Why Solar Power?

Just like any other solar-powered device, solar bug zapper and garden lights use solar cells – technically photovoltaic cells – made of silicon to draw in energy from the sun.

These are the small black cells you see on a solar panel, set up in a grid pattern.

These cells use that drawn sunlight – solar radiation – to create electricity that’s usable by standard electrical equipment.

The wiring and cells in the system work together to convert the energy and translate it through the wiring into your electronics and appliances.

How Well do Solar-Powered Bug Lights Work?

This is a subjective question, of course, as some products are just better than others.

However, as long as the light has enough power, is positioned well to attract insects, and is fully charged in time for your evening adventures outdoors, the bug zappers that run on solar power should work just as well as standard electric zappers.

How to Choose the Right Solar Bug Zapper Lights

Before we get into actual reviews, there are a few things you might want to know before choosing your own solar mosquito zapper for home and RV use.

Wattage

Thankfully, bug zappers don’t need to be super powerful unless you live in an extremely heavy insect-population area. Sadly, this area can change from year to year, so it can sometimes be challenging to understand your exact needs.

Most bug zappers don’t have the wattage listed, so this can be a bit tricky.

Instead, look for the length of time it takes to charge and review the ratings given by real-life users.

Look for thoughts specifically on how long the zapper lasts, whether or not there’s an on/off switch, and anything else related to power.

Effectiveness

This is another subjective portion of the bug zapper dilemma: how effective is it?

Most of the time, you’ll have to understand this from reviews from pros and average consumers, since every company will claim theirs is the most effective on the market.

Read reviews like the ones below for clues and let them help guide your decision.

Price

As mentioned above, solar power mosquito repellent lights should be affordable. You’ll find some models that cost over $100 – and may or may not have the higher ratings to match the significant price difference – or as little as $20.

You’ll want to think about your own budget before making the purchase and determine what kind of investment you’re willing to make in saving your skin from those nippy bugs.

Materials

Other than things like solar fly swatters that are usually made of heavy-duty plastic, you’ll want to make sure the bug zapper you’re considering is made of something like stainless steel or aluminum.

They’re less likely to break and are waterproof and incredibly durable. Plus, they’re more attractive than the tacky plastic options available.

How We Chose the Best Solar Insect Zapper Options

This was one of the toughest hunts I’ve gone on for solar products to recommend. Most of the reviews I found from other pros offered only products “not currently available” for purchase through the typical channels.

This meant I had to wade around for a while longer than usual, creating a completely new list of products to review without thoughts from other folks in the industry.

And that wasn’t easy.

I did already have a list of options in mind that I’d seen or used before, like the Solar Garden Owl Bug and Mosquito Zapper, but most of these were also no longer available – and some couldn’t even be found in search engines anymore!

I engaged a lot of search terms, like “bug wacker solar insect control reviews,” (crazy, right?) to find these products, but so few are currently available that my research was fairly disappointing.

Most of the solar bug zapper lanterns and lights that were available had really low ratings – or none at all – and I had nothing to gauge my research on save the price and materials and actually using them for awhile. But since I’m anxious to have a decent model on hand – and I know you are! – I wasn’t about to give up.

I spent hours digging through options, reading descriptions and the few reviews available. This produced a list of about 12 options that looked like they’re worth reviewing.

At this point, I dug in deep on each of the twelve options I was reviewing. I knocked out a few based on experience and research into choosing these, and the rest are found below in my round up of the best options currently available.

Want to know which one I bought? Check below…I’ve labeled it our Editor’s Choice!

Reviews of the Best Solar Bug Zappers

Here’s what I could find, review, and honestly recommend. I hope these solar powered bug zapper reviews are as helpful to you as they have been to me to create!

Wireless Solar Power Mosquito Light 

This little bug lantern is a great option for anyone looking for a versatile, beneficial, and long-lasting zapper. The MeetUs wireless solar power mosquito light is great for indoor or outdoor use, and is fairly lightweight – less than 3 pounds – so it’s extremely portable.

You can use this zapper at home in the yard, a stable, out camping, on the fishing dock, or just about anywhere you want. It’s got two modes with the zapper as one function and as a general lantern as the second.

The light doesn’t use any harmful chemicals or radiation and is completely safe for use around people of all ages. It’s resistant to high temperatures as well and has a convenient carry handle so you can move it around as needed, hang it from a post, or just carry it while walking.

You can use the solar panel on the top of the lantern to charge, or plug it into DC power via the USB port. If it’s out in the sun, it will automatically charge via solar power, and then turn the light on when it senses the daylight disappear.

It takes about 5 hours to charge the mosquito light for full brightness.

The MeetUs mosquito light is made of stainless steel and comes with a 12-month warranty.

This is the one I chose to use most regularly, so I’m hopeful it’ll help you, too!