DIY solar powered moonlight

This project was the one that I had the least amount of hope for because there aren't a bunch of threads detailing it like my other projects. I went to good ol' Home Depot and picked up the cheapest single solar power LED path-light that they had and got started. All I needed was the wiring so I just took it apart and threw out everything else.

What I started with:


What I needed:


After unscrewing:


After just ripping the thing apart (I had a lot of trouble removing the solar panel as it was completely glued to the metal base):
From left to right: solar panel, light sensor, circuit board (with LED sticking out other side), and rechargeable battery.

Now the fun part: wiring it all together to the lengths I need:


And the final product:


*Side note: I replaced the white LED that came with it with a blue one. Unforunately, I didn't realize the bulb only had a 30 degree viewing angle so it's more of a spotlight than a moonlight. It does give the rest of the tank a bit of glow also but I'll most likely eventually replace it with a wider viewing angle.


I just put the solar panel and sensor to the side of the LEDs but hopefully it'll be able to absorb enough light from the LEDs to complete the charge each day. I taped the battery and circuit board together to clean it up and placed it on the other side of the heatsink. I'm a bit worried that I damaged the solar panel because I really had to man-handle it to remove it from the base. The moonlight was on all night and I'm going to continue to let it run until it dies. Then I'll turn my fixture on and hope that when I turn it back off tonight, it still works. Considering I really didn't know what to expect with this and I didn't have a set of guidelines to walk me through the process, I think I'm pleased with it. It didn't take a whole lot of time to put together either.

Feel free to ask questions or leave comments

 

Amazing!

 

Thanks baseballlover. I plan on doing some tweeking with it after I find out if the solar panel is still even good. I'm probably going to wire up a couple more blues and some UV as well if the battery could handle it. I'll be running them at relatively low voltage so that each LED isn't so bright but I'll get a better spread.

 

I was actually thinking of doing exactly this a while ago and was afraid of destroying the solar panel ripping the path lights apart. I got mine for 2 for $5 at Menards(path lighting) and the lights are white also but an off white almost the color of the moon. I did a little experimenting and but them both on their sides where the light would go on top of the tank and it actually looked pretty cool. The light was glimmering with the wake of the filter output and it was catching the fish perfectly. I think I may try it now that it has been attempted and successful

Thanks Funkman!

 

I was actually thinking of doing exactly this a while ago and was afraid of destroying the solar panel ripping the path lights apart. I got mine for 2 for $5 at Menards(path lighting) and the lights are white also but an off white almost the color of the moon. I did a little experimenting and but them both on their sides where the light would go on top of the tank and it actually looked pretty cool. The light was glimmering with the wake of the filter output and it was catching the fish perfectly. I think I may try it now that it has been attempted and successful

Thanks Funkman!

Glad to be of service. And I'm still not sure about the whole color of the moon theory yet. I understand that moonlight is just reflected sunlight, but then why do we use blue light for coral in order to replicate sunlight after penetrating the water after several meters? The wavelength of sunlight changes as it travels through water so although moonlight is technically white BEFORE it hits the surface, it doesn't mean that it remains that way. If someone can post a link or give me some information on this I'd appreciate it

 

Update: Yesterday I sanded down the LED a bit to see if it would help diffuse the light and it worked like a charm:



I may still add a couple UV LEDs in there but I'm not entirely sure yet. I'm pretty happy with the result right now so I'll most likely just leave it as is.

 

this is amazing!
a DYI iama get into for sure, GREAT WORK


question(s)

hows the project going? everything still working??

where did you place the solar panel? outside the tank? it sounds/looks like under the hood with the fixture, is this right?

where do you get the blue led you replaced the white on with? radio shack?

can you elaborate on "isanded down the led" for me?

 

this is amazing!
a DYI iama get into for sure, GREAT WORK


question(s)

hows the project going? everything still working??

I decided to scrap the solar moonlight for now. It was working great at first, but then I had trouble getting the battery to charge. I guess it might work for a larger system with more powerful lights but not on my 10g.

where did you place the solar panel? outside the tank? it sounds/looks like under the hood with the fixture, is this right?

I had it placed in the canopy right next to the light fixture.

where do you get the blue led you replaced the white on with? radio shack?

I bought it from RadioShack but it's a lot cheaper to just order some online. I just didn't have the patience to wait.

can you elaborate on "isanded down the led" for me?

I took the LED and rubbed it against some 800 grit sandpaper until it was flat.

Answers in red

 

Here's my new moonlight that I made from a red interior car light I've had sitting in my car for several years that I thought I'd put to good use:





It uses a 12V power supply (car battery) so I just cut the end off and wired it in series with a 12V fan to my 24V power supply. I think the red is good because the marine creatures are blind to it so it won't affect them at night. I also like the way it looks

 

I understand that moonlight is just reflected sunlight, but then why do we use blue light for coral in order to replicate sunlight after penetrating the water after several meters? The wavelength of sunlight changes as it travels through water so although moonlight is technically white BEFORE it hits the surface, it doesn't mean that it remains that way. If someone can post a link or give me some information on this I'd appreciate it

Found this when I did a google search. Google, gotta love it!



If you scroll down to page 2 - bottom left - there is a little chart there that shows how the different colors of the spectrum penetrate to different depths.

 

OMG... I can't believe I've missed this thread!!!
funkman262- your DIY skills are admirable for sure! Between this, your DIY protein skimmer, and your amazing stand and canopy build, you're on track to make us all rethink the cost of a nano reef tank!!!!

Keep up the great work man. ;D

 

thanks for the answers funkman,
I like the red too, a lot actually, I can see how its grown on you

 

Found this when I did a google search. Google, gotta love it!



If you scroll down to page 2 - bottom left - there is a little chart there that shows how the different colors of the spectrum penetrate to different depths.

Thank you for the link gremlin, it looks really interesting. I'll definitely have to read through the whole article

OMG... I can't believe I've missed this thread!!!
funkman262- your DIY skills are admirable for sure! Between this, your DIY protein skimmer, and your amazing stand and canopy build, you're on track to make us all rethink the cost of a nano reef tank!!!!

Keep up the great work man. ;D

Thank you Harpua. I'm definitely pleased about the cost-saving protein skimmer and moonlight, but the stand/canopy and LEDs hit me pretty hard in the wallet lol. The stand cost me a lot more than I expected, but that was just because I ran into a couple problems having been the first time I've ever built something like that. My gf wants me to make stands for my other tanks, so it would probably be a lot easier and cheaper to build additional ones. Although it cost me so much to build, I don't regret it because it was an experience that I could be proud of and you can't buy something that looks exactly how you want it too ;D

thanks for the answers funkman,
I like the red too, a lot actually, I can see how its grown on you

No problem. When I get corals in there, I may experiment with different moonlight colors and see if they react differently to red, blue or white lights.

 

Wow you have talent my friend

 

Wow you have talent my friend

Much thanks ;D. This hobby has been turning me into a carpenter and an electrician (I'd like to say keeping fish has also turned me into a scientist, but I entered the hobby with that under my belt ).