start when talking about the solar fence post caps. These lights will illuminate your deck, lawns, front porch, balcony, garage, vegetable patch, shed and plenty of other places around your homestead.
Brightness
If brightness is a really big deal to you, you may want to check out the lumens on the lights as they are the key to brightness. Don’t get tempted to go for ridiculously high lumens though. Sometimes all you need is a light that’ll offer from between 15 to 30 lumens or an equivalent of 4 square feet radius.
Number of Lights and why it’s important
Having just a single beam flashing light on the deck is not the most enjoyable thongs ever. In fact, it can be quite a nuisance especially if it ends up blinding everyone around. Instead, it’s useful to have numerous lights at different points to help you find your way around without stumbling over things.
Rechargeable Batteries and how long they last
This is quite straightforward really. While the solar panels are powered by sunshine, they later generate that electricity and store it in the solar light batteries for discharge when it gets dark outside. Meaning that batteries are your lifeline when you want to spend some quality time out on the deck at night. These batteries typically last for a period of 2 years after which they can no longer hold enough energy to light the deck anymore.Related Article: Best Rechargeable Batteries in Solar Lights
Changeable Settings for multiple uses
It’s easy to presume that this is an obvious basic requirement for the best solar deck light. But this might come as a surprise to you. It’s not. However, to be on the safe side, it’s always nice to have an adjustable solar deck light so that you can add things like motion detection when the need arises.
Range – what’s realistic?
To be a good enough to make our best solar deck light list, you have to cover a large enough area. The last thing you want is to realize that you’ll barely achieve the kind of lighting that you were hoping to.
Enhance Safety for Guests
One more thing to keep in mind when outfitting your deck with solar deck lights is safety. Solar lights tend to be naturally much dimmer compared to electric lights which mean they are more inclined towards the ambiance side rather than safety. So, if you want a little bit of both, you can invest in some deck post cap lights but use electric lights for safety.
Hours of illumination – How long will they stay illuminated?
The number of hours our best solar deck lights stay illuminated is dependent on low long they received sunshine. To give you a better perspective, without any clouds, a sufficient stretch of the sun of say up to 6 hours might generate light for up to 15 hours straight.
