The back corner of my local Target store had a box of two solar lights for a drastic clearance price. I bought the box and it sat in my kitchen for two months. I finally installed one near the pig and goat pens and one on the chicken hut. And I love them! They don't last terribly long into the night, but are perfect when we're still doing chores past sunset.
Those little lights got me thinking about how I could harness the sun's energy for my little house. There are a lot of solar energy incentives these days, but Mr. Scott isn't fully convinced at totally converting our house to solar. But that doesn't mean I can't do something on a smaller scale indoors.
I came across THIS article for a bit of inspiration.
Also, we have a garage/driveway light that burned out years ago and we never replaced it because it cost a lot to run it. But I found THIS solar light and I'm seriously considering it.
In addition to those ideas, I'm wondering if I could rig up a solar light for inside the barn. Right now, I just use a flashlight for evening milkings.
What other ways can we harness the sun's energy on a micro scale?
Alan bought an outdoor solar light from Home Depot when we first moved to the farm. It stays lit until at least midnight and casts a nice glow. Although I am not sure the goats need the light. I have read about using those cheapy ground solar lights for lighting inside during a power outage. Charge them outside during the day then put them inside at night for reading, etc. But with all of our lanterns/candles we haven;t needed to try this. Would be safer than candles with little kids around.
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