Can We Use Solar Flood Lights on Putting Green?
Yes, the solar flood lights can be used on putting green area. It is recommended to use solar lights in sports facility because it is more environmentally friendly. It utilizes renewable energy (sunlight) to power up the lights.
Nowadays, the energy conversion efficiency of solar panel is improved. We can light the putting green for around 3 to 8 hours after the solar batteries are fully charged. This is adequate for most golfers.
When the putting green facility gets dark, the floodlights will be ready to illuminate the field. The lights can be switched on automatically if your solar putting green lights have dust to dawn function.
How Does Solar Lights Work?
Solar flood lights contain the rechargeable battery and photocell. The solar battery can be recharged during daytime. Once the light intensity falls below the specific lux threshold in the evening, the photocell will trigger the lights to turn on. It would be convenient for greenskeepers as they don’t need to switch the lights on/off manually. The solar lighting system will work on its own when the putting green gets dark.
Pros and Cons of Using Outdoor Solar Putting Green Lights
Before purchasing the solar lighting system for putting green, you may wish to know the pros and cons. Indeed, every system has its advantages and limitations; that’s why there are so many types of lighting available on the market.
Pros
1. No Underground Wiring Needed
By using solar lights, we can avoid destroying the putting green turf since it doesn’t need underground wiring. Instead, we can just insert the solar light poles into the greens, which takes around 30 seconds to complete.
2. No Electricity Cost
You don’t need to pay for electricity anymore if you use 100% solar lighting on putting green. The solar lighting system can work on its own, it doesn’t need external power source.
Since we are talking about lighting up the spacious putting green, we can save $2,000 to $20,000 electricity cost per year depending on the size of the golf field.
3. Dusk to Dawn Function
Dusk to dawn means that the lights will be turned on at night and turned off in the morning. The photocell is a sensor that detects the lighting intensity, or lux level. If it senses the environment is too dark, then the lights will be turned on automatically.
In order to achieve the best outcome, we can even set the lux threshold to trigger the lights to turn on/off. Thus, the lighting control is more flexible.
4. Low Voltage LED Lights for Putting Green
Solar LED lights are using 12V DC low voltage, which prevents the golfers from getting an electric shock. When compared to the conventional 120V or 240V AC, the 12V putting green lights are much safer especially in rainy days. It is very unlikely to get an electric shock even if we accidentally touch the 12V solar lights with wet hands.
Cons
1. Cannot Charge Quick in Cloudy Days
Solar light needs sunshine to charge. If the light intensity is not strong enough, the solar battery can only be charged very slowly. The bright sunlight has around 100,000 lux, which is perfect for solar battery charging; however, the overcast day has 2,000 lux only, which is 1/50 of sunlight. Thus, the battery can barely charge in cloudy days.
So, solar light is not your best choice if your putting green is always shady. Instead, we will need to look for the conventional high mast lighting.
2. Need to Clean the Solar Panel Frequently
Dust may be deposited on the solar panel surface. It would affect the energy conversion efficiency as the sunlight is partially blocked. Thus, it is required to clean the solar panel regularly. Depending on the air pollution level in your state, we can remove the dust on the solar lights for every 3 months, 6 months or 12 months.
If you find that the solar battery drains fast at night, it is time to clean the solar panel. This is because the battery can’t be fully charged if the solar panel is blocked.
When cleaning the solar putting green lights, we can use water and mild detergent. Remember, never use pressure washer to clean the lights because it may damage the delicate parts such as the lens and LED chips.
How to Select the Best Solar Lights for Putting Green
There are so many solar putting green lighting products available in the market. Now the question is – how to select the best one? We can look at various factors when choosing the solar lights.
1. Energy-Efficient LED Solar Flood Lights
The first and foremost thing we need to consider is the lighting efficiency. A good solar light should have the luminous efficacy of 130 to 150 lumens per watt. The higher the luminous efficacy, the longer the using time under the same battery capacity. If you need to extend the using time of the solar lights on golf putting green, we can even select the 200 lumens per watt models; however, it would be more expensive for such the high energy efficiency.
2. The Putting Green Light Pole with Cup and Ball Holders
When choosing the putting green hole lights, we can see if the light pole includes the cup and ball holders. The golfers can reach their drinks and spare golf balls easily. The cup holder is particular useful in summer because the golfers can easily keep hydrated.
3. Long Life Span
The lifespan of the solar lights should be between 50,000 and 150,000 hours, depending on the type of LED chip used. As it would be very costly to replace all putting green lights, it is recommended to purchase the lights that lasts very long. What does 150,000 hours mean? If we intend to turn on the lights for 8 hours per day, the solar putting green light can last for around 51 years. Thus, it is worthwhile to use LED lights in golf course even though the initial cost is high.
4. Battery Life
Battery life is one of the most important specifications of solar lights. Nowadays, the solar LED lights can provide 3 to 8 hours continuous illumination, depending on the watts and battery capacity of the lights.
5. Large Solar Panel
When selecting the solar lighting system for putting green, please make sure to buy a large-size solar panel, because it can charge faster. Normally, the large panel receives more sunlight.
6. Watt and Lumens
How many watts and lumen do you need for putting green lights? Generally speaking, we can use 10 to 50 watts LED (1,500 to 7,500 lumens) per putting green hole. It should provide adequate brightness near the golf flag.
7. Intelligent Lighting Control
We can switch on/off and adjust the brightness of the putting green lights by smartphone, thanks to the intelligent lighting control system. The system utilizes wireless DMX protocol & WiFi to transmit signal to the lights. It saves your effort and time when it comes to golf course lighting control.
Conclusion
We can use solar lighting system on putting green. It is a good lighting solution because it is energy-saving and easy to install. We can also minimize the running cost and installation.
