About Solar Flats

Solar Flats is a super slim, wireless light that sites flush in the ground and automatically turns on at night. And because it’s wireless, you can place it wherever you need light, including steps, walkways, driveways, or patios.

Solar Flats works using “advanced” silicone solar cells that generate their own electricity during the day, which is then used at night to provide illumination.

On top of this, Solar Flats’s weather-resistant LEDs can last a lifetime, so you won’t have to worry about them burning out any time soon.

You’ve got to admit that Solar Flats seems like a pretty compelling product. But you’re here because you want to know if these solar-powered lights will live up to the hype. So, let’s break it down, point by point.

First, we’ll talk about the competition.

Solar Landscaping Lights Galore

Perhaps the most important thing to remember about Solar Flats is that there are literally thousands of very similar solar powered landscaping lights available, many of which can be purchase from just about any local hardware or home improvement store.

Granted, not all of these will sit as flush to the ground as Solar Flats, but there’s almost certainly something out there that can meet your needs.

Regardless of the manufacturer, how do all these solar lights work?

How Do The Solar Flats Work?

Solar lights all pretty much work the same. Light reaches the photovoltaic cells inside, which then covert the light into electrical energy by knocking electrons free from atoms.

From there, this electrical energy is stored inside a battery until it’s ready to be used (for a more in-depth look at the science behind solar power, be sure to check out this LiveScience article). This works essentially the same whether you’re using a small light like Solar Flats, or are powering an entire home.

In most instances, these photovoltaic cells are made from silicon, which is a semi-conducting material.

What’s all this mean? There’s really nothing “advanced” about the cells contained in Solar Flats.

Advanced or not, how much light can you expect to get from Solar Flats?

How Much Light Will Solar Flats Generate?

It’s nearly impossible to say, since the manufacturer doesn’t give us any information about the types of LEDs used, battery size (how much electricity Solar Flats can hold), how much electricity these lights are programmed to draw, how long these lights will draw power, and much more.

However, considering that there are only 2 LEDs per light, and that their only source of power is a small internal battery, you can probably guess that there’s not a lot of light output.

Pro tip: You can even get a sense of this by looking at the images used on the Solar Flats website, or in the product’s commercial. Notice the nice, even blue lines coming off of each light?

These digital effects are added after the fact, probably to make Solar Flats appear brighter and more noticeable than they are in real life. If they weren’t added, it’s our opinion that the light would be much less visible.

If you’ve ever purchased a set of inexpensive solar lights (any shape or size) from your local home improvement store, we’d imagine that this is probably the same amount of light you can expect from Solar Flats (which is to say, not much).

How much will all this light cost you?

Solar Flats Pricing & Refund Policy

Two Solar Flats are priced at $10 plus $6.99 S&H, and you’ll be able to purchase a second set at checkout for an additional $6.99 S&H.

All Solar Flats purchases come with a 30-day refund policy, less S&H charges. Did you take advantage of the BOGO offer? This means you’ll likely lose 50% more in S&H than you’ll get as a refund if you’re not pleased!

At any rate, if you’d like to request a refund, you’ll need to call Telebrands’s customer service department at 855-668-1655.

With this in mind, how many solar flats will you need to purchase to have an “exceptional landscape?”

How Many Solar Flats Will You Need?

Depending on the level of coverage you need, most professionals recommend placing solar lights 4-8 feet apart. The key here is the word “coverage,” though. Let’s explain what we mean.

Basically, there are 2 types of outdoor lights; those intended to add light to an otherwise dark area (such as sidewalks, driveways, entryways, etc.) and those intended to be used as accents. In other words, one provides illumination, usually for safety, while the other only provides light for visual appeal.

Solar Flats falls into this “visual appeal” category, which means that you’ll likely need fewer than if you were trying to actually provide usable light. This doesn’t mean it’ll come cheap though.

Did you like some of the included pictures on the Solar Flats website? Probably so, since they were placed in attractive patterns. If you were to create the exact same pattern below (20 total lights shown), let’s do the math to see how much it would cost you:

  • As we noted above, you can get 4 Solar Flats lights (2 sets) for a total of $23.98, including S&H, by taking advantage of the BOGO offer.
  • You’d need 5 of these sets to match the picture: $23.98 X 5 = $119.90.
  • In all, this means it would cost you about $120!

And if you were unhappy and decided to process a return, you’d only get $50 of this back, plus whatever it’ll cost you to ship your Solar Flats back to the manufacturer!

Taking all of this together, should you buy Solar Flats?

Will Solar Flats Turn Your Backyard into an “Exceptional Landscape?”

Yes, Solar Flats appears to feature a unique design among outdoor landscaping lights. So, if flushness to the ground is your primary criteria, they might end up being one of your only options.

But if you have a little wiggle room from a design perspective, we think you’ll find dozens of very similar options at local stores—most of which will likely work just as well (or better, in some instances) than Solar Flats.

Need more motivation to check local options first? This can also save you tons of money in non-refundable S&H charges related to Solar Flats, especially considering the number of lights you’ll need to illuminate an area of any meaningful size.

Did you roll the dice and decide to give Solar Flats their moment in the sun? If so, tell us about your experience by leaving a review below!

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