What makes the best solar street light?
The key is in the details.
There are a lot of elements to consider when determining the best lighting solution for streets.
With experience in thousands of projects in need of outdoor lighting, we strive to make outdoor lighting better and simpler. This is what drove our design of the BFL Series solar street light.
The best solar street light needs to be simple.
This starts at the beginning. When determining a lighting solution for a street or any other area, the number of options can be overwhelming. You need to find a light that will provide the right amount of light that meets the standards set by the community. This can include lighting ordinances for color temperature, lighting profile or compliance.
The BFL can be easily configured to meet local lighting requirements. It is Dark-Sky approved and offers a number of color temperature options and performance can be programmed to match lighting needs.
To figure out the right configuration, our experienced team can help you every step of the way with expert advice, a feasibility assessment, a cost analysis and a lighting layout.
A lighting layout can help determine the best solution for an area in terms of lighting coverage and cost. For wired lights, this will have to include an electrical design that provides a connection between every light as well as to the existing power grid. This not only costs more to design, it is much more costly to install with significant trenching and site remediation required.
For older solar options, a site-specific light will have to be designed based on assumptions of worst-case scenarios. This can include multiple batteries and solar modules. Unfortunately, if conditions ever fall outside of these assumptions, the lights cannot adapt and will fail.
The BFL requires no electrical design, wires or site specific modelling. Instead, the BFL Series incorporates smart technology that automatically configures to any location to maximize performance and reliability.
The BFL can provide reliable lighting from dusk until dawn every night. But many other innovative lighting profiles can be programmed to meet your community’s lighting needs. This can be chosen at the time of order and be reconfigured at any time through First Light’s iOS App.
The default lighting profile allows customers to be in accordance with initiatives like model lighting ordinances and maximize lighting during periods of higher pedestrian/vehicle conflict. This profile turns the light on to full brightness at dusk, dims to 50% brightness at 10:00pm and back to 100% at 6am. The light then turns off at dawn.
The BFL solar LED light offers six standard lighting distribution options optimized for a number of applications such as streets, parking lots and multi-use pathways.
The fixture of the BFL is full cut-off which minimizes light pollution and light trespass. This means you get the maximum amount of light where users need it without uplight or backlight. You can also choose from a variety of mast arm options to better place the fixture over an area in need of lighting.
We’ve put a lot of effort to make this the easiest street light to install. Installation takes less than 30 minutes for a team of two with no cables or complicated on-site assembly required. The solar engine mounts simply on the top of a pole and has toolless entry.
First Light also has pre-engineered pole options that offer turn-key, simple installation. These light-weight aluminum poles have an extra hand hole to give better access when running wire through the mast arm and are corrosion resistant.
“This solar street light sets an important standard of performance and reliability from a compact and simple design that at the end of the day saves our customers time and money so that they can focus on what matters to them. The BFL is a massive opportunity to provide high-quality lighting for up to 40% less upfront costs when compared to traditional wired lighting. This is in addition to ongoing cost savings and zero ongoing carbon emissions.”
Sean Bourquin
CEO, First Light Technologies
The BFL offers the most light for such a compact solar solution. This low profile design offers an aesthetically pleasing solar light that has been tested to withstand hurricane force winds. The BFL Series comes in four standard colors to match any city’s requirements or a custom color can be arranged.
The best solar street light also needs to be cost-effective.
Fortunately, the BFL offers high quality lighting for up to 50% less compared to other solar light solutions and up to 40% less than traditional wired street lights.
These savings all come from the simplicity of the BFL. It’s faster to install and it takes less labor and equipment which all reduces costs. Compared to conventional wired lighting, there is no need to create an electrical design or trench for wires.
And First Light lights work.
The BFL solar street light uses First Light’s award-winning solar lighting technology built using decades of experience. Like all of our lights, every detail has been refined to provide reliable performance and simplicity. We have tens of thousands of lights providing reliable light in communities across the country every night. Ongoing costs are minimal with no scheduled maintenance and high-performance lithium batteries that typically last 10 years or more.
