When I ordered this little fountain, I went into the purchase thinking the parts of this fountain looked delicate, and that there’s a good chance im gonna break this thing, or the outdoors will have some negative effect on it within a week or so. Well I’m about a month into using it. It’s outside working every day. It sits in a bird bath, and I had plans to keep that bird bath super clean. Instead, I’ve decided to see how much dirt and grime it can handle. Every few days I’ll clean off the pump’s intake, but otherwise it’s been sitting in water with a few leaves, bird feathers n droppings, and other debris. I got the bird bath around the same time as the fountain, so it’s not like it’s dirty swamp water with years of kelp.
It’s done a great job so far. Very happy with it, and so are the birds. a couple things to note.
1. I saw some reviewers comment on the lack of any flow adjustment, and that the fountain shoots too high (and therefore possibly shoots out of the fountain or catches the wind) when it gets direct sunlight. I didn’t actually think about it until just now, but there IS a flow adjustment switch on the bottom of the pump. It’s teeny tiny, and it’s low tech, but there is one there. It’s a little plastic sliding door that can be accessed from its underside.
2. This one’s kind of ridiculous, but one reviewer posted a very short video of the fountain spurting repeatedly instead of flowing continuously. In my experience with the product, I would assume that reviewer either didn’t wait for direct sunlight, or they placed the solar panel in not the most ideal place, also away from direct sunlight. There’s no battery in the fountain’s construction, so it works when there’s full sun, and doesn’t work when there’s no sun. In areas in between when the solar panel is either catching shadows, or it’s a dark cloudy day, the fountain will spurt about every 1.5 seconds. And that’s quite alright with me. When considering the solar panel power source, the benefits outweigh other power sources. I don’t have to run a wire to a wall plug, and if it was battery powered, you’d only get about two hours of use a day and have to replace expensive batterys every month.
this thing’s great. i had all kinds of doubts, but it’s been a really great item. if others have the concerns i had, i hope this review helps.
Update:
I'm about 55 days into using this little solar pump, and this thing's still going as strong as day 1. That's 55 days of the pump working without a day off. There isn't direct sunlight every day, but when it's not going full strength, it's still spurting maybe 10 hrs a day. Even in dirty kelpy water, it's going. I do clean the bird bath it sits in maybe every other week or so. And I'll run the pump through clean water at about the same frequency
Update #2:
We've had this thing probably more than 6 months now. Posted a new picture. The hardy little thing is still going strong! It's pretty wild. At first I was trying to clean it every few weeks, but for whatever reason, the birds didn't like it when I tampered with it. Idk if they like the dirty water or what, but whenever I cleaned the bird bath, they wouldn't use it until algae began to grow a week or so later. So I thought I'd leave it alone, just fill the bath instead of cleaning it all the time, and test the pump to see what it could handle. I haven't touched the pump for months. Once in a while the flow would block up, but it would end up working its way through it. Fall came, leaves fell in the bath, algae grew. It's super murky in there as u can see from the picture, but it's still working strong. The sun isn't high enough to hit the solar panel directly earlier in the morning from where I placed it when I took the photo, which is why the stream is lower. No loss in performance. I thought this pump would last a month tops.
The only reason I'm not giving this little pump 5 stars is because I just received it and installed today, and don't know what the longevity will be. But, I sure am enjoying it now!
The pictures show just how high the pump goes, which can be problematic for my 18" bird bath. It's windy today, so I've had to fill up the bath 3 times as it keeps shooting over the sides. I may get a bigger and deeper bird bath for the pump, and use this smaller one elsewhere in my yard.
I haven't seen any birds enjoying it yet, but hopefully they will come.
Nice product for the money. Will update my review to let you know if it konks out on me.
This little pump works great for the job I wanted it to do. I have a two tier fountain, see picture, and this pump pumps the water at a good even rate. The description stated it is a solar powered pump either no battery backup. This is exactly what I wanted and purchased, sun out pump on, sun hidden pump off. For the price this is exactly what I was looking for.
Tired of plugging in my water fountain, I finally decided to go with a solar pump. I like this one. It's enough to power my cascading 2.5 ft fountain. The only drawback is that the panel doesn't have a stake to put in the ground. Right now I have it on a small flower pot. The panel does need to be in direct sunlight, the slightest shading of the panel will stop the flow. Other than that, I'm very pleased with it. Took one star due to the lack of ways to mount it.
Followed instructions, our birdbath holds a gallon of water and is 26” wide. After 15 minutes almost all the water shot out of fountain. Removed attachment AFTER DETACHING SOLAR PLUG and refilled fountain, now it only spurts. The purpose of keeping water moving to avoid mosquitos and keeping fresh for birds is achieved if you don’t care about fountain. Within minutes birds were drawn into bath to drink and or bath. Not first solar fountain and I prefer plate offset from fountain instead of attached to fountain (circular model). Water moves during daylight hours from solar panel depending on sunlight. If you want 24/7 water fountain invest in cheap electrical pump.
Solar pump is efficient, but you must change water daily and keep pump’s filter clear of debris. I place my bath away from outlet which is better for shy birds.Even bugs fly in for a drink in hot weather. Robins keep a schedule and males bath first.
If pump reset in AM I would have given 5 stars.
Feature Product
- ✔ Solar powered, no extra power needed, energy-saving and environmentally friendly.
- ✔ Starts working in 3 seconds once exposed to sufficient sunlight. Please make sure the solar panel is not shadowed and keep the filter intake on the bottom clear of debris.
- ✔ Max water height: 70cm (27.6inch). Cord Length: 12Ft. Max water area: 150cm(59inch). The height of water depends on strength of the sunlight.
- ✔ Comes with fitting accessories and 4 types of sprinkler heads for different water flows and water heights. Perfect for bird bath, fish tank, small pond, garden decoration, water circulation for oxygen.
- ✔ Our solar panel has more than 20,000 Hours of lifespan. And the solar water fountain pump has a built-in brushless motor that provides a longer service life and lower energy consumption.
Description
Item Specifications:
1. Solar panel power consumption: 9V 1.8W
2. Pump power consumption: DC 4.5-10V
3. Maximum water height: 27.6inches
4. Maximum flow: 200L/H
5. Maximum delivery head: 59inches
6. Start: The water pump will not work without sunlight, It will restart within 3 seconds once the sunlight re-appear.
7. Life Span≥20000Hours
8. Working hours in the sun: 8:00A.M.- 5:00P.M.
9. Delay: ≤3s
10. Restart: If sunshine is off , it can restart within 3 seconds when sunshine is back
Operation Guide
1.Set up the pump nozzles and do not put the top spray head on.
2.Put the pump totally in the water with its nozzle over the water.(Water should be clean without too much debris)
3.Put solar panel under enough sunshine and be better to face directly to sun.
4.Let the pump work without spray head for seconds to let the air go out of the pump.
5.Put on the spray head, then the water flow will be high if solar panel exposed to enough sunlight.
(NOTE: Step 4 is very important, Or there might not be high water flow coming out)
CAUTION!!!
Under the 3 conditions, the solar pump might not work.
✘ Solar panel is in shadow.
✘ Solar panel is dirty.
✘ The pump outlet is blocked by debris in the water.
MAINTENANCE
✔ Don't make the pump work without water for a long time, or its lifespan will be shortened.
✔ Always keep the solar panel dry and clean.
✔ Clean the pump regularly especially the water outlet and spray caps to prevent it from getting stuck.
✔ Change water frequently to keep water clean to avoid any dirt to impede the pump.
The fountain sprays quite high under full sun. Pictures attached that demonstrate the various fountain types.
So glad I got this wish they had it in garnet and white. ..i'd get it too!..I sooo love metal factory! !!!!
Works like stated. Be advused you need DIRECT sunlight to operate.
So thankful that I tried this. I did as the directions said and let it run a bit without any attachments for a while. Then I tried all the different ones to see which one would be best, and would not spray too high. It appears that it is run by the solar panel only, so if it gets shaded, it will not pump water. Which is fine with me, doesn't need to spray all night long. So very happy, and if I ever add another bird bath (or anything else) I will buy another one of these