flickering solar garden light - high quality solar garden lights

I've always been fascinated by the solar lights you usually find in the backyard.
I've always been interested in how something in such a small package can illuminate the darkness with enough energy to charge itself day after day.
Although Garden lights are an attractive addition to your yard, I have always felt that the products of my local hardware store are a bit ordinary and a bit boring for my taste. I want to do something different with this independent power supply.
Since solar garden lights have become very cheap in the past few years, I've always found them interesting and easy to experiment with, trying to find the cool and unique "thing" I'm looking for.
During my experiment, I learned how simple the circuit is, which makes your typical garden lamp tick.
Recently, I met a supplier selling LED on the Internet. It has a separate circuit that can replicate the flashing flame.
See these LEDs shine.
Puns)
Inspired by me, a garden lamp I'm looking for.
This garden lamp is made of bits and pieces I found in the store. It uses these special LEDs and a very simple "roll your own" solar charging circuit to power the LED when it darkens.
If you find this tutorial useful-
Please take some time to check out my adventures in the shops on my website. -
The core of this project is "manufactured" solar circuits, but if welding is not your expertise, you can always replace the circuit board with ordinary solar lamps, most components can be obtained from Digikey.
But you need to order flickering LEDs from PCBoard.
Cato brightens the garden, and you need to collect the following items: electronic components: material tools drive the circuit of the LED, and when it darkens, opening it is actually very direct. (
I got the original concept of this circuit from the excellent Radio and Electronic Cookbook of the British Broadcasting Association.
Circuit-operated brains are photovoltaic cells that act as variable resistors. (
Low resistance in daytime and high resistance in dark.
Used to trigger transistors. -
It is then used as a switch to turn on the LED.
The circuit is made up of a small performance board, and the components can be installed in the Pre. -
Drill holes in the board.
Components are connected to each other on the board by "dead error" method. (
Position where component leads are welded to each other).
The complete circuit diagram can be found in the figure above.
Firstly, the 2N3904 transistor is installed in the middle of the performance board.
Weld the transistor in place.
Next, the LED is installed on the circuit board, and the positive lead of the LED is welded to the collector of the transistor.
After completion, two 1,000-ohm resistors are installed on the circuit board.
Weld a lead from a resistor to the negative lead of the LED.
With a second resistor, a lead is welded to the base of the transistor.
Weld the two resistors together.
Finally, the photovoltaic cell is installed on the performance board.
One lead of the photovoltaic cell is welded to two 1,000-ohm resistors, and the other lead of the photovoltaic cell is welded to the emitter of the transistor.
To connect the battery to the solar cell, cut off four connections. (
It's better to have two red lines and two black lines. .
One end of the two red wires is welded to the junction of LED and transistor collector.
One end of the two black lines is welded to the junction of the photovoltaic cell and the transistor transmitter.
This will give you a circuit that will turn on the LED when it darkens.
At this time, the circuit is quickly tested by connecting the circuit to the battery power supply and turning off the lamp. -
The LED starts to flicker!
Similarly, when the light is on-
As a final step, the LED should be darkened and the circuit needs a certain degree of weatherability, because the circuit will spend its life outdoors.
In order to protect the circuit from wind and rain, a layer of thermal glue is applied to the performance board and any exposed component lead.
Be careful not to cover photovoltaic cells or LEDs with hot glue.
Now the electronic equipment has been completed. （for the moment)
Let's start with the architecture of the garden lights themselves.
We're going to start making glass shades for garden lights.
To build a shade, take a 125 ml glass bottle and remove the metal clasps and caps from the bottle.
What we need to do is to make a small hole in the bottom of the pot so that we can connect a wire from the LED circuit to the battery box at the bottom of the garden lamp.
In order to form a hole in the tank without breaking the glass, we need to use rotary tools with diamond carbide drills, and the area where we cut the hole in the tank needs to be lubricated in a water bath.
To drill this hole, place the jar in a small plastic container half filled with water, and then drill a hole in the bottom of the jar with a rotary tool.
When drilling, make sure that glass and cemented carbide bits are immersed in water, and pay attention to them quickly. -
Electricity and water cannot be mixed-
If possible, the rotary tool should be battery-powered.
In my case, I only have a 120 volt communication tool.
As a precaution, I made sure I was well insulated and the rotary tool itself was pulled into a GFI socket. -
But I'm not stressed enough. -
Use battery-powered tools!
After drilling, remove the pot from the water bath and dry thoroughly.
Use ground glass paint and coat the inside of the pot with a thin layer of paint.
When dry, the jar should have a lightly sanded appearance.
Now that we have finished the glass cover, we will focus on the wooden structure of the garden lights.
For a detailed sketch of the block structure for lamps, please refer to the attached drawings above.
To make the wooden components of the garden lamp, take 1X6 pine board and cut the following parts with a diagonal saw: using a plane with angular round heads, grinding round on four edges on one side of three pieces of wood.
In order to allow the LED circuit to be installed in the garden lamp and provide access to the LED circuit for solar cells, we need to open several holes in the top of the garden lamp.
Start with one of the four. 5" X 4.
5. "Pinewood, with a square or ruler from each corner draw a diagonal line to mark its center.
In doing so, you should have an "X" in the center of the board.
Use drill and 2.
5-inch circular saw, cut out a 2.
4 has a 5-inch hole in the center. 5" X 4. 5" pine piece.
Next, mark the center on three. 5" X 3.
5. "Pine squares use the same technology.
Once the center is marked, use the drill, but now use 1.
Five-inch bit, drill a hole in the center of bit 3. 5" X 3. 5" pine piece.
Once these holes are cut into the top part of the garden lamp, we now need to further cut a small notch to 3. 5"X3.
5 "Square pine chips to install solar cells into garden lights.
First, put the solar cells on three. 5"X3.
5 "Pine chips, make sure they are completely concentrated on the chips.
Use a pencil to sketch the outline of the solar cell onto the wood.
Using small routers（
In my case, it's the Dreimer Trio.
Using a 1/4 inch straight drill, set the cutting depth to about 1/8 inch.
Cut a concave square in the center of the block according to the outline you mark on it.
Make sure that the entire area of the concave square is always cut to a depth of one-eighth of an inch.
After cutting, the solar cells were tested.
Solar cells should be close to the recess and level with the top of the block.
If necessary, you can trim a little extra from the side of the concave square to fit the solar cell.
When testing and installing solar cells, make sure that the solder pads of solar cells are accessible from the other side of 3. 5"X3.
5 "Pine chips pass through 1. 5 inch hole.
Since solar cells are square, let's concentrate on creating an installation location for the battery box in the garden.
In order to make the battery as invisible as possible, but as easy as possible to replace the battery, I want the battery box to be installed as evenly as possible at the bottom of the garden lamp.
First, make a hole in the pine wood to connect the battery from the LED circuit.
To determine the location of the hole, place the mason jar glass cover at the center of bottom 4. 5"X4.
Five inches of pine.
Mark the holes at the bottom of the jar with the bottom wood block.
With a 1/4-inch drill, drill a hole in the pine where you mark it.
Next, create a groove for the battery box at the bottom of the garden lamp.
In order to make this notch, we must be careful when cutting it, because the actual thickness is 4. 5" X 4.
"The bottom of the pine is about 3/4 inches, and the battery box itself is slightly smaller than that thickness.
Although the battery box can be installed at the bottom, we need to be very careful to ensure that the notch is not too deep.
To create a groove for the battery box, first place the battery box at the bottom of the bottom part of the garden lamp.
Place the battery box in the center of the block to ensure that the wire of the battery box is aligned with the direction of the 1/4 inch hole.
Draw the outline of the battery box onto the wood.
Take your little router and a quarter-inch straight drill, and set the depth of the drill to 13/16 inches.
The grooves of the battery box are arranged according to the outline of the wood.
Once the notch is cut off, test whether the battery is suitable.
Battery boxes should be suitable.
Next, cut down four pillars, and we will use them to connect the top and bottom of the garden lamp.
To cut the prop, take a 9-inch 1/2-inch positioning pin and cut the positioning pin into four equal lengths with a diagonal saw. (
Or more accurately-into 2. 25 inches long).
With the cutting of pillars, it's time to assemble garden lights.
The assembly will proceed from top to bottom. Firstly, the main structure at the top of the garden lamp will be assembled.
Take down the two pine trees we cut. 5" and 1.
Before punching 5 "holes, then sticking 3. 5" X 3.
Four pines with five inches at the top. 5" X 4.
5 "Pine chips with some gum.
When gluing these components together, make sure that the wiring groove of the solar cell on the top pine component is facing up.
Two pieces of pine were further fastened together with nails.
To assemble the bottom of the courtyard lamp, first connect four 1/2 inch dark pins to the bottom 4. 5" X 4. 5" pine piece.
The main technique of fixing the pin is to ensure that the pin is as vertical as possible to the bottom pine.
The easiest way to ensure this happens is to make two small fixtures out of scrap wood.
Make sure there are three wastes.
It's 25 inches long and square at both ends.
To assemble the positioning pin to the bottom of the lamp, the positioning pin is first connected to the end of the fixture with tape.
Make sure that the positioning pins are fully aligned and at right angles on the fixture.
Once the positioning pin is connected to the fixture, the bottom of the positioning pin is coated with wood glue, and then the positioning pin is connected to the bottom of the lamp. (
Make sure we cut down the battery notch at the bottom of the garden lamp.
When the gluing end of the positioning pin is connected to the bottom of the lamp, ensure that the positioning pin post is located at the far corner of the bottom of the garden lamp.
Once the glue has dried up, nails are used to nail the mortise upward from the bottom to reinforce the joint between the post and the shallow bottom of the garden.
Now that the main components of the garden lamp are assembled, this will be the best time to paint everything well.
Firstly, the wooden parts of garden lamps are sprayed with external latex paint. （
In my case, I chose medium brown. .
When painting, make sure that all exposed wood surfaces of garden lamps are covered.
Let the paint dry overnight.
Finally, all external wood surfaces are coated with a layer of crystalline stone or marine varnish to protect garden lamps from the effects of components. To install solar cells in garden lamps, we first connect diodes and leads to solar cells.
Firstly, a red wire is welded to the positive extremity of the welding unit.
After completion, the cathode end of 1N4006 diode is welded to the negative electrode of solar cell.
Diode is the "check valve" of our LED circuit.
During the day, solar cells are used as power to charge the lights in the garden.
However, when it's dark, if connected directly to the battery, the solar cell will play a role in attracting the battery.
Diodes will prevent current from flowing from the battery into the solar cell, while allowing current to flow out of the solar cell to charge the battery.
Once the wires and diodes are connected to the solar cell.
Connecting solar cells to multifunctional batteries may not be a bad idea. -
As a quick quality check, you should get a decent amount. （2-4. 5 volts)
Energy from solar cells depends on your light source.
After the welding is completed, a hot glue gun is used to coat the surrounding area.
The top of the garden lamp has a 5-inch opening.
Place the solar cells in the groove on the top of the garden lamp to ensure that the solar cells are firmly fixed in the groove on the top of the garden lamp.
If the solar cell is installed correctly, the wires and diodes on the solar cell should pass through the hole on the top of the garden lamp. The next step is to install the LED circuit on the top of the garden lamp and connect it to the solar cell.
First, trim the redundant wires from a red and a black wire on the LED circuit. -
Leave about three inches of wire. .
Trim about half an inch of insulation from both ends of the wires.
Connect trimmed wires on LED circuits to wires on solar cells-
The red line in the circuit is connected with the red line on the solar cell, and the black line in the circuit is connected with the anode end of the diode on the solar cell.
Weld the joints together.
The thermal glue gun is used to cover the welding connection on the solar cell and the welding connection of the LED circuit.
Thermal glue will be used as weatherproof material for connection.
Then coat the edge of 2 with a lot of hot glue.
There are five holes at the bottom of the top component of the garden lamp.
When the glue is still liquid, set the LED circuit to 2.
A 5-inch hole makes the LED and the photoresistor as centered as possible in the assembly.
When the hot glue is cooled, the circuit should be firmly connected to the lamp assembly once the next item on the LED circuit installation list is connected to the top component of the garden lamp, Mason bottle glass lampshade.
First, the metal ring is reconnected to the Mason pot.
Upon completion, take two uncut red and black lines from the circuit board. (
That is to say, batteries that are not attached to solar cells)
Put them in the mason's jar, through the bottom hole we had previously drilled into the jar.
After the wiring is in place, a hot glue is applied along the metal ring edge of the mason's jar, and the mason's jar is carefully connected to the top component of the garden lamp.
Before the glue solidifies, make sure that the holes in the mason's pot are aligned with those drilled in the bottom assembly of the garden lamp.
Now, the problem is where the top and bottom finally intersect.
To assemble the courtyard lamp, first apply a small amount of wood glue on the top of the positioning pin of the bottom component of the courtyard lamp.
After the glue is applied, two wires from Mason's glass cover are drilled through the hole at the bottom of the assembly.
Once the wires are in place, carefully connect the bottom of the garden lamp to the top of the garden lamp.
Make sure that all four pillars are completely fixed to the top assembly of the garden lamp.
Four lamp posts are further fixed to the top with flat-headed nails, and two lamp posts are connected together.
Now that the garden lights are integrated, we need to connect the battery box to the rest of the garden light circuit to make the final electrical connection.
Firstly, two rechargeable A A batteries are put into the battery box.
To connect the battery box to the garden lamp, we first need to trim the redundant wires, which we fed through the hole at the bottom of the garden lamp in the previous step.
Trim the wires so that about an inch of wire sticks out from the bottom of the garden lamp.
Remove about half an inch of insulation from the wire.
Next, connect the battery box to the wire.
The wires should have color codes, so connect the red and black wires together.
Weld the joints after connecting the wires.
Apply a small amount of hot glue on the welded joint to prevent wind and rain. Then insert the battery box into the groove at the bottom of the garden lamp to complete the wiring. -
Make sure the wires are also stuffed into the grooves.
To complete the garden lamp, connect two 1-inch screwholes to two opposite corners at the top of the garden lamp.
The main reason for placing the screwholes in these positions is that the balance is simplified when the garden lamp hangs on the chain, because the battery box at the bottom of the lamp may be slightly off center in weight distribution.
After installing the screwholes, connect each end of the 1-foot chain to each screwhole and the garden light is now complete!
In order to accomplish this task, the pot hook is installed on the ground and the lamp is hung in a place that can be exposed to enough sunlight so that the battery can be charged normally every day.
Later I built many of these lights, and I planted them in different places in the backyard.
In the evening, these lights provide a peaceful illusion, and the yard is filled with flickering candles.