What To Do When Garden Solar Lights Stop Working? 4 Fixes
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Solar garden lights are a great way to provide outdoor lighting and beautification. But it becomes frustrating when they stop working.
If you’re going through same problem than this article is for you. In this article, I have shared what to do when garden solar lights stop working? so let’s dive in.
Why has my garden solar lights stopped working?
The first thing to know is why are your solar lights for garden have stopped working. There can be many reasons to why your solar garden lights go bad. All such reasons are listed below.
1. Dead Batteries
The first and biggest reason for garden solar lights not working is the end of the life cycle of rechargeable garden solar lights batteries installed in your solar powered outdoor garden lights i.e. the batteries have become dead.
A dead battery is said to be dead when no new chemical reaction takes place in them and cannot convert the energy into electricity.
2. Panel problem
Second major reason for your solar garden lights not functioning is there is a problem with the solar panels of your solar lights. The problem can be dust on the panels, cloudy solar lights panels, fault in the panels due to which they are not generating electrical charge.
When electrical charge will not be produced, the rechargeable batteries will not charge making the solar garden lights disfunction.
3. Circuit fault
Third possible reason for your outdoor solar lights for garden not lighting up can be a fault in their circuit boards. A faulty circuit board will not let the current to go to the LEDs and even to the batteries.
Many circuit boards also have loose soldering which can also be the cause of not working of garden LED solar powered lights. This will keep the lights to not function.
4. Malfunctioning switches
In most of the solar garden lights you will find a switch to turn it ON/OFF. A malfunctioning switch can also be a reason for bad functioning of sun powered garden LED lights.
The reasons for malfunctioning switches can be corrosion on the wires connecting the circuits to switches.
How to revive solar garden lights?
Now you know why your solar powered LED garden lights are not functioning it’s time to know how do you revive solar garden lights? There is no one fix solution to this. You will need to check all the things to make your solar powered lights for garden work again.
I have listed down all the possible solutions to fix garden lights below.
1. Change batteries
The first thing you can do to fix garden solar lights is try changing the batteries. Open the garden LED solar lights and see what type of rechargeable batteries are installed in them. Most probably you will find NiCd or NiMH rechargeable batteries in them.
Take them out and replace it with a new one.
2. Fix panels
Second garden solar lights fix you can do is fixing the solar panels of your garden solar lights. If there is dust on them wash and clean them, remove oxidation from panels if they have become cloudy, or if there is some technical issue get new panels.
3. Fix PCBs
Third option is to identify faults in the circuit boards of the garden solar LED lights and fixing them.
If you can’t find a fix, try replacing the circuit boards. Solar lights circuit boards are available online and offline. Get a new one and replace it if you find a problem in the circuit boards.
4. Replace switches
Last fix you can try to troubleshoot garden solar powered LED lights is replacing the corroded malfunctioning switches with new ones.
Here is a video I found on Orbiter Electronics YouTube channel on how he repaired his garden solar lights. I found it very interesting and helpful.
Conclusion
Solar powered garden lights fixtures are a great option for illuminating outdoors. But as time passes-by they also become faulty and sometimes stop working.
By following the steps I mentioned above I am sure you will be able to repair your garden LED solar lights again.