The most dynamic kind of landscape illumination for your lake home is the spotlights. Solar spotlights can bring outdoor lighting to the next level. They do that by eliminating the extra hassle of cords and switches associated with most yard spotlights. The proper lighting will not only make your lake home visually stimulating at night, but they are also necessary for prosper safety of your family and guest.
In this article we are going to cover Boat Dock Lighting and General Landscape Lighting for your lake house.
Boat Dock Lighting
You definitely need dock lights if you have a boat or a waterfront property. Dock lights not only provide a great visual effect, they improve safety around the dock at night and also proceed additional security for your property.
There will be times when you will have you boat out in the evening and need to dock at night. Solar boat dock lights will enable you to see well and the lights can guide your path. They also improve safety when walking on your dock at night.
Boat dock lighting will also provide added security because lights deter thieves. They can provide a level of protection to secure your boat and other property.
When looking at the options available to you for boat dock lighting start comparing the features you’re looking for as well as some preferences in color, design and overall appearance and ease of installation. The first step is to decide approximately how many lights you need, I believe, more is always better. For dock lighting you can place lights directly on the walkway and dock itself, and some like to install lights on the side of the dock as well. For most situations lights directly on the walkway and dock are sufficient.
With these type of surface dock lights you basically have two choices. Either surface mounted to recessed. Most lights are now surface mounted as they are easier and quick to install.
Just remember that Solar LED lights require direct sunlight to charge during the day.
Recommendation # 1 – Quality and Long Charging Solar Batteries.
VOLISUN 12-Pack Dock Solar Lights.
- Solar Powered (of course!)
- Long Lasting Battery Time
- Waterproof
- Easy to Install
- High Quality Lighting
Why we rate this Solar Dock Lighting Kit?
Firstly a pack of 12 goes along way on most docks. You may only need 1 or 2 packs.
These Solar Dock Lights emit a high quality white light. Perfect to light up and enhance your dock.
The battery life is great. A single charge will last up to 5 days. This means even in winter and low solar productions days they are effective.
These are IP67 rated. This means they are waterproof and can be submerged. This is a must have requirement for a dock.
Recommendation # 2 – Premium Solar Dock Lights
SIEDiNLAR Solar Deck Lights
- Elegant Design
- Resistance to Pressure
- IP68 Waterproof
- Easy to Install
- Premium Quality
- 4.5 star review ratings
Why we rate the SIEDiNLAR Solar Dock Lights?
These are your premium solar lighting kits. Best suited to high quality lake houses and docks. They have a much more elegant and aesthetic pleasing design compared to other dock lights.
These dock lights are super strong. They are actually rated to withstand up to 20 ton!
They have a great battery life only requiring ~3 hours of direct light per day.
These are IP68 rated. This means they are waterproof and extreme weather protected.
Hopefully at this point you have a good understanding of the types of boat dock lighting and what your options are based upon your particular situation. Hopefully you have got your order placed and you will have a functional, safe, and beautiful boat dock in no time. Next we want to share with you the best landscape solar lights available for your lake house. This is an area where you can get very creative. In my mind very few things can compare to a home on the lake at night with solar lights highlighting different areas of your yard.
Check out how amazing the lighting makes the lake house look during the early evening!
5 Best Solar Spotlights for Your Lake Home
Today’s solar landscaping lights are as reliable and durable as the best electric landscape lights in the market. They have the same classic features like motion sensing and colors and will pay for themselves in energy cost. Solar landscape lighting is the without doubt the best way to provide outdoor lighting for your lake house. We are going to share with you the most popular and reliable landscaping solar spotlight sets available. You cannot go wrong with any of these sets as they relate to quality and durability. Just pick the style you like and install them in the areas around your home that you want highlighted. The good part is, if you decide you don’t like it where it is, unlike electrical outlets, you simply pull it up and easily place it in the ground somewhere else.
We are recommending the best of each type of solar light. You you see from out list that we include spotlights, motion sensor lights, downlights and colorful lights!
Recommendation #1 – Stake in the Ground Solar Lights.
InnoGear Solar Outdoor Lights
- Independently Adjustable Light & Panel
- Improved Brightness & 2 Working Modes
- Advanced 1.5W Monocrystalline Silicon Solar Panel
- 2 Ways of Easy Installation
- Outstanding Durability & Quality Guaranteed
- 4.5 Star Rating from over 22,000 Reviews
What we like about these solar lights?
These solar lights are perfect for highlighting landscape features, such as trees, walls and other garden decorations.
The independent solar panel and LED light is an important feature for being able to direct the solar light on an area of focus, while also directing the solar panel for the optional charging.
These are extremely durable and made for all types of weather.
Finally these are hugely popular with amazing reviews.
Recommendation #2 – Multicolor Stake in the Ground Solar Lights.
ROSHWEY Solar Spot Lights Outdoor
- 6-10 Hours Runtime
- 7 Color Modes and 9 Working Modes
- ADjustable Solar Panel
- Wide Variety of Applications
- 180 Day Warranty
- 4.5 Star Rating
What we like about these Lake House solar lights?
These are extremely versatile solar spot lights as they can have so many color options. At first, these may seem a little gimmicky, however used appropriately, they are actually quite cool. They are very cool for a Christmas theme. Especially when directed a a large tree or even your house.
They are easier to install and setup which color or colors you want cycled. Obviously very easy to move around your yard also.
Great quality light and charge well during the day.
If you are looking for something a little different to all your neighbors, these are the solar spot lights for you.
Recommendation #3 – Motion Activated Wall Lights
Aootek Wall (Down) Solar Lights
- 3 Modes – Motion Activated, Permanently On and Variable Brightness
- Sensitive PIR Motion Detector
- Highly Efficient LED lights
- IP65 Waterproof
- 4.5 Star Rating and over 35,000 reviews
What we like about these Motion Detecting Solar Lights
These are super popular on Amazon, scoring a 4.5 star rating with over 35,000 reviews. These are clearly great solar lights.
These are a differently style to a spotlight. These are great for security lighting or for lighting up areas for when you come home late at night.
We personally love the lighting effect against a wall. They will improve the appeal of your lake house.
The convenience of motion activated, or permanently on during the night are great features. We have the motion sensor for our backyard and leave the ones in our front yard set to always on.
The 4 pack is well priced and is enough for most homes.
In terms of performance, these lights provide a 270 degree wide angle light. The motion detector can reach up to 26 feet. This makes these perfect for many locations around your lake house.
Recommendation #4 – 2 in 1 Stake or Wall Mount Solar Lights
Kaxiida Solar Lights
- 3 Modes – Dim Mode, Bright Mode and Highlight Mode Variable Brightness
- 56 LEDs per light
- IP68 Waterproof
- Wall Mount or Stake in the Ground
What we like about these Solar Spot Lights
They lights come in a 6 pack (or a 4 pack). They can be mounted in the ground with their stake option, or wall mounted with the wall mount option. This is very convenient as sometimes you don’t want or need so many lights in the ground. You can place some in the ground and the others on walls. This is the key advantage of these solar lights.
Recommendation #5 – Fence Solar Lights
JSOT Solar Fence Lights
- 12 Pack
- Stainless Steel Construction
- Waterproof
- Easy to Install
- Available in Cool White or Warm Colors
- 180 Day Guarantee
What we like about these Fence Spot Lights
These stainless steel lights provide an elegant look. This is in comparison some other solar lights that are made from plastic and not very appealing.
These solar lights are great for highlighting fences and other features. However equally useful for safety when install these on steps or along a path way.
We liked that they are not too bright. You don’t always want to light up the entire area with lighting. Therefore these lights provide ample light to navigate at night and yet won’t cause your lake house to look like it is daytime!
Final Thoughts on Solar Lights
It has been said to “Plan your work and Work Your Plan”. When we moved into our lake home a few years ago, my first thought was to have traditional landscaping lights. However when I saw how much it was going to cost to run the electric lines and installation cost, it became obvious why most of my neighbors were using solar lights for their landscaping. The first thing I did was order lights for our dock before we even closed on the house. For safety reason this was my number one priority. We had those lights installed on our dock the day after closing.
Then I spent countless numbers of hours researching everything I could about solar landscaping lights. I hope this article will save our readers a tremendous amount of time, because I have already done the homework, it just depends on what areas of your property do you want to make sure are safe and the areas you want want accented with lights. Then determine how many lights you need and order them. We actually have over 30 spotlights on our property, and Invested about $1,500 when it was all said and done, but if I had went electric the quote I received would have been four times that.
What I like most about solar spotlights is the flexibility. I ordered several different types of lights and then had the opportunity to strategically place them on our property where they looked the best. I didn’t have to decide and make permanent decisions on day one.
I hope you found value in this article, and when you get your landscaping lights done, send us pictures! admin@4thelake.com I would love to see which lights you decided on.
Be sure to check out our other posts and reviews. Our review on grills is a popular post.
