Sunforce Solar Motion Sensor Light Review

The Sunforce solar motion light provides both lighting and security to your pathways , garage, shed or remote cottage. The lights are very easy to set up, the body is strong and sturdy.

There are 60 bright white LED lights comes in a durable ABS plastic and aluminum housing. The body is made up of metal instead of plastic which makes it more durable.

The unit has a separate solar panel that lets you mount it at a distance and it also doesn’t need any wiring so the lights can be mounted in almost any place as long as the solar panel can reach some direct sunlight.

The Sunforce solar security lights automatically turns “on” after the sunset and turn “off” at day time.

It gets charged from Sun, the LED lights delivers up to 8 hours of illumination on a single charge.

The solar motion sensor is sensitive and very accurate. The security lights are small in size but illuminates better than expected.

Its sensor is powerful and detects distance of approximately 30 feet area very well, and a detection range of 180 degrees.

It’s powerful security coverage for nearly all driveways, porches, decks, sheds, and more.

The Sunforce solar motion light includes customized control settings for various options and also prefers settings for each one, to extend the life of batteries and lights.

• Light Level which determines the level of darkness that must be reached for the light to turn “on”.
• Time sets the duration of illumination time
• Motion Sensitivity which determines the range of the motion detection

There are some preferred methods to extend the battery life, here are the recommended settings

• LUX Setting: Set this dial knob towards the MOON icon (counterclockwise) for its ideal night-time operation. This allows the batteries to recharge during daytime.
• Main Switch: Set the switch to the AUTO position for its ideal motion-activated operation. The ON position allows you to run the light continuously for a limited time (approximately 45 minutes). Please be aware that this setting will exhaust the battery and extra charging time may be required.
• Extra Charging Time: OFF the main switch & allow the batteries to recharge for 2-3 days. This may be necessary if the battery has been exhausted due to bad weather conditions (low light), extended day-time use or continuous use in the ON position.

One issue has been reported from few customers that even if you install the lamp in a dry location (such as a shed) or put it directly in the open area, the solar panel will exposed to weather and most likely water will get inside and that is the cause of the failures most of the time.

So here is a quick tip to take precaution from such incident to happen, use a tube of black RTV sealant and some electrical tape to protect the device.

Note that doing this will likely void the warranty of the lights but IMO it is well worth it.

Warranties are better when respected but the time spent on un-installing, packaging, returning, and re-installing is huge and bothering, and that inconvenience quickly becomes a major headache.

Your time is more valuable than doing repeating and bothering task, so it’s better to take an ounce of prevention may be worth a pound of cure, even if it means voiding the warranty, isn’t it?

Sunforce 82156 60-LED Solar Motion Light Features

• 60 super-bright LED Solar Motion Security Light in a durable ABS plastic & aluminum housing
• Amorphous solar panel (1 watt, 6 volt), 1 AA 5-Pack Ni-MH 6V 900mAh of rechargeable batteries
• Lumen output: 850
• No main power or wiring required, and can be mounted almost anywhere

Pros of Sunforce Solar Motion Sensor Light

Nice bright LED lights better than expected. Adjustable settings for various task such as motion sensing, how sensitive the IR detector movement, and how long the light remains on.

Selectable modes are: Auto, ON, or OFF. IR sensor is adjustable up/down and left/right, separate from light.

Power cord from solar cell is very long and gives you more flexibility on installation locations.

Cons of Sunforce Solar Motion Sensor Light

Mounting hardware is not weather resistant, needed to use some kind of cover up i.e. silicon based caulk.

Light can be adjusted to up/down only so getting the light to face where you want may involve getting additional hardware to get the best results.

Adjustable settings have considerable hysteresis.