Bought one, love it, but if fully charged, it will stay on for say, 7 hours, then go off sometime in night, but in AM, while the panel is INSIDE, not exposed to any direct light, if I cover the panel for even one second, when I uncover the panel, the light will go on full strength. It's like the light when out before it used all it's energy from panel. Is this normal? Bought one, love it, but if fully charged, it will stay on for say, 7 hours, then go off sometime in night, but in AM, while the panel is INSIDE, not exposed to any direct light, if I cover the... » Read More Bought one, love it, but if fully charged, it will stay on for say, 7 hours, then go off sometime in night, but in AM, while the panel is INSIDE, not exposed to any direct light, if I cover the panel for even one second, when I uncover the panel, the light will go on full strength. It's like the light when out before it used all it's energy from panel. Is this normal? « Show Less
1538887
Jana, Thank you for your purchasing. The light also use the solar panel as a light sensor. if you put the panel indoor in daytime, the lux indoor still can make the panel works(very small current), and the circuit will think it still in day time and the led light is off. But if you cover the panel by sth. , the panel will no output, and the circuit will think it is at night and will let the light on.And since it is in winter, the sunshine is not so powerful to full charge the battery inside in many area. In summer, the working time will be longer.
1538888
Mine does similar, will be out, then come on after headlights briefly hit the panel
1538889
Yes...it's a goofy light. Does what you said which is not by design. I had it outside for security but it didn't work as described. It's in my garage and for some reason works and then doesn't work. If I could grab the engineer by the throat and have him explain why this doesn't work...I'd be happy.
1882770
Not sure. If my panel gets sun all day in the summer, I've still seen the light on at 4:30 in the morning. It varies from day to day, depending on the time of year and clouds, etc. My panel isn't doing as well in the winter. The girls are in the dark by 2 AM.
1743630
Haven't Opened mine up so I can't help you. You might be on to something as it seems to Over Charge my Battery during the warmer months. My Solar Panel Controller does not seem to be able to account for this properly so I am forced to disconnect the Solar Panel for awhile when this happens. I plan to open mine up & look once it warms up again & the snow is gone for the season.
157919
Seems like it will last all night if you have it in full sunlight during the day. Mine gets less than 6 hours during the day and is still on, though it be dim at 4am.
1070666
Yeah that's normal. Charge it overnight. That's actually a good sign. A slow charge is better. Same with mine. 6-8 hours.
476662
From what I can tell so far, when running continuous on high, the battery only last around an hour. But that probably isnt real accurate. My uses are on and off a lot. I dont usually run it for more than a few minutes at a time. I do know that this light does get hot to the touch when its been on for an extended period of time.
1585347
I've been testing mine since this question came in, 4 hours continuous use of the 3 LEDs since I turned it on (i.e. unplugged it from power) earlier today to do a test. It's still "on" and still quite bright after that time. I rely on these (I have 2 of them in the house) to come on automatically in an outage, and help me find my way to my stash of brighter flashlights and other emergency supplies. They do cast plenty of light for that and other basic purposes. If you REALLY don't want to be in the dark though, consider having additional sources of battery-powered light in your emergency kit. As we've all learned recently, it may be days rather than hours that you'll want some light. I've been testing mine since this question came in, 4 hours continuous use of the 3 LEDs since I turned it on (i.e. unplugged it from power) earlier today to do a test. It's still "on" and still quite bright after that time. I rely on these (I have 2 of them in the house) to come on automatically in an outage, and help me find my way to my stash of brighter flashlights and other emergency supplies. They do cast plenty of light for that and other basic purposes. If you REALLY don't want to be in the dark though, consider having additional sources of battery-powered light in your... » Read More I've been testing mine since this question came in, 4 hours continuous use of the 3 LEDs since I turned it on (i.e. unplugged it from power) earlier today to do a test. It's still "on" and still quite bright after that time. I rely on these (I have 2 of them in the house) to come on automatically in an outage, and help me find my way to my stash of brighter flashlights and other emergency supplies. They do cast plenty of light for that and other basic purposes. If you REALLY don't want to be in the dark though, consider having additional sources of battery-powered light in your emergency kit. As we've all learned recently, it may be days rather than hours that you'll want some light. « Show Less
1597574
It depends on how often the light is triggered, and how much sun the solar panel receives when it's not rainy. If it's light, but overcast (or rainy) the panel will charge the light, but not as much as the panel in full sunlight.My panel and light are mounted in a location that does not get much traffic, and the light is not often triggered. I imagine that the batteries remain pretty charged, but I couldn't say what would happen if the light was triggered often, and the panel didn't receive full sunlight for a long period of time.
1128694
Erin , seems like the light is on just right after you connected with the charger, then will be gone,never had any issue once is charged , lots of hours working without charging, enjoy it !!
352082
It is possible its just very dim, but so far as I've seen, it just comes on after dark, and doesn't shut off on its own. I can't say if it is just impossible to see in the sunlight or shuts off in the sun.
1731298
The item is shipped with the switch turned off. You have to remove the plastic film on top of the solar panel and turn the switch "on". It will automatically light at night and will re-generate during the day under the sun. If there's not enough sunlight where you put it, it may not give you a bright light at night. Hope this answer your question.
1535493
Before you return, try resting it by a window to charge the solar cells. I have found that if I don't use it for a while it may not come on until it gets a few minutes "in the sun". I think that it should not do that but after 10-15 minutes it was functioning, and for weeks.
31360
the only thing that I can think of is that it didnt get enough sunlight ....mine work fine have had them for a couple months now just make sure it has direct sunlight for 6-7 hrs a day and stays lite most of the night ... if not then it is probably defective solar panel
1411309
My light (green) stay's on when charging. It goes off when complete. Mine only blinks when the battery is low. It sounds as if your battery might be faulty.I never use tech support on anything. They usually know less about their products than we do!
837958
The panel does not output 5W like the specs and other reviewers suggest. The integrated *battery pack* outputs 5W, but the panel itself seems to only output in the range of 1W to 1.5W.From the specs directly from the manufacturer, the battery is 2200mah, and it takes the panel 10 hours to charge it. If you work the math out, that means it charges 220mah per hour, which would be 220ma of current @ around 5V (maybe slightly higher?), 5v * .22a = 1.1WJust because the unit has the capability to output at 5W, doesn't mean it can collect power from the sun comparable to a 5W panel. The panel does not output 5W like the specs and other reviewers suggest. The integrated *battery pack* outputs 5W, but the panel itself seems to only output in the range of 1W to 1.5W.From the specs directly from the manufacturer, the battery is 2200mah, and it takes the panel 10 hours to charge it. If you work the math out, that means it charges 220mah per hour, which would be 220ma of current @ around 5V (maybe slightly higher?), 5v * .22a = 1.1WJust because the unit has the capability to output at 5W, doesn't mean it can collect power from the sun comparable to a... » Read More The panel does not output 5W like the specs and other reviewers suggest. The integrated *battery pack* outputs 5W, but the panel itself seems to only output in the range of 1W to 1.5W.From the specs directly from the manufacturer, the battery is 2200mah, and it takes the panel 10 hours to charge it. If you work the math out, that means it charges 220mah per hour, which would be 220ma of current @ around 5V (maybe slightly higher?), 5v * .22a = 1.1WJust because the unit has the capability to output at 5W, doesn't mean it can collect power from the sun comparable to a 5W panel. « Show Less
916829
From my experience, as long as the unit is attached to the charger and AC is active, the light stays on. I usually plug it in only when the unit seems low and leave it plugged in overnight.
682312
There is an "On" setting. If the Solar Panel is in direct sunlight then I'd assume that the light would stay on for quite a while.