Solar watering can lights not working
Updated: October 2026
The can stayed dark, died after one night, or has water in the electrics, and you want to know whether that is the sensor or a fault. Solar watering can lights not working, in the UK reviews behind our [watering can with fairy lights](/hub/garden-watering/watering-can-with-fairy-lights) comparison, usually means one of those three. Check the switch, any film, and a day of sun first. After that, a dead or wet unit is a fault, and you have 30 days to reject it. This page is not a buying shortlist. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The can stayed dark, died after one night, or has water in the electrics, and you want to know whether that is the sensor or a fault.
The can stayed dark, died after one night, or has water in the electrics, and you want to know whether that is the sensor or a fault. Solar watering can lights not working, in the UK reviews behind our watering can with fairy lights comparison, usually means one of those three. Check the switch, any film, and a day of sun first. After that, a dead or wet unit is a fault, and you have 30 days to reject it. This page is not a buying shortlist. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Weather claim | Mount | Listed run | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  GIGALUMI GIGALUMI hummingbird | Waterproof | 100 cm shepherd hook, or hang | 8–10 hours | 9.2 | about £14.99 | View offer |
| Best value |  Daknswte Daknswte watering can | IP65 | Hanging, with a shepherd hook | n/a | 9.0 | about £9.99 | View offer |
| Alternative |  ACUYE ACUYE elf and butterfly | Waterproof in the title; no IP rating | Hooks | 10 hours | 8.4 | about £14.99 | View offer |
On this page
Checks before you call it dead
New solar lights often arrive switched off. Glow, writing about solar lights in general, says that, and Lights4fun says the switch must stay on. An hour in the shade is not the 6–8 hours of sun most of these listings print. Festive Lights uses a cover-the-panel check on its own lights: once the cell has had sun, covering the panel should let the sensor think it is dusk. If the strings come on, the site is the problem.
Festive Lights' 36–48 hour recharge is that shop's habit. It does not prove one of these 11 is healthy if the reviews already describe a dead switch. Do not add a mains charger. If the panel was simply in shade, go back to the how to use solar watering can lights page for siting. If the case is cracked, or it is full of water, do not invent a sealant repair.
Faults these UK reviews repeat
A can that worked one night and then died shows up on GLOBAL GOLDEN, with refunds reported. That is not a normal first-week settling-in. The same file includes a retaining clip that breaks and rust by nine months. ACUYE's UK reviews cite corrosion under the solar cover, an elf that falls off, and units that stop after weeks or about four months. The title says waterproof.
On the Daknswte two-pack, one can stops while the other keeps working, and some sets never light. The Daknswte single has the same string problem, and the stand is called flimsy. GIGALUMI reviews include a broken rod, missing hook parts, and an inner light that fails while the strings still work. ZKLiLi was returned as dead, and the angel will not screw on. QINGLANG arrived with no handle in one review. CECOMBINE shows rust after a year and a stem too weak to hang the can.
30 days, then a repair or replacement
If the can is faulty, the short-term right to reject sits in section 22 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015. Which? explains the practical reading: you have 30 days to reject faulty goods for a refund. After that, and within six months, you can ask for a repair or a replacement first, and then a refund if that does not put it right. The clock is from delivery, not from the evening you noticed. A gift that dies before you hand it over is still your claim, as the buyer. The solar watering can gift page notes that for a present.
On amazon.co.uk the retailer is the seller of that listing. Claim there, with the order number, and say what failed: it never lit, one of a pair died, water is in the electrics, or a part was missing. A sparse LED count that matches a contradictory specification is a listing argument. Water inside or a dead unit is a fault.
The cell afterwards
GOV.UK classes garden lights as lighting under the WEEE rules, and the Waste Batteries and Accumulators Regulations 2009 cover the portable cell. Tape lithium-ion terminals before you take a cell such as CECOMBINE's included battery to a collection point. Retailers who supply more than 32 kg of portable batteries a year must take batteries back.
A cell that will not recover after a fair charge in the sun is part of the fault, not a prompt to wire the can to the mains. The solar watering can lights buying guide is where the cell check belongs before you buy again.
Common questions
It never lit. What do I check first?
Check the switch is on, peel any film, and give the panel about 6–8 hours of open sun, which is the charge line on most of these listings. Try the switch in the dark, as GLOBAL GOLDEN's page says, and move it away from a porch light. If it still never lights, treat it as faulty. Do not leave it for Festive Lights' 36–48 hours and call that proof it is sound.
It worked one night and then died. Is that normal?
No. GLOBAL GOLDEN reviews describe stops after one night, after seven days, or within a few days, and refunds. ACUYE reviews describe stops after weeks or about four months. A first night that fails because the panel was in shade is a siting miss. A can that ran and then died, with the panel in sun, is a fault you can reject inside 30 days.
One can in a pair works. What does that mean?
On the Daknswte two-pack, UK reviews say one can stops while the other keeps working. That is not a reason to keep the dead half. The pair was sold together at £19.96. Tell the seller which can failed. The other Daknswte listing, the single at £9.99, is a different product, and a dead string on that one is its own complaint.
Water or rust inside. Should I keep using it?
Stop. ACUYE reviews describe rainwater in the electrics and corrosion under the solar cover. GLOBAL GOLDEN and CECOMBINE reviews describe rust after months. IP65, where a listing states it, means jets, not a permission to run a wet, rusty circuit. Do not seal a cracked case yourself. Reject it if you are inside 30 days, or ask for a repair or replacement after that.
What do I do with the old cell?
Recycle it. Do not put it in the household rubbish. Tape lithium-ion terminals, and use a battery take-back point. Retailers over 32 kg of portable batteries a year must take them back. Do not replace it with a mains adaptor.
Related pages
Sources
Sources checked for this comparison; last retrieved on 16 October 2026.
- GOV.UK, Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 2016 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- GOV.UK, General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- GOV.UK, electrical equipment covered by the WEEE regulations (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- GOV.UK, batteries and waste batteries (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- BSI, BS EN 60529:1992+A2:2013 IP code (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- Electrical Safety First, outdoor lighting (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- Which?, what to do with a faulty product (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- Which?, solar garden lights (retrieved 16 October 2026)
- amazon.co.uk listings for the 11 ASINs in this comparison (retrieved 16 October 2026)