Adding Warm Solar LED Lights Posts + Solar Tree Lights

Today’s post is all about solar LED lights! The ones that work, the ones that are warm LED solar lights, not a cold blue. This project has been on my to-do list for months, you know, along with all the other home projects and I am so glad I pulled the trigger and this project is complete!

I wanted to share a few tips, resources and some important steps if you want to install these solar LED lamp posts in your front or backyard.

Vinyl Lamp posts / Kemeco LED Aluminum Solar Post Light

Reasons we decided to go solar –

1. We have flood irrigation (our property floods a few inches for deep watering since we live on a former citrus grove) so underground hardwire landscape lighting didn’t make sense. Electricity and water, no no. I do remember that from grade school. *wink*
2. Our backyard faces south, plenty of sunlight to charge.
3. Easy, very DIY. But we did get help from a handyman to dig the concrete pole.
4. It’s free (like no electricity bill).

OK, do you feel like you’re ready? Then let’s talk about some important steps to take before you tell your handyman (or husband) to dig and pour the concrete!

3 very important steps with the solars –

1. Set the lamps where you think you want them to be for 24 hours. Let them get a full day of sun – like set them out the night before. This will determine if this is a good spot for the solar lights. Our backyard is south facing so it gets sun year-round. I would love solar lights in the front of our home however it would have to be far from our actual house to avoid being in the shade so the backyard was perfect for this!
2. Consider the trees –
   1. If they are evergreen. Summer time the sun stays out so much longer, while winter time it gets darker sooner and the leaves fall so I just want to make sure my lights get used when I really want them – which is winter since here in the summer in Phoenix we don’t go out because it’s still 100 at night.
   2. Also tree age and potential size. If they are new trees (like we have) consider how big the tree will get and if it will obstruct the sunlight it will get to charge.
3. Look at it at night. Turn on all the outside lights and see where it’s dark in your yard. Note: Some solars lamps have an on switch so make sure you turn them on (I forgot and suddenly I realized it). I like that you can turn them off too!

This is where we decided to put them and this is at dusk. You can see how bright they will be. Ignore my ugly garden beds I was in the middle of pepping them for fall.

I also added these solar lanterns around the yard, right by the patio that also gets full sun.

So we had our handyman mount them but also add brick around the based since we wanted to protect it a little bit from the lawn mower, edger, and well, everything.

Here it is, the after!

Vinyl Lamp posts / Solar Post Light

It really illuminates the garden area so well! Having the light bounce off the white wall by the garden sink helps with more illumination and I added some solar LED light stakes to add uplighting to our fruit trees in the area which also adds a ton of light to our area! They came in a pack of 4 for just $48, and I ordered another set of 4 off Amazon!

Cost breakdown –

$200        Vinyl Lamp posts on Amazon ($100 each)
$200        Solar Post Light on Amazon ($100 each)
$400        Handyman labor + materials (he did a little extra garden work too)
$86          Solar LED light stakes, Set of 4 (ordered 2 sets) for up lighting on fruit trees
______
$886 TOTAL

It cost more than I thought due to the labor so if you have a handy husband that will be cheaper of course. We were a bit more complex with our asking since our handyman added a brick base for us so that cost us a little more labor time. But I love it!

And below the uplighting on the trees are Solar LED light stakes, Set of 4.

We love to see the glow of the garden from the inside of our house now instead of pitch black. The solars don’t last all night but by the time we go to bed they are usually still going and we just need the light for a few more hours of entertaining outside when the sun sets anyway.

Hope you like it as much as we do! Thanks for being here!