The Do It Yourself World maybe it was taken down but the website doesn’t work! I just needed a better view of the diode. I think I can grab the one from the chip but i want to make sure what I think is a diode actually is a diode.
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Wow, lots of questions. I wanted to go off the grid to show people they can do it and to see how it would feel if society broke down and I was on my own. I started in May 2012. It was a scary move at first, but its so awesome to have done it. I am single, this is my only place, and I rent the land I am. I have a day job, which pays the bills and keeps the car on the road. But ads from my website help too. I highly recommend everyone trying to become somewhat independent for the peace it gives
Yes, I will be making some upgrades for this soon. Keep watching. The batteries get warm when they are finished charging. Most charge controllers sense the temperature. This is such a low current tho that I do not think they would explode, but I would not leave them on for days after the are full
Thanks. You can actually use a USB cable to charge a normal cell phone. All you need to do is set up the solar cells to put out 5 volts. You can have various voltages from the same solar cells depending on how you hook them up.
It seems that it made more sense to face the wires from the solar cells toward the batteries, so the wires would reach. Is there any danger of over charging (or battery damage) if you leave the batteries in the charger too long? Thanks for the great ideas!
For a small array like this one you could use a 1N4148. Larger ones where you have solar cells in series & parrallel to give the voltages and current needed to charge say a car battery you'll need something like a 1N4001. For kit with internal batteries like smartphones or 2way radios a proper fixed voltage regulator like a 7805 (5v/USB) or 7812 (12v) will be required instead of a diode and there is a 7818 so you could charge a laptop directly by solar.
Thank you. Watch for the updates in the next couple weeks. I will add a voltage switch, maybe more solar cells and a USB connector to charge my cell phone. I am also looking into control circuitry to prevent over charging of the batteries if I forget to watch them.
@@jessedeleon4200 it's the voltage is good but the ampere is bit too low it take about 1 full day in the sun to get 3% very hour so it takes about 93hours in the sun so about 4days
Well done bro! Theres much can be done with these cheap lights. My mom lives in upstate ny and has a very dark stairway so i took one apart, extended the led connector and installed the light above her stairs while placing the solar panel in a fixed spot outside on the roof. Now she always has enough light to see the lights switch at night. I want to build this charger so thanks for the demo. God bless!
It exists and its called a MPPT controller. Multi power point tracking solar charge controller. It used both a buck (reducing) and boost converter to get the best charging curve out of your solar panels. In full sun they put out about 18 volts and in low sun maybe 9 to 10 or so. The MPPT controller matches the battery voltage to the solar panel voltage, increasing the charge over all sunlight levels.
Looks good. This has serious potential. These little solar cells can charge an AA or AAA battery during the day, so 3 of them would put out enough for small devices. I am surprised tho that your devices take the 3.2 volts from the boost coverters on the little circuit boards. Most devices these days need 5 volts in.
Yeah, its cool soldering off the grid. Actually everything is cool. I cut my own hair with a electric clippers and use an electric razor on my face every day. My panels are about 250 - 300 watts total. Nothing huge, but it does the job. I am comfortable. No fridge yet tho. My aunt was proudly showing me how she is using solar path lights for emergency night lighting in the house. They are very versatile.
These are usually a single transistor based boost converter. They step up the voltage from 1.2 volts to about 3.2 volts to run a white LED. You could use them for anything that runs in that voltage range and current. At some point tho, you will find its highest current limit and fry one. Keep track of what burns it out so you know your limits. They will charge anything within their voltage range as well. The 2.3 volt cells should happily accept the voltage, yes.
You might want to attach a couple of mirrors that will bounce more light onto the solar cells. It shouldn't heat them up very much while getting more watts per solar cell. This would really only work when the sun is rising or setting and in the winter, but you can get some really cheap mirrors.
That is cool. When I lived in Brooklyn, NY I used a 12 volt alarm system battery to power a battery operated 12 volt fluorescent lamp in the bathroom. The ones found in most hardware stores sold as closet lights. I had a shower room and a separate bathroom. Had a lamp in each. Saved some money on lighting that way.
Yes if you leave them on too long. Just figure about 25 ma per solar cell and how many ma your battery needs to charge. A few hours give or take will not harm a thing due to the lower current
I've got several of these solar lights under several inches of snow that I bought as Christmas decorations. Now I know what to do with them when they are uncovered after this spring. Thanks!! Ex Navy electronics technician looking for a new electronics re purposing project!!
Series increases voltage. Parallel increase current. The solar cells are each meant to charge a 900 mAh battery in a full day. So you can charge two of them in this setup in half the time. Or a pair of 1800 mAh batteries in a whole day.
Sometimes Westinghouse brand has the AA or AAA. A lot of these are now coming out with the 2/3 AA. But you can use the solar cells from the dollar store path lights and get a battery socket at Radio Shack.
A standard battery charger puts out about 80 to 120 mAh into the AA or AAA batteries for a slow charge. A fast charger will put out about what you have. I prefer the slow charge for longer battery life though. Please come over to thediyworld forum and let me know how it goes. Please upload some pics when done.
1n4001 or 1n4007 work fine. Basically any sort of rectifier diode will do. Its just a blocker to prevent the battery from discharging back through the solar cells.
Thanks for the comments. Yes, the diode is a necessary evil. You could use a schottky diode for lower voltage drop. But in the long run, it shouldnt matter too much with these smaller batteries.
Yes, actually the unmodified dollar store path light will charge batteries just about double the capacity of the puny ones they ship the lights with in a day with no problem. Some people add larger batteries to make them last longer each night.
Thank you for being thorough. When other videos just sort of show & tell the project after it's finished, you actually show HOW TO DO IT! Very nice work!
If you left it for many days, yes it would. With smaller batteries you should pull them off the charger after a day. With larger capacity batteries it will take a few days to charge them.
Yes you can. Anything that can sense the strength of the sun's intensity will work. Just set up a circuit that is triggered at a certain voltage level. More sunlight equals higher voltage output from the cells. Less light equals a lower voltage. Hook one up to a volt meter and play around with it. Hold it in different angles to the sun. Try it at dusk and dawn. It will work.
You could do it, but it would take some time. The current output from one cell is about 50mA. In a 10 hour day you get about 500mA from one cell. Two of these gives you an amp in 10 hours. The voltage output is about 2.5 to 3 volts per cell. Put them together to get what you need. Check the original charger output for the proper voltage.
I had to learn on my own by reading and taking things apart. Either way, it is good to know how things work. I have a lot of plans for these little lights in the near future. So many ideas, so little time...
Yes, sort of. They put out very little current. It would be a trickle charger to maintain its charge, rather than top off a battery. It may prevent a battery from discharging over time. I have been thinking about putting one together. You need 18 volts on the solar panel, no load. String them up in series to make 18 V. Then put groups in parallel to get more current.
Yes, you can connect them to get 14 volts to charge a battery. But the current is very low. Better to charge smaller batteries and use LED lighting to save energy. It would take months to charge up a car battery with these tiny solar cells. I got a bunch of dollar store LED flashlights I am converting to run off my solar charged batteries. They are very bright and run off AA or AAA batteries. String them together for best results. At least its free lighting for life.
Nice video tutorial on how-to. There is a voltage drop off with the diode attached but the diode is indeed necessary so the battery wont be discharged when there is no light. PRETTY COOL I SHOULD SAY.
A Schottky diode would be best due to a lower voltage drop, but almost any diode (non zener) will work in this case because it is only blocking the voltage from flowing out of the batteries and into the solar cells when a cloud passes over.
These put out about 3.5 to 4 volts with no load. They drop down to about 1.5 to 1.7 volts per panel with a load, which is the right voltage for charging AA and AAA batteries.
I've been watching your videos for a few days now. I decided to go to the beginning and start watching them from the start. I really like this project, I've been thinking of doing something similar myself for a while. Glad to see you're back from Australia, I'm looking forward to the projects you mentioned you have in store for this year. All my best, Colin
Hello friend. I had that very same idea. But at the time I didn't know that I needed a diode. I didn't even have a dial to begin with so that nothing went right. You were very informative I enjoyed your video very much. I hope you have a good day.
The price for 4 solar cells at a dollar each is $4. You can get diodes free anywhere, sometimes in the solar lamp. And its fun. And you cannot get cheap solar panels here. The shipping to bring one over here is more than the panel. Over here for a 5 watt panel plan to spend about $30 to $60.
Yes, but the commercial chargers do measure the temperature. As the batteries charge up, they get warm. I will be making the circuits later and showing how.
This video was worth a subscription. I’m a fifth grade teacher and we make circuits. I wanted to learn how to teach them how to do electrical circuits with solar panels, but I’ve never done one before . The connecting of wires is what’s confusing in the video, but I will keep watching this to see if I get it.
Thank you. Its very simple. Plus from the solar cells to plus on the batteries. Negative to negative. To prevent the batteries from back feeding into the solar panels you need a diode to block current in reverse. Thats all there is to it. You can add a switch to turn it on or off as well if you like. I used all parts from dollar store lights for this project.
Yes, AA and AAA batteries. All you need is the right socket. You could actually charge your cell phone with the right voltage and power connector on it. I will do an update on that soon. I am ordering some USB connectors from China.
Yes, that is a relatively untouched area. They are very fine boost converters, but noone really knows what to do with them. I sadly have no 3 volt devices, so I cannot use them. But they may be good for running some LED flashlights. You could even theoretically string a bunch of the circuits up to run higher powered LED bulbs, such as a 1 W LED. Now that would be an accomplishment.
Thanks for the comments. The meter is a cheap no name $5 thing. You can sometimes find them on ebay. Think mine were on sale because I cannot find any meters below $10 now.
Various dollar stores have them at different times. I go back once a week to each chain to see what I can hack for me newest projects. Keep checking, eventually you will hit the jackpot
Hello Troy, I wanted to thank you for all the knowledge it have gained from your videos. You are tenacious and never give up. The best way to learn is by trial and error. You are courageous to let us share your journey.
Yes, you would need 8 or even better, 10 of the cells. With 10 you can get charging with a bit of overcast as well. Your cell phone and some other devices have a built in charge limiter in the device. Otherwise, the circuitry gets a bit complicated with the need for a voltage monitor on the output of the solar panels which can shut off the output to the device when the voltage reaches a certain level.
I have rechargeables that I had for about 7 years now and still going strong. A few have failed along the way, but most are good. Get the good quality stuff and they last.
There is normally only a transistor on the board, which acts like a diode sort of. Place a diode anywhere between the plus on the battery and the plus on the solar cell output. I can fully help you if you come over to thediyworld forum and post a photo. I can then see what parts are on your board and help you get it going.
Each little panel usually produces around 20mA at best, so you are looking at 80mA (but I would say around 70mA on average). So if you have a single 1000mAh AA battery then it will take 14+ hours to charge. But it is interesting trying to re purpose these small panels, it's a fun thing to do. It could be handy for charging those 300mAh AA batteries in timely fashion.
How does the circuitry handle these hacks? I'm looking into a 100mm x 100mm panel to charge 2 or 3 AAA batts so the light will hopefully stay on all night. As it is , my Home Depot 14w light sputters out by 7:30pm. But I wonder what the limiting factor here might be: draw (unlikely), supply, storage, or circuitry.
I have a general idea of the solar cells capacities because of the original batteries that came with them. Mine, for example, were 120 mAH batteries. That gives me about 120 mAH per day of charge per cell. 5 cells gives me about 600 mAH per day of charge. You can also just measure them from time to time. A rechargeable nicad is about 1.2 volts charged. When I get the to about 1.3 then I pull them off the charger.
It is low current so a few hours are no problem. You have to do the math. If your battery is 500 mah and your charger is 50mah, then it takes 10 hours to charge a single battery in full sunlight. My batteries are about 2000 mah so it takes a couple days.
Yeah, just go to Radio Shack and ask for a 1n4001 or 1n4007 or equivalent diode. Remember the band on it is negative and the unmarked end is positive. It blocks the flow in one direction but allows it in the other. If your charger is not working the first time, check the diode and make sure its installed the right way.
Yes, and I will be doing update experiments soon. Keep watching for them. I will be setting up multiple voltages and a USB adapter, plus control electronics.
You have about 7.5 amps at 2 volts (or any combination of voltage and amps) which gives you about 15 watts total. At 12 volts you probably have about 1.5 amps of charge with all your panels. It would take you 10 hours of sunlight to get 100 usable watts of energy with your panels.
You only need to block the power from flowing on one side. It has to flow through the circuit and back again. Blocking it on one side does the job. One diode. The original circuit regulates the on and off based on if the sun is shining or not. This is a battery charger though. No LEDs in the system. Just the solar cells and your batteries to be charged.
Not sure about AAA but I have 1800 and 2000 AA batteries at home. From Radio Shack, Walmart just about anywhere you can get good rechargeable batteries.
Yes, the Dollar Tree. They come and go. You need to watch for them because they sell out fast. I just got some Christmas ones at Walmart on clearance for 60 cents each. I look around. You can also find them online at the dollar tree website. Family Dollar also carries them on holidays like the 4th and Christmas. After the holiday, I grab them all up on clearance.
Wired in series you are increasing voltage. Wired in parallel to increase amps. Depending on your needs and the solar cells being used you may need a combination of the two to get decent charge!
Yes, any non automated charger can over charge your batteries. You need to do the math and figure how many hours to leave it out. I will be adding a cheap volt meter to the charger later so I can glance at it any time. I have a retail solar battery charger with no meter that cost me $29. My DIY charger cost me $4 and does the exact same job.
If I remember correctly from my electronics classes, when you wire in parallel, the voltage is the same and the current in stacked, when you wire in series, the current is the same and the voltage is stacked or added together.
I just watched a Discovery Channel documentary on a post apoc world. Was well done. Everyone will be a DIY-er very soon. I am trying to get the skills needed now so that I can survive later.
Please do share your experience if you have seen these go bad. In my studies and experiments, I have made many solar panels out of smaller solar cells. Solar cells are strung up to make larger voltage solar panels. Then you can string up your solar panels to make higher output or current. Yes, there should be diodes on each one, with larger panels. These little solar cells do not put out much voltage or current though. I have multiple cells in order to overcome the voltage drop and still work
They are designed to use 1.2 volts in and put about 3.2 volts out. Probably not much current output, but it would be interesting to find out what their limits are. I have a bunch of them laying around after hacking these solar lamps.
It depends on your circuit. Most of these are designed to put out about 3.2 volts to the LED. The battery is 1.5 volts. How it does this is to make a sort of DC to DC voltage step up converter from 1.5 volts to 3.2 volts to drive an LED. So, most of these need to have the original circuit removed first. The circuit is normally a transistor, so no diode is needed. Hope this helps some.
i dont know all this fancy voltage talk i know it comes natural to you. But i tried this and it works. just takes like 10 hours since you got 6-7 AAAs you can leave it outside all day and night just disconnect a wire
Yeah I did think about making a vid ov it after seeing yours. I might reinstall it in one ov the outside sheds at our new place so I can do that. For the lighting in my "Solar Room" I used one ov those cheap 12V/8W fluoro inspection lights in the tube. Just attached it to the ceiling with cable ties. I decided on going with this rather than LEDs because the roof ov this shed is really low and I wanted the lighting to cover a wide angle.
I thought it might be to powerful. I will find some solar garden lights and do this project. BTW, glad you came out ok in the storm. Was thinking of you in up state NY when I saw the news. Many hundreds of years ago, I lived in Buffalo and tromped around western NY.
Well, some have batteries about 500 mAH in capacity installed. Take that times 1.2 volts = .6 Watts per day capacity. Not a whole lot. You can figure if its worth it using the math above. I find they are perfect for charging batteries or running smaller lights. Strung together you could probably run a 12 volt fluorescent lamp for reading at night and save a bit of money while feeling good about yourself at the same time. Those lamps take 8 1.2 volt batteries to run them, I think.
I watched your video. Looks good. But, if you want to use it for gas output, then you will need to use a radiant energy generator, Bedini Motor. Please come over to thediyworld forum and I will help you on the way. A few of these in parallel could keep a car battery topped off, but not charge it on its own. They will also not generate enough hydroxy gas on their own. Use the Bedini motor, run it off the solar cells and then see serious gas produced.
Great Solar recharging panel. Two thumbs up. Don't worry about the detractors. These batteries never explode. I have made a school car project, using the similar technique, Walmart Store $1 Solar panels for Garden LED lights. I used the germanic Diode. The Batteries utilized were similar miniature AAA 1.2 V. They powered the little car, and car charged under the Sun. It ran great. Thanks for the project.
I saw a video once where someone took the gearing off several old 10 speed bikes and used slowly dropping weights on pulleys. As the weight drops slowly the wheel with copper coil spins fast against magnet stator. That might save the legs if you could make it work.
Well, I want to do it asap, but the stuff takes some time coming from China. It will be a couple weeks, but keep watching. Very soon. I have everything in place, waiting for the USB sockets. Of course, you could also remove sockets from an old, broken device that has a USB port on it. I am looking around for something I can scrap out. Watch for the video.
I REALLY enjoyed this! I had 6 (useless) lights but the solar panels were okay. I set it up to charge AAA and AA batteries. I wouldn'thave thought that power might drain back through the panels. Great video - VERY usefull - THANKS!!!
They should produce more than enough power. Make sure every cell in putting out power. Check each one individually. Then check your wires. Also tip the cells directly into the sun for best results. Straight up is not the optimum position for maximum charging. Maybe your batteries are weak as well. What is the max capacity of them? Get larger, 2,000 mAH batteries and see what results you get. Should be way better.
*Read the full article with details here:* www.thedoityourselfworld.com/articles/article.php?id=11504
The Do It Yourself World maybe it was taken down but the website doesn’t work! I just needed a better view of the diode. I think I can grab the one from the chip but i want to make sure what I think is a diode actually is a diode.
But this is really cool.
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Wow, lots of questions. I wanted to go off the grid to show people they can do it and to see how it would feel if society broke down and I was on my own. I started in May 2012. It was a scary move at first, but its so awesome to have done it.
I am single, this is my only place, and I rent the land I am. I have a day job, which pays the bills and keeps the car on the road. But ads from my website help too.
I highly recommend everyone trying to become somewhat independent for the peace it gives
Yes, I will be making some upgrades for this soon. Keep watching.
The batteries get warm when they are finished charging. Most charge controllers sense the temperature. This is such a low current tho that I do not think they would explode, but I would not leave them on for days after the are full
Thanks. You can actually use a USB cable to charge a normal cell phone. All you need to do is set up the solar cells to put out 5 volts. You can have various voltages from the same solar cells depending on how you hook them up.
It seems that it made more sense to face the wires from the solar cells toward the batteries, so the wires would reach. Is there any danger of over charging (or battery damage) if you leave the batteries in the charger too long? Thanks for the great ideas!
For a small array like this one you could use a 1N4148. Larger ones where you have solar cells in series & parrallel to give the voltages and current needed to charge say a car battery you'll need something like a 1N4001. For kit with internal batteries like smartphones or 2way radios a proper fixed voltage regulator like a 7805 (5v/USB) or 7812 (12v) will be required instead of a diode and there is a 7818 so you could charge a laptop directly by solar.
Thank you. Watch for the updates in the next couple weeks. I will add a voltage switch, maybe more solar cells and a USB connector to charge my cell phone.
I am also looking into control circuitry to prevent over charging of the batteries if I forget to watch them.
i want to build a cellphone charger with this method, how did yours turn out?
@@jessedeleon4200 it's the voltage is good but the ampere is bit too low it take about 1 full day in the sun to get 3% very hour so it takes about 93hours in the sun so about 4days
Well done bro! Theres much can be done with these cheap lights. My mom lives in upstate ny and has a very dark stairway so i took one apart, extended the led connector and installed the light above her stairs while placing the solar panel in a fixed spot outside on the roof. Now she always has enough light to see the lights switch at night. I want to build this charger so thanks for the demo. God bless!
It exists and its called a MPPT controller. Multi power point tracking solar charge controller. It used both a buck (reducing) and boost converter to get the best charging curve out of your solar panels. In full sun they put out about 18 volts and in low sun maybe 9 to 10 or so. The MPPT controller matches the battery voltage to the solar panel voltage, increasing the charge over all sunlight levels.
This video is responsible for the solar setup I have now. I saw it in 2012 and that peeked my interest
That is cool :)
Looks good. This has serious potential. These little solar cells can charge an AA or AAA battery during the day, so 3 of them would put out enough for small devices. I am surprised tho that your devices take the 3.2 volts from the boost coverters on the little circuit boards.
Most devices these days need 5 volts in.
Yeah, its cool soldering off the grid. Actually everything is cool. I cut my own hair with a electric clippers and use an electric razor on my face every day.
My panels are about 250 - 300 watts total. Nothing huge, but it does the job. I am comfortable. No fridge yet tho.
My aunt was proudly showing me how she is using solar path lights for emergency night lighting in the house. They are very versatile.
These are usually a single transistor based boost converter. They step up the voltage from 1.2 volts to about 3.2 volts to run a white LED.
You could use them for anything that runs in that voltage range and current. At some point tho, you will find its highest current limit and fry one. Keep track of what burns it out so you know your limits.
They will charge anything within their voltage range as well. The 2.3 volt cells should happily accept the voltage, yes.
You might want to attach a couple of mirrors that will bounce more light onto the solar cells. It shouldn't heat them up very much while getting more watts per solar cell. This would really only work when the sun is rising or setting and in the winter, but you can get some really cheap mirrors.
That is cool. When I lived in Brooklyn, NY I used a 12 volt alarm system battery to power a battery operated 12 volt fluorescent lamp in the bathroom. The ones found in most hardware stores sold as closet lights. I had a shower room and a separate bathroom. Had a lamp in each. Saved some money on lighting that way.
Yes if you leave them on too long. Just figure about 25 ma per solar cell and how many ma your battery needs to charge. A few hours give or take will not harm a thing due to the lower current
I've got several of these solar lights under several inches of snow that I bought as Christmas decorations. Now I know what to do with them when they are uncovered after this spring. Thanks!! Ex Navy electronics technician looking for a new electronics re purposing project!!
Series increases voltage. Parallel increase current.
The solar cells are each meant to charge a 900 mAh battery in a full day. So you can charge two of them in this setup in half the time. Or a pair of 1800 mAh batteries in a whole day.
Sometimes Westinghouse brand has the AA or AAA. A lot of these are now coming out with the 2/3 AA.
But you can use the solar cells from the dollar store path lights and get a battery socket at Radio Shack.
A standard battery charger puts out about 80 to 120 mAh into the AA or AAA batteries for a slow charge. A fast charger will put out about what you have.
I prefer the slow charge for longer battery life though.
Please come over to thediyworld forum and let me know how it goes. Please upload some pics when done.
Yes, if it has one. Most do not but only have a little transistor or small circuit in them. But if you have a diode in there, yes it will work fine.
1n4001 or 1n4007 work fine. Basically any sort of rectifier diode will do. Its just a blocker to prevent the battery from discharging back through the solar cells.
Thanks for the comments.
Yes, the diode is a necessary evil. You could use a schottky diode for lower voltage drop. But in the long run, it shouldnt matter too much with these smaller batteries.
Yes, actually the unmodified dollar store path light will charge batteries just about double the capacity of the puny ones they ship the lights with in a day with no problem. Some people add larger batteries to make them last longer each night.
Thank you for being thorough. When other videos just sort of show & tell the project after it's finished, you actually show HOW TO DO IT! Very nice work!
If you left it for many days, yes it would. With smaller batteries you should pull them off the charger after a day. With larger capacity batteries it will take a few days to charge them.
Yes you can. Anything that can sense the strength of the sun's intensity will work. Just set up a circuit that is triggered at a certain voltage level. More sunlight equals higher voltage output from the cells. Less light equals a lower voltage.
Hook one up to a volt meter and play around with it. Hold it in different angles to the sun. Try it at dusk and dawn. It will work.
You could do it, but it would take some time. The current output from one cell is about 50mA. In a 10 hour day you get about 500mA from one cell. Two of these gives you an amp in 10 hours.
The voltage output is about 2.5 to 3 volts per cell. Put them together to get what you need. Check the original charger output for the proper voltage.
I had to learn on my own by reading and taking things apart. Either way, it is good to know how things work.
I have a lot of plans for these little lights in the near future. So many ideas, so little time...
There's power were you are? Why you are using an inverter?
Thanks for the compliment. You can modify this in many ways. I will be adding to it later when I get time.
Yes, sort of. They put out very little current. It would be a trickle charger to maintain its charge, rather than top off a battery. It may prevent a battery from discharging over time.
I have been thinking about putting one together. You need 18 volts on the solar panel, no load. String them up in series to make 18 V. Then put groups in parallel to get more current.
For larger batteries it takes about 2 full days of summer sun. In the winter about 3. But I use 2400 mah batteries. They are quite large.
Any rectifier or schottky diode will do. A 1n4007 or 1n4001 will work. The Radio Shack part # is 276-1653 for a 25 pack.
Yes, you can connect them to get 14 volts to charge a battery. But the current is very low. Better to charge smaller batteries and use LED lighting to save energy. It would take months to charge up a car battery with these tiny solar cells.
I got a bunch of dollar store LED flashlights I am converting to run off my solar charged batteries. They are very bright and run off AA or AAA batteries. String them together for best results.
At least its free lighting for life.
Nice video tutorial on how-to. There is a voltage drop off with the diode attached but the diode is indeed necessary so the battery wont be discharged when there is no light. PRETTY COOL I SHOULD SAY.
A Schottky diode would be best due to a lower voltage drop, but almost any diode (non zener) will work in this case because it is only blocking the voltage from flowing out of the batteries and into the solar cells when a cloud passes over.
These put out about 3.5 to 4 volts with no load. They drop down to about 1.5 to 1.7 volts per panel with a load, which is the right voltage for charging AA and AAA batteries.
I've been watching your videos for a few days now. I decided to go to the beginning and start watching them from the start. I really like this project, I've been thinking of doing something similar myself for a while.
Glad to see you're back from Australia, I'm looking forward to the projects you mentioned you have in store for this year.
All my best,
Colin
Thank you. I cant wait to get back home and working on the projects again. Snowed in deeply right now.
The Do It Yourself World cool project.
Hello friend. I had that very same idea. But at the time I didn't know that I needed a diode. I didn't even have a dial to begin with so that nothing went right. You were very informative I enjoyed your video very much. I hope you have a good day.
Happy to hear it helped.
@@TheDoItYourselfWorld you replied after 10 years
Respect+
@@branchcensus5083 Still going strong. Thanks.
The price for 4 solar cells at a dollar each is $4. You can get diodes free anywhere, sometimes in the solar lamp.
And its fun.
And you cannot get cheap solar panels here. The shipping to bring one over here is more than the panel.
Over here for a 5 watt panel plan to spend about $30 to $60.
Its AWESOME. It gives a sense of freedom, accomplishment and peace. And I never loose power.
Yes, but the commercial chargers do measure the temperature. As the batteries charge up, they get warm. I will be making the circuits later and showing how.
In between the panels and the batteries either on the positive or negative side. Just make sure you get the polarity of the diode right.
Yes, you are correct. I wanted to quickly get the video done and show it working before it got dark out.
This video was worth a subscription. I’m a fifth grade teacher and we make circuits. I wanted to learn how to teach them how to do electrical circuits with solar panels, but I’ve never done one before . The connecting of wires is what’s confusing in the video, but I will keep watching this to see if I get it.
Thank you. Its very simple. Plus from the solar cells to plus on the batteries. Negative to negative. To prevent the batteries from back feeding into the solar panels you need a diode to block current in reverse. Thats all there is to it. You can add a switch to turn it on or off as well if you like. I used all parts from dollar store lights for this project.
Yes, AA and AAA batteries. All you need is the right socket. You could actually charge your cell phone with the right voltage and power connector on it. I will do an update on that soon. I am ordering some USB connectors from China.
Yes, that is a relatively untouched area. They are very fine boost converters, but noone really knows what to do with them. I sadly have no 3 volt devices, so I cannot use them. But they may be good for running some LED flashlights. You could even theoretically string a bunch of the circuits up to run higher powered LED bulbs, such as a 1 W LED. Now that would be an accomplishment.
Thanks for the comments. The meter is a cheap no name $5 thing. You can sometimes find them on ebay. Think mine were on sale because I cannot find any meters below $10 now.
I use the positive side. The band on the diode is negative, so make sure its installed right.
Various dollar stores have them at different times. I go back once a week to each chain to see what I can hack for me newest projects. Keep checking, eventually you will hit the jackpot
Yes, it is. As long as the battery has enough capacity to keep it running, no problem.
Hello Troy, I wanted to thank you for all the knowledge it have gained from your videos. You are tenacious and never give up. The best way to learn is by trial and error. You are courageous to let us share your journey.
1N4001 or 1N4007 work fine. But a low power Schottkey is the best due to its lower voltage drop. Sorry dont know a number, but you can ask them.
That is fine. You can use the same diode with multiple cells.
Yes, you would need 8 or even better, 10 of the cells. With 10 you can get charging with a bit of overcast as well. Your cell phone and some other devices have a built in charge limiter in the device. Otherwise, the circuitry gets a bit complicated with the need for a voltage monitor on the output of the solar panels which can shut off the output to the device when the voltage reaches a certain level.
I have rechargeables that I had for about 7 years now and still going strong. A few have failed along the way, but most are good. Get the good quality stuff and they last.
In theory, yes. But it would take a lot of them to get any serious charging current. They are best used for smaller flashlight batteries.
Yes, just make sure you get the right voltage out and you have a solar USB charger. I plan to make one soon.
There is normally only a transistor on the board, which acts like a diode sort of.
Place a diode anywhere between the plus on the battery and the plus on the solar cell output.
I can fully help you if you come over to thediyworld forum and post a photo. I can then see what parts are on your board and help you get it going.
Each little panel usually produces around 20mA at best, so you are looking at 80mA (but I would say around 70mA on average).
So if you have a single 1000mAh AA battery then it will take 14+ hours to charge.
But it is interesting trying to re purpose these small panels, it's a fun thing to do. It could be handy for charging those 300mAh AA batteries in timely fashion.
Works for all batteries but yes, best results for smaller ones.
How does the circuitry handle these hacks? I'm looking into a 100mm x 100mm panel to charge 2 or 3 AAA batts so the light will hopefully stay on all night. As it is , my Home Depot 14w light sputters out by 7:30pm. But I wonder what the limiting factor here might be: draw (unlikely), supply, storage, or circuitry.
Yes, where you can buy dollar solar path lights to do these experiments. Its a great site.
I have wanted to do this for some time but I didnt think that for a dollar the solar cell would even work.
I will try this myself!!
Thanks
I have a general idea of the solar cells capacities because of the original batteries that came with them. Mine, for example, were 120 mAH batteries. That gives me about 120 mAH per day of charge per cell. 5 cells gives me about 600 mAH per day of charge. You can also just measure them from time to time. A rechargeable nicad is about 1.2 volts charged. When I get the to about 1.3 then I pull them off the charger.
It is low current so a few hours are no problem. You have to do the math. If your battery is 500 mah and your charger is 50mah, then it takes 10 hours to charge a single battery in full sunlight.
My batteries are about 2000 mah so it takes a couple days.
Yeah, just go to Radio Shack and ask for a 1n4001 or 1n4007 or equivalent diode. Remember the band on it is negative and the unmarked end is positive. It blocks the flow in one direction but allows it in the other. If your charger is not working the first time, check the diode and make sure its installed the right way.
Just seeing this video for the first time just now. I miss radio shack :(
@@BriannaBeastMode I miss them too. Now I have to order everything online and wait for it to arrive.
Yes, and I will be doing update experiments soon. Keep watching for them. I will be setting up multiple voltages and a USB adapter, plus control electronics.
You have about 7.5 amps at 2 volts (or any combination of voltage and amps) which gives you about 15 watts total. At 12 volts you probably have about 1.5 amps of charge with all your panels.
It would take you 10 hours of sunlight to get 100 usable watts of energy with your panels.
You only need to block the power from flowing on one side. It has to flow through the circuit and back again. Blocking it on one side does the job. One diode.
The original circuit regulates the on and off based on if the sun is shining or not.
This is a battery charger though. No LEDs in the system. Just the solar cells and your batteries to be charged.
It can if you leave it too many days in the sun. I am working on a charge controller but it adds a lot to the cost of the charger.
Not sure about AAA but I have 1800 and 2000 AA batteries at home. From Radio Shack, Walmart just about anywhere you can get good rechargeable batteries.
Yes, the Dollar Tree. They come and go. You need to watch for them because they sell out fast. I just got some Christmas ones at Walmart on clearance for 60 cents each. I look around. You can also find them online at the dollar tree website.
Family Dollar also carries them on holidays like the 4th and Christmas. After the holiday, I grab them all up on clearance.
Sorry, for the delay in my answer. Was in Canada.
Any sort of blocking diode will work. Radio shack or ebay. 1n4007 or 1n4001 are good.
Wired in series you are increasing voltage. Wired in parallel to increase amps. Depending on your needs and the solar cells being used you may need a combination of the two to get decent charge!
Yes, any non automated charger can over charge your batteries. You need to do the math and figure how many hours to leave it out. I will be adding a cheap volt meter to the charger later so I can glance at it any time. I have a retail solar battery charger with no meter that cost me $29. My DIY charger cost me $4 and does the exact same job.
If I remember correctly from my electronics classes, when you wire in parallel, the voltage is the same and the current in stacked, when you wire in series, the current is the same and the voltage is stacked or added together.
I just watched a Discovery Channel documentary on a post apoc world. Was well done. Everyone will be a DIY-er very soon.
I am trying to get the skills needed now so that I can survive later.
Thank you for the feedback. Happy to help.
Wow! Impressive!! Thanks for sharing bruja information! You’re my new favorite channel!!
Thanks for the feedback. I later moved my stuff to The Do It Yourself World Electronics so check that out too. Thanks.
Yes, more panels = faster charging. If you want to charge a 12 volt battery, you need 14.5 volts to charge it.
No problem. Please let me know how it goes.
I am sorry, but I am not sure what you are asking. What do you want to do with the strip lights.
What about the solar panel with the male connector?
Please do share your experience if you have seen these go bad. In my studies and experiments, I have made many solar panels out of smaller solar cells.
Solar cells are strung up to make larger voltage solar panels. Then you can string up your solar panels to make higher output or current.
Yes, there should be diodes on each one, with larger panels. These little solar cells do not put out much voltage or current though.
I have multiple cells in order to overcome the voltage drop and still work
They are designed to use 1.2 volts in and put about 3.2 volts out. Probably not much current output, but it would be interesting to find out what their limits are. I have a bunch of them laying around after hacking these solar lamps.
Believe it or not, with my cell phone. I can hook it to my laptop as a modem. I get pretty good reception, even in the mountains far away.
It depends on your circuit. Most of these are designed to put out about 3.2 volts to the LED. The battery is 1.5 volts.
How it does this is to make a sort of DC to DC voltage step up converter from 1.5 volts to 3.2 volts to drive an LED.
So, most of these need to have the original circuit removed first. The circuit is normally a transistor, so no diode is needed.
Hope this helps some.
1N4007 or 1N4004 are both fine. Just about any blocking diode will do.
i dont know all this fancy voltage talk i know it comes natural to you. But i tried this and it works. just takes like 10 hours since you got 6-7 AAAs you can leave it outside all day and night just disconnect a wire
Yes. Its so cool when things come together.
Those lights are strong anyway. And pretty efficient. I use them a lot myself.
Yeah I did think about making a vid ov it after seeing yours. I might reinstall it in one ov the outside sheds at our new place so I can do that. For the lighting in my "Solar Room" I used one ov those cheap 12V/8W fluoro inspection lights in the tube. Just attached it to the ceiling with cable ties. I decided on going with this rather than LEDs because the roof ov this shed is really low and I wanted the lighting to cover a wide angle.
I thought it might be to powerful. I will find some solar garden lights and do this project. BTW, glad you came out ok in the storm. Was thinking of you in up state NY when I saw the news. Many hundreds of years ago, I lived in Buffalo and tromped around western NY.
Well, some have batteries about 500 mAH in capacity installed. Take that times 1.2 volts = .6 Watts per day capacity. Not a whole lot. You can figure if its worth it using the math above.
I find they are perfect for charging batteries or running smaller lights. Strung together you could probably run a 12 volt fluorescent lamp for reading at night and save a bit of money while feeling good about yourself at the same time. Those lamps take 8 1.2 volt batteries to run them, I think.
I watched your video. Looks good. But, if you want to use it for gas output, then you will need to use a radiant energy generator, Bedini Motor. Please come over to thediyworld forum and I will help you on the way.
A few of these in parallel could keep a car battery topped off, but not charge it on its own. They will also not generate enough hydroxy gas on their own. Use the Bedini motor, run it off the solar cells and then see serious gas produced.
Great Solar recharging panel. Two thumbs up. Don't worry about the detractors. These batteries never explode. I have made a school car project, using the similar technique, Walmart Store $1 Solar panels for Garden LED lights. I used the germanic Diode. The Batteries utilized were similar miniature AAA 1.2 V. They powered the little car, and car charged under the Sun. It ran great. Thanks for the project.
The have never exploded on me but I did manage to make some leak
great idea.. I still say momentum / motor / magnet energy is still the number one immutable source if you got the leg power each day..
I saw a video once where someone took the gearing off several old 10 speed bikes and used slowly dropping weights on pulleys. As the weight drops slowly the wheel with copper coil
spins fast against magnet stator. That might save the legs if you could make it work.
So how long did it take to get those batteries fully charged? We need stats...
Well, I want to do it asap, but the stuff takes some time coming from China. It will be a couple weeks, but keep watching. Very soon. I have everything in place, waiting for the USB sockets.
Of course, you could also remove sockets from an old, broken device that has a USB port on it. I am looking around for something I can scrap out.
Watch for the video.
Yes, I have tons of them. But they put out way too much current for little batteries.
I REALLY enjoyed this! I had 6 (useless) lights but the solar panels were okay. I set it up to charge AAA and AA batteries. I wouldn'thave thought that power might drain back through the panels. Great video - VERY usefull - THANKS!!!
They should produce more than enough power. Make sure every cell in putting out power. Check each one individually. Then check your wires.
Also tip the cells directly into the sun for best results. Straight up is not the optimum position for maximum charging.
Maybe your batteries are weak as well. What is the max capacity of them? Get larger, 2,000 mAH batteries and see what results you get. Should be way better.