# Intermatic solar LED Post Light LZ310



## Sprocketman (Apr 25, 2006)

I bought an Intermatic LZ310 solar-powered post light for the light out by our driveway. It has 50 sq inches of solar panel and a "1 watt LED" It was $175. Seemed expensive, but only because it was not a flashlight. It will never pay for itself compared to the 13 watt cfl it replaced, but it just seems like fun.

Here is the manufacturer's page.
http://www.intermatic.com/?action=prod&pid=9196


And here is my page of photos.
http://www.bhsi.org/randys/postlamp.htm

We like the lamp. It seems well made, and is pot metal rather than plastic. The lenses are polycarbonate, I think. Since we installed it near the longest day of the year, it has been on all night as far as I know, but maybe at 5am it is not. In winter with less sun I don't expect it to run all night unless I cut back to the lower output setting. I don't think it would work well unless you have an unshaded site.

Added after some cloudy days: a week of clouds and it became apparent that the solar array is the weak point in the system. I have cut the light back to its lower setting, reducing output very little but hopefully extending the on time. At this point it is off by 10 or 11pm, after running only a couple of hours. Our light gets full sun/clouds about 6 to 8 hours a day in summer (will be better in winter after the leaves fall). I may have to add another solar panel. This unit was probably designed for Southern California or maybe the desert.


Sprocketman

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## Sprocketman (Jul 2, 2006)

After several weeks I can say that this Luxeon-based outdoor light needs a much larger solar array for our location. I will be working on adding another separate array.

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