So I have eight outdoor Christmas ornaments, in the form of chicken wire bent and shaped into spheres about 2 feet in diameter, each of which is wrapped with a strand of LED lights. The strands are all the same, except four are red and four are green. They have their own solar panel about five by five inches, and a battery recharged from the panel. I have them hanging from the branches of a pair of trees out front, with the panels all facing south.
I’ve noticed that if it’s cloudy out, the red-lit spheres will be lit for several hours, then they’ll fade. The green-lit spheres, on the other hand, last all night, though they’re pretty dim by morning. If it’s sunny all day, all eight spheres remain lit all night.
Why do the green LEDs last that much longer than the red LEDs? I know red has a longer wavelength and lower frequency compared to green, so its energy is lower than that of green LED’s. That would lead me to think the green LEDs would drain the battery faster, but this hasn’t been my experience with the LED strands I have. I’m guessing that there’s a resistor in the circuit that has a greater value to restrict the flow of electricity more through the red LED strands, and a resister of lesser value in the green LED strands, hence there’s more of a drain on the battery in the red LED strands.
What say you?
I’ve noticed that if it’s cloudy out, the red-lit spheres will be lit for several hours, then they’ll fade. The green-lit spheres, on the other hand, last all night, though they’re pretty dim by morning. If it’s sunny all day, all eight spheres remain lit all night.
Why do the green LEDs last that much longer than the red LEDs? I know red has a longer wavelength and lower frequency compared to green, so its energy is lower than that of green LED’s. That would lead me to think the green LEDs would drain the battery faster, but this hasn’t been my experience with the LED strands I have. I’m guessing that there’s a resistor in the circuit that has a greater value to restrict the flow of electricity more through the red LED strands, and a resister of lesser value in the green LED strands, hence there’s more of a drain on the battery in the red LED strands.
What say you?