Solar Christmas Projector Lights: Do They Work, and How Bright?

Yes, within limits. A solar Christmas projector light can cover a wall or a garage door from a few yards away and run most of an evening: one solar LED model lists 8 hours on a full charge. Makers rarely publish lumens, so judge brightness by projection distance, LED or laser type, and how much winter sun the panel gets.

For string, icicle and net lights that charge from the sun, start with the best solar Christmas lights.

How bright solar Christmas projector lights are

Solar Christmas projector listings almost never state lumens. They give a projection distance and sometimes a coverage area instead, and those two numbers are the best guide to how big and how bright the picture will be.

Two listings show the spread:

Coverage claims for the same laser model differ from one retailer listing to the next, so treat any square-foot figure as a rough guide and test the picture on your own wall.

The same light spread over a bigger area looks dimmer. A projector placed farther back makes a larger picture, but each snowflake or dot gets fainter, so move the unit closer if the image looks washed out.

LED or laser: which solar projector to choose

LED and laser are the two kinds of solar Christmas projector, and they make different pictures. An LED projector shines through a lens or slide to throw shapes such as snowflakes. A laser projector scatters many small, sharp points of colored light, usually red and green.

LED projectors suit a short throw. The Kmart model, for example, is rated for an effective distance of 3 meters, which fits a porch wall or a door.

Laser projectors spread small dots over a wider surface, such as the front of a small house. The Bell+Howell Solar Startastic, for example, projects moving star patterns in four laser modes, switches on from dusk to dawn with a light sensor, and comes with a remote.

Laser power is regulated. FDA’s laser light show page says laser projectors, including those promoted for entertainment, count as demonstration laser products, which are limited to Class IIIa, which is 5 milliwatts of output in the visible range, and that higher classes need an FDA variance. Look for the laser class on the label or in the manual.

How long solar projectors run in winter

Solar Christmas projector run times depend on what the panel stored that day. Kmart lists 8 hours for its solar LED projector after more than 6 hours of charging, and its listing gives a 5.5 V, 150 mA panel and three 1.2 V AA rechargeable cells.

December is the hard month. The U.S. Department of Energy notes that Denver gets nearly three times more solar energy in June than in December, so a projector that runs all night in summer may fade early at Christmas.

Three habits help:

• Put the panel where it gets direct midday sun, even if the projector itself sits in a shaded bed.
• Brush snow off the panel after each snowfall, as EnergySage advises for solar Christmas lights.
• Pick a model with USB charging as a backup if your yard gets little winter sun. Retailers list the Bell+Howell Solar Startastic with both solar and USB charging.

Our guide to solar Christmas lights in winter explains the short-day problem in more detail.

How to aim a laser Christmas projector safely

A laser Christmas projector should point at your house and never at the sky. The FAA says it receives reports every year from pilots distracted or temporarily blinded by residential laser-light displays, and that laser beams reach much farther than most people realize.

Before the first night, check the projector from the street after dark. Any dots spilling above the roofline or into the trees mean the angle is too high. Lower the stake or tilt the head down until the whole pattern lands on the house.

If a display affects pilots, the FAA says it will ask the owner to adjust it or turn it off, and a display that keeps affecting pilots can bring a civil penalty.

Where to set up a solar projector in the yard

A solar Christmas projector works best facing a smooth, light-colored wall with no porch light or street light shining on it. Other light washes out the picture, and Gama Sonic, a solar lighting maker, warns that porch, garage and street lights on the sensor can keep a solar light from turning on.

Set it up in this order:

1. Find the wall you want to cover and measure how far back the projector can sit.
2. Check that distance against the maker’s stated range.
3. Check where the panel can go: on the unit itself, or on a lead you can run to a sunny spot.
4. Test after dark and adjust the angle.

If a projector stays dark or dims after a few weeks, our guide to why solar Christmas lights stop working covers sensors, batteries and panels.

When other solar Christmas lights work better

Solar Christmas projectors are quick to set up, but they light a surface, not an outline. Rooflines, bushes and walkways usually look better with lights that sit on them. See solar Christmas yard decorations for stakes, figures and candy canes, solar window candles for a glow in the front windows, and solar lights with remote and timer modes if you want to control when the display runs.