It's a great little pump "” while it works. Don't Let The Solar Panel Get Rained On!
Our little pump had been in service for about a month when I moved the solar panel portion of the unit out from under our clear polycarbonate roof, the first time it got rained on it quit. I had moved it to get it out from under a new solar shade cloth we had installed. I am going to purchase one more of these and put the solar panel between the solar shade and the polycarb roof. It will get full sun and no rain. My solar stuff usually lasts for years, the new unit will or I'll be back to knock off a few more stars.

Really, really resent the fact that a solar panel cannot get rained on.

Updated update! : New one, and working great. Old update: Stopped working second day! And I was so pleased with it. Checked all connections, pump was clear. I have no idea what happened.

First review: I was quite surprised when I walked outside and the itsy bitsy pump hummed in my hand. With clouds (or now at dusk) it pulses. The sun came out once, and it soared! Great for my galvanized pan bird waterer. I'll see if I can send video in low light.

Don't buy! It worked for three days and then stopped. I wish I still had the box and packing material to send it back. Even when it worked I was about to rate it and give it only three stars. The output is very week even in South Florida with blazing sun in the summer. It shuts down completely in slight overcast. It needs full sun. I used it in a decorative patio waterfall that had a lift of about one foot. Given those conditions it ran as a trickle.

Update July 22, 2017: Pump is in its 2nd season now, still going strong. Has even run dry a couple times and survived, and also survived a raccoon pulling on its cord. We bought a second one for backup in case this one dies - but so far so good!

July 12, 2016: Bought this pump to use in a homemade birdbath/fountain. We wanted the pump to be separate from the basin, for three reasons: (1) to help keep the pump clean; (2) to avoid worrying about the water level; and (3) to ensure it wouldn't bother the birds.

This pump works perfectly for those needs. By attaching clear vinyl (5/16" inside diameter) tubing onto the pump's discharge outlet (and attaching the "fountain" parts to the other end of that), we were able to separate the pump from the bath basin.

I highly recommend this pump! Things I love about it:

1. There is a 10-foot cord from the pump to the solar panel, so we can have the birdbath in the shade but the panel in the sun.

2. The solar panel is good-sized (about 5"x5.5").
It has two short legs so you can angle it toward the sky without laying it down flat. We have ours clipped to the side of a plant stand. It faces east in the morning and we turn it to the west in the afternoon, and it runs all day. (Granted, we're in sunny CA.)

3. The pump is surprisingly powerful.
The tubing we added travels up about 20", but it still puts out a good fountain effect. (Note: to get the fountainhead pieces inside the 5/16" tube, I had to dip the tubing in boiling water to soften it, then force "Part A" in. It wasn't easy. I used the cap-end of a skinny marker for extra leverage.)

Our birds were intrigued but seemed intimated by the fountain. What finally worked best was taking the fountainhead off (we left Part A inside the tubing end) and just hiding the tube in a pile of small stones. So it looks and works more like a bubbler. They love it! Goldfinches, sparrows, mockingbirds and even hummingbirds have been visiting it.

It's 7pm now and I'm on the patio writing this, about 20 feet from the birdbath. The pump has stopped running because the sun is too low, but two mockingbirds just landed on the bath to get a drink. What a great way to end a summer day!

This is a nifty little pump, and I've gotten a big kick out of getting it going. My purpose is to have a bubbler/fountain for hummingbirds in our yard, and this is a great little fountain pump for that. Here are a couple of caveats:

1. You need a bowl (a birdbath or similar) that is wide enough and deep enough to cover the pump and to keep the water in the bowl when you're using the fountain attachment. I am finding that if it's at all windy, I need to use the bubbler rather than the fountain b/c the wind blows the fountain water out of the bowl. It doesn't take very long to lose too much water if the wind is blowing at all.

2. You need to keep any debris (little bits of leaves, seeds, etc.) out of the water. The little pump unit's intake screen can easily get clogged if your water has any crud in it.

3. You need to pay attention--it's not a set-it-up-and-forget-it gadget.

Overall, I really like it. The solar power is cool and effective, and the fountain and bubbler are charming and a treat for the birds. And it's a great price.