Thanks missingtheobvious, I did check out those old threads already about the "superior" solar lights. Those threads were helpful in that I did learn that the more light-emitting diodes (LED's) in a solar light fixture, the brighter it is, which makes sense. Also found out that the products that have rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries seem to work best. I did look into the solar lights at the two companies that were recommended on those threads, Frontgate and Grandin Road. They actually specify the wattage and number of LED's in their products on their websites. So far, most products from other companies that I've looked at on the net don't list the number of LED's in each fixture. Some web shopping still has room for improvement I think. Unfortunately, most of the products that I liked the look of from Frontgate and Grandin Road are a little out of our price range, as our budget for this project is less than $100. Something to save up for maybe for a future purchase. For now, I'm planning to take a look at an H.D. product in the store that I think may have at least two LED's in one fixture. The lights come in a set of two, and the set comes with four nickel-cadmium batteries, so it's possible that each lighting fixture has two LED's. Hard to tell just from the web, without looking at the box in the store. The product got good reviews on the website, and most of the reviewers were pleasantly surprised with how bright they are. Will post a photo if we end up purchasing the H.D. product and are happy with the brightness. Thanks again.

I recharge mine every year using a plug in charger in the house. They should recharge after a day in full sun. Don

Technically evaporation and boiling are two different mechanisms driven by the same thing, vapor pressure. Evaporation occurs at a water/air boundary while boiling occurs within the liquid itself. Also, by definition, steam can only be caused by boiling and not evaporation. So evaporation cannot occur in the panels but only at the pool surface and boiling will not occur until the water reaches 212 deg F which is not possible because of heat loss. However, as the water heats up in the panels, the water density decreases and it will start to expand. In a closed system, this will cause an increase in pressure but what we are talking about here is not a closed system. The panels are connected to the pool and water will migrate towards the pool equalizing the pressure. It is not possible for pressure to build up in an open system. But even in a completely closed system, the panels would still not burst because the change in volume of the water is very small and can be absorbed by the panelâÂÂs elasticity. Water going from 85 degrees to 212 degrees will only expand by 4% (see link) which is easily absorbed by the panels. Also, I was not proposing to close the valves with water in the panels. The valves should only be closed when the panels are EMPTY (i.e. full of air). This can be accomplished with a vent valve and a drain valve and with the isolation valves closed. But again, I don't think this is necessary and there are also a lot of examples to illustrate this point. There are many pools operating today that allow water to sit in the panels without any ill effects. One thing to keep in mind is that when an automatic solar control shuts off a solar system, the panels do not drain automatically UNTIL the pump is shut off so many installed systems today have water that sits in the panels with hot sun beating down on it, including mine. In addition, there are many panels installed that do not have vacuum release valves with the panels sitting on the ground and so never drain unless manually drained. Most AG pools are plumbed this way. If this was a problem at all, there would be a lot of people reporting burst panels. But again, the physics simply does not support bursting panels. Here is a link that might be useful: Properties of Water

Krylon paints out there for plastics, BUT If the paint is transparent and light shows through it, you can also use artist oils. I've painted lamp shades by using terpentine to thin the oil paint. If the paint is opaque you can also use acrylics. I'd say the choice is yours. Whatcha got to lose?