Do "solid polymer" capacitors really have a longer lifespan than electrolytic?
Organic polymer capacitors, also known by names like OC-CON and trademarks like OSCON, give you a bit better performance than the best low-ripple aluminum electrolytic (ALE) capacitors at a higher cost, with a few caveats.

Ripple current for an OC-CON is generally higher than an ALE of equivalent size and rating. Good ALEs in the \$ 1000 \mu F\$, 16V range can have 100kHz ripple ratings around 1500mA - OC-CONs in the \$820 \mu F\$, 16V range can be as high at 5600mA.

OC-CONs are generally not as forgiving in terms of overvoltage as ALEs are. I've found that overvoltage will cause an OC-CON to fail short-circuit. ALEs seem to be able to take more overvoltage before failing.

OC-CONs also need to have charging current within a controlled range. Excessive charging current can degrade the leakage current performance or cause a short.

In terms of life, there are ALEs available with 8000h rated life, so there's no guarantee that every OC-CON will have longer rated life than any ALE. There are ranges for both. That being said, there likely aren't any 'general-purpose' OC-CONs with only 1000h rated life out there.

Sanyo has published this usage guide for their OSCON capacitors - the principles hold true for any OC-CON part in my experience (most manufacturers have similar documents).

For hobby use, you may be better-served by ALEs, since they're a bit more robust and cheaper. If you need the high ripple capability, however, there's nothing stopping you from using them - just be careful soldering them (see section 3 of the linked document). I haven't had any issues hand-soldering them, FWIW...