Where buy high quality low voltage landscape lights ?

[Robert Neville]

I have had no problems with the Malibu Metal low voltage series for 18 months now. Cast aluminum construction seems to hold up just fine.

[willshak]

If you must know, I wasn't looking to buy patio lights, but I was passing through the aisles where they were displayed. I was in both stores that day and they are within sight of each other..

You don't remember the name of the plant that you planted on your property, and you criticized my memory?

[brooklyn1]

I never said I planted it, was there when I moved here. I've seen that plant at a local nursery but don't remember the name, of the plant, I know the name of the nursery. The original owner had little copper tags by many of the plants, that one is missing or may never have been. That plant could have been planted shortly after that deck was built, some twenty six years ago, not six days ago. Btw, I've been separating and planting pieces in unprotected areas, so far the deer and rabbits don't eat it.

This is the solar lamp I bought from Lowe's on 11/11/03, still works perfectly. I paid $35 for a set of two. I wouldn't coat the solar panels with anything as it may act like a sun screen one applies against sunburn, blocking the rays that recharge the batteries... I'd think modern auto waxes do contain a sunscreen to protect paint finishes.... clearly says any modification voids the warranty. It's very easy to replace the batteries, so far I'm still using the original batteries. Don't buy any B & D cordless vacuum, costs as much to change the battery pack as to buy a new unit.

Malibu makes cheaper (plastic) solar lights too, they also make low voltage lights, but these are made very substantially of cast aluminum and beautifully finished, I got the ones with the pewter finish:

When I bought them it was simply an impulse purchase, I did no research, they just looked nice and the price was right. Initially I wanted solar lights for markers at the foot of my driveway but soon realized it wouldn't be such a good idea as anyone passing could make off with them, so I put them in back at my deck.

[Dioclese]

I've had the same issue, as well as the plastic stakes being softer than the ground that they're pushed into (and the soil in my yard is very soft indeed.)

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Last box of these I bought, said right on the instructions not to pound into the earth. I used a length of 1/2" rebar for pounding out the holes here, and bending to the side and around in a conical fashion. The "stakes" are of conical shape. This works fine for installation here as long a I didn't overdo the size of the hole. Some hardware stores will sell you a 2' length of rebar. Soil here is rocky and very tough where lacking rock. Not rocket science....

[Dioclese]

The 2 models I"ve tried have lithim-ion batteries built-in.

The last set that quit, they just quit. No visible sign of why.

[Dioclese]

Absolutely. Low voltage lights were not meant for illumination, never were. They were meant as a general guide in pathways and driveways at night. They are also kind to the eyes at night, decorative in some perspective.

[RicodJour]

Lights that don't illuminate...? Well in that case you don't even have to wire the fixtures, just stick them in the ground. ;)

R

[Zephyr]

hey, all sarcasim aside, I just mentioned that for whatever it might be worth to someone else reading this thread later. I looked at my timer box, and it looks like they are malibu lights

cheap, yes, from the borg, yes, what you were asking about, no. but, like I said, just my 2 cents.

[KLS]

Those are lupines, a really nice perennial. No idea what variety, but yours are lovely!

[brooklyn1]

Thank you very much. I will write that in my gardening book.

[willshak]

on 6/9/2009 10:47 AM (ET) brooklyn1 wrote the following:

I never said I buffed and coated the panels 'out of the box'. The buffing and coating was done after they clouded over, as an experiment, like buffing plastic headlights when they cloud up, to see if they would regain their operation. They did for a while.

[Dioclese]

Your needs divulged, the subject line is inappropriate referring to your needs.

[PeterD]

Now if the OP had just been a Monty Python fan...

[Smitty Two]

Well, illuminating a flag atop a pole is pretty far down my priority list. I might get to it one day, after I alphabetize my soup cans. But when I was browsing HD recently I checked out the lumen specs on solar lights and they were just a shade less bright than a single briquette of glowing charcoal. I don't remember seeing any that were more than 10 or

12 lumens, which would be enough to read 24 point type by if you had about 50 of them focused on one spot. Tell me more about these new ones that you've found. Source? Manufacturer? Lumen spec?

[James]

those solar lights don't actually "illuminate" anything around them. They just glow in the dark.

[Dioclese]

He didn't say how tall the flagpole was, or its corresponding sized flag either. That could be a factor regardless the lumens stated. All ones for that purpose I've seen are using standard electrical power from a meter loop of some sort. They also have a focusing shroud around such a light. Said light is pointed at the top of the flagpole to cover all directions the flag could furl. Guess if you're wearing a low-light detection device, you could see such a flag illuminated by a solar-powered light.

[brooklyn1]

Yoose need to think outside your pointy little heads. Solar lighting has come a long way since the last time yoose opened your moth eaten miser purses. Harnessing solar power is the future, get used to it.

[Dioclese]

Guess its a matter of perspective. 20 watts of light ain't much. Guess you may be able to detect a flag atop a flagpole without low-light visual aids if you've been in the darkness for sometime. Depends how high the flagpole is too.

[trader4]

Took a quick look at the biggest spotlight at the above store that one might think would be best suited to get a decent amount of light for a flag on top of a pole. Look a the specs: 8 LEDS, 5 volts, plastic,

2lbs. If you're trying to make a case for solar, that sure ain't the way to do it. Stating the light output, how long it will maintain the light, etc would be a good start.

[Smitty Two]

Well, your first link is to commercial solar. We were talking about homeowner landscape lighting.

As to the second link, please select from that website, one self-contained solar-powered landscape light that lists lumen specs, so I don't have to go wading through the whole site to see what your point is.