Abstract: Example embodiments relate to a water feature. The water feature includes a vessel and an electrically powered submersible pump within the vessel, an outlet fluidly connected to the pump, a solar panel, and a battery. The water feature also includes a controller, a processor, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium which stores a set of program instructions which cause the water feature to perform operations. The operations include receiving a predetermined time to operate the pump on the battery. Based on the predetermined time, the operations include allocating a percent of a total electrical power generated by the solar panel to charge the battery and a remainder of the total electrical power generated to operate the pump. The operations additionally include determining that the battery has reached a threshold power level associated with the predetermined time to operate the pump and allocating the total electrical power generated to operate the pump.

Abstract: The disclosed technology can be used to implement water movement effects (e.g., water fountains) in a water feature (e.g., bird baths) by, for example, submersing one or more solar cells below a surface of the water in the water feature to convert light energy received thereby into electrical energy sufficient to directly or indirectly drive a pump (which may also, but need not, be submersible below the water surface) that provides a hydraulic pressure/suction that forms a desired water movement effect.