Brian Gaff (Sofa) wrote:
Hmm, if it works at all the crap batteries seem to get worse in the cold.

Brian


Typical cheap garden lamps, use lithium iron phosphate cells.
Apparently all Lithium types, they don't charge well below 0C.
Some schemes, condition the Lithium batteries before applying
a charging current. I've seen a couple garden lamps (out of
a bunch my various neighbors have), that actually manage to
light at night on winter days.

The best material to work with in that regard, is lead acid.
At least it still accepts a charge in winter. The temperature
ranges are listed here.

https://batteryuniversity.com/learn/...w_temperatures

Lead acid Charge: –20°C to 50°C Discharge: –20°C to 50°C

You can have any amount of power you want - it just takes
more and more square meters of solar panels to collect that
power on dim days.

Paul