Link: http://HarborFreightReviews.com/HFRreviews.html

Item: Solar Shed Light
Item number: 95573
Retail price: $29.99
Frequent sale price: $19.99
Best price: $17.99 (with coupon)
Target price: $19.99
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This is another one of Harbor Freight's solar products that looks well designed but fails in implementation. We were initially very excited about this solar-powered fluorescent light. The solar panel is separate from the lighting fixture and attached by a 10 ft cord which helps optimize positioning of the solar panel. The mounting is pretty easy unlike their solar-powered quartz security light that was a challenge. The bracket holding the solar-panel is well thought-out, designed to attach easily to a vertical structure while providing flexibility in positioning the solar panel. The specifications claim it will run around 50 minutes on fully charged batteries which would make it suitable for some RV applications (e.g., bathroom light for nighttime relief ).

If you're using this to light a dark area during the daytime such as a shed interior, the 4-watt fluorescent light is woefully inadequate; the contrast between the daylight and the dimly lit interior will leave you in the dark for the first 30 seconds to a minute after you enter the darker area. If on-the-other-hand you are using this for nighttime illumination, the small fluorescent light is sufficient to find your way about and put up your evening tools. There are probably numerous other applications besides 'shed' lighting; the solar-powered light could be very useful in the RV as well -- it provides just the right amount of low-level illumination many RVers are use to when enjoying their evening coffee or a nightcap.

Now comes the problem: it doesn't work. Our test unit failed within the first year. After surviving our Buffalo Winter Test (the lighting unit was located inside an unheated storage area, the solar panel on the roof), it failed during the spring. We never really tested how long the light illuminated even when it was working properly. Our application required short cycles of only a few minutes with each use. It seemed to work well until one night, nothing.

Good luck if you decide to purchase this item. We have yet to disassemble the unit and determine the cause of the failure. Perhaps it's only substandard batteries in the original light; perhaps it's another water leak such as that which plagued Harbor Freight's solar-powered quartz security light. We'll revise our evaluation if we determine it's simply the batteries, but other reviewers have reported similarly failed units suggesting the problem is more serious.

Bottom line: Nice idea, poorly implemented. Harbor Freight strikes out again with this inferior solar product. Our recommendation is to leave this in the store.