KYEKIO Solar Torch Light with Flickering Flame, 12Pack Solar Lights Outdoor, Waterproof Halloween Lights for Yard Garden, Luces Solares para Exteriores, Torches Lighting for Outside Patio Decorations

A compact, flame-effect accent for pathways and patios

I set up the KYEKIO solar torches to bring a bit of warmth to a stone walkway and the border of a small patio. These are the shorter “mini” style—about 20.6 inches tall once staked—so they sit low to the ground and read more like accent lights than tall tiki torches. That scale matters: if you’re picturing shoulder-height flames, these aren’t that. If you want a flickering, campfire-like glow woven through plants, along steps, or around seating, they fit the brief.

Design, materials, and assembly

Each head is an ABS plastic housing with a lattice pattern that lets the amber light flicker through. The finish is uniform, and the lensing inside does a convincing job of breaking up the LEDs into a flame-like pattern. Assembly is quick: head to tube, tube to stake, stake to ground spike. I had the full 12-pack together in under 15 minutes.

The tradeoff for the lightweight build is rigidity. The plastic extension tubes and stakes will flex and can snap if you push them into hard ground or catch them with a lawnmower tire. A few tips that helped:
- Pre-punch the hole with the included spike alone, then add the stake and tube.
- Hold the stake, not the tube, while pressing into soil.
- In windy or high-traffic spots, swapping the plastic tubes for short sections of 1/2-inch EMT conduit or fiberglass garden stakes adds a lot of durability.

Out of the box, everything was packed securely, and the on/off switch inside the head was easy to find. Just remember to flip it to “on” before you place them.

Setup and controls

There’s no app or mode cycling—just a single flickering flame mode powered by a photosensor. After turning them on, I left the heads in direct sun for a full day before installing. That initial charge is worth the patience; my runtimes were noticeably longer when I gave them a proper first fill.

Auto-on at dusk worked reliably. In normal use they turned on within minutes of nearby post lights and clicked off at sunrise. I did encounter one unit that stayed faintly on during the day, which drained its battery. Power cycling it (off, wait 10 seconds, on) fixed the behavior; it’s been fine since.

Light quality and brightness

The flame effect is the star here. With 12 LEDs per head, the “dance” is surprisingly organic—more lively than a simple blink pattern, less chaotic than a real flame. The color is a warm amber that reads like firelight rather than the orange of a traffic cone. Because the heads are small and the LEDs sit close together, the flame looks best from a few feet away. Up close, you can see the pixel points, but from walkway distance the illusion holds.

Brightness is modest. I’d call it mood lighting, not path lighting. Along my flagstone path, six torches spaced about four feet apart added a welcoming glow but didn’t replace my low-voltage path lights for visibility. Around the patio, the warmth was perfect for after-dinner chats; it never glared or pulled attention. If you want to light steps or address actual tripping hazards, pair these with functional illumination.

Runtime and charging

With clear summer sun and a full initial charge, most heads ran between 6.5 and 8 hours—typically switching off within an hour of sunrise. As days shortened and clouds rolled in, that dipped to the 4–6 hour range, with particularly overcast days producing closer to 3 hours. Placement matters a lot: the units I tucked near a fence shadow faded first. If you only have partial sun, expect shorter evenings.

I had one head that was dimmer than the rest. After moving it to a spot with stronger midday exposure, it matched the others. That highlights a typical solar reality: small panels are unforgiving of shade, even for an hour or two.

For winter use, they still work, but expect the 4–6 hour window on good days and less on snowy, short days. They’re frost-resistant, and I didn’t see any cracking after a few freezes. If you store them in the off-season, give them a full charge before putting them away and top them up a couple of times over the winter to keep the battery healthier.

Weather resistance

We’ve had two heavy rainstorms since installation. The heads kept water out; no fogging under the lens, no condensation on the inside of the panel. The ABS hasn’t faded or chalked so far. Dust and sprinkler overspray will film the solar panels—wipe them with a damp cloth every few weeks to keep charging consistent. Hard water will leave spots; a little vinegar-water mix clears that right up.

In wind, the low height helps. They don’t act like sails, but the thin tubes can lean if the soil is loose. Again, pressing them in by the stake improves stability, and using a sturdier tube is an easy upgrade in exposed locations.

Everyday use and placement tips

A few placements looked particularly good:
- Framing the entry of a path with two to four torches on each side.
- Nesting them among low grasses or ferns so the amber glow plays off the foliage.
- Creating a perimeter ring around a fire pit area where open flames aren’t allowed.
- Seasonal runs down a driveway for Halloween or winter gatherings.

Because they’re short, give them some breathing room from tall shrubs. If the flame is buried in foliage, it loses the visual. I had the best results at 3–5 feet spacing along a walkway; tighter than that looked busy.

They are strictly decorative. Keep that expectation, and they’re satisfying. Try to stretch them into security lighting, and you’ll be disappointed.

Quality control and support

Across the 12-pack, one head arrived DOA and another exhibited the daytime-on quirk I mentioned. The dead unit wouldn’t take a charge. After a quick email with photos and the order number, the seller sent a replacement head without asking me to return the faulty one. The swap matched the others in brightness and pattern, and the set has been stable since. I would have preferred 12 flawless units, of course, but responsive support takes the sting out of an occasional dud.

Battery and maintenance notes

The battery type isn’t listed, and the pack isn’t billed as user-replaceable. The head can be opened, but unless you’re comfortable with small electronics, I’d treat these as sealed. Expect a couple of seasons out of the batteries with normal use; keep the panels clean and avoid chronic shade to get the most life. If you see runtimes dropping sharply across the set after a year or two, that’s the typical aging curve of small solar lights.

What I’d change

• Taller option: A 30–40 inch variant would open up more uses and clear taller plantings.
• Beefier tubes and stakes: Even slightly thicker plastic would reduce breakage during installation.
• Optional steady amber mode: The flame effect is great, but a static setting would increase versatility.

The bottom line

The KYEKIO solar torches are a pleasant, low-effort way to add firelight ambiance without open flames, wiring, or maintenance headaches. They’re compact, look best as accents rather than task lights, and deliver respectable runtimes when given honest, direct sun. Build quality is lightweight, and the plastic stems can be the weak point, but with careful installation—or a simple stake upgrade—they hold up well through weather and wind. Expect occasional variability between units and plan on cleaning the panels periodically.

Recommendation: I recommend these if your goal is decorative warmth along paths, patios, or seasonal displays and you’re comfortable with their mini height and mood-level brightness. If you need tall fixtures, more robust hardware, or dependable all-night illumination in mixed sun, look to a heavier-duty, full-size torch or a wired low-voltage solution. For ambient glow and easy setup, this 12-pack hits a sweet spot.