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Re-Cycle, Re-Use, Re-Purpose are the operative words here when using parts found on the side of the road. We would not want good stuff to go to waste.
The town I live in has a flag pole right in the middle of town. The American Flag is flown there on that pole 24 hours a day and had 3 spotlights to light the flag at night.
The town will lower the flag to half staff for just about anything. One day, with the flag at half staff, a powerful wind storm came up. The wind blew very hard and stretched the rope keeping the flag up. When the wind changed direction the flag went the other way. The rope caught on a spotlight and ripped it off sending it to the ground smashing it to pieces.
The thing started out life as a compact unit and when I picked it up it was a long string 4 feet long. I took it home and cleaned the parts and set them aside for another day. A week later it happened again and I got that spotlight too.
So now I had 6 NiCad batteries, 2 solar panels and 2 Comparitor boards.
Free Batteries 2000 mAh, 1.2 v, Ni-MH
Comparitor Board
After all salvaged parts received new wires I built a box from plywood scraps I had left over from several other projects. I drilled 1 hole in the box for each solar panel. I drilled 2 holes for the plug from the now defunct Radio Shack. The plug takes power directly off the solar panels.
I Can Run A 6 Volt Radio Off 2-5 Volt Panels In The Shade !
2 Panels And A Plug
Each panel produces 5 Volts, if I wired an Either/Or switch I could get 5 Volts or 10 Volts from the outlet.
The Comparitor Board was installed next with 4 Large LED's and 2 slide switches, 1 to turn the Panels on to the Comparitor and another to turn on the battery so it could charge. I also wired in the 4 Large LED array.
I had a handle off a pot that developed a leak 2 months after I purchased it, I installed the handle to carry the unit because it was rather awkward without it.
I wired in another outlet that takes power off the battery so I can plug things in that need a 6 Volt source...Like the Radio or even a Blood Pressure Cuff.
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When the slide switches are ON (1) and the sun goes down the LED's turn on.
When the slide switches are OFF (0) nothing is powered except the outlet between the solar panels.
The toggle switch is set to 5 Volts charging the 4 AA batteries.
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The white cups are glued on there just to protect the wires coming off the back of the solar panels. Notice only 3 rubber feet, the black battery pack is the 4th foot. I kind of lucked out with this feature as the battery pack could only fit that far into the box.
Made from left over stuff from the junk box and found parts.