Poundland solar garden light hack.

[@callumBee]

"I have screwed up. What a Dick" - Big Clive 2018

[@00lightning]

Callum Burns that would make a great t-shirt.

[@wimwiddershins]

I didn't expect the colours to be so clearly defined. Wow.

[@phils4634]

Might be interesting to mount the LEDs further apart, or (if that little cell can provide the power), have three in series - R, G and B. That would be quite psychedelic, Man!

[@mattburrows2615]

Phil S it actually uses slightly less power with 2 leds in series. R, g, b, leds would be good.

[@saltycrabbers969]

Ive had 2 of these light sitting in my shed for months and I've been watching your other LED videos to get ideas on how to improve them. I upgraded the batteries to 800Mah and Im going to put in the green and blue LEDs 😃 Thanks so much Clive they look amazing 💯

[@00lightning]

There's something calming about watching Clive modify and build things. It's therapeutic. Thanks for the videos Big Clive.

[@Dave2108]

A simple but effective modification. I do like these little project videos.

[@coloradostrong]

Thank you for the response ! Your take apart sessions are terrific and leave me yearning for the old days of the "true" Radio Shack when they sold kits and parts for tinkering , but then they went downhill trying to be the cell phone store . From the States , Terry.

[@redlock4004]

Holy shit! I just came back from the store after buying 6 of these same lights, to find your video. I guess I better go get some coloured LEDs :)

[@jamhough22]

Lying here watching this with my mrs beside me falling asleep, she finds your voice soothing and i agree! Something about the accent too, we are from cornwall by the way. Great mod to the garden light as well.

[@JohnCline]

I do so enjoy your videos, they are addictively interesting.

[@JerryEricsson]

Man, I am getting very old, I can feel it in my fingers, I feel it in my toes, but I just gotta go back, Wwwaaaayyyyy back to the 1960's to say "dig it! Man that is one cool light, why it's outta sight, it's all right, " gonna have to make me some of them for our RV and around it when we head back for Arizona come fall! Yep, even with the ooops in the middle, a very cool conversion, you are indeed an artist in your own right!

[@kkzooi]

Big Mister Clive, i think its about time Poundland started sponsoring you. i dont think there is a person in the world who shows this many of their products in their videos or are displayed in their advertising brochures

[@andydunnock8114]

Ashens?

[@WaltonPete]

Gives a surprising result for such a simple mod. The light pattern looks like the magnified iris of an eye.

[@twocvbloke]

Nice job, haven't been to Poundland to buy LED stuff since I finished my college course in February, saved a lot of money too... :P

[@Blakehx]

Bluetack as a solder holder... would never have thought of that but I'll definitely be using it! Thanks for another great project! Cheers!

[@paulsengupta971]

I guess you don't watch Julian Ilett's channel? He uses it often.

[@shemp308]

I have to love your work! It would have been so easy to edit and do it again. Nice to see your not above mistakes or letting us see them. Thanks Clive!

[@jaylo912]

Clive, I just replicated what you have done using mini hanging solar lights. Only issue I have is using 2 LEDs draws more current so are not as bright. Apart from that all went well... even used clear pvc tape to waterproof it more. Awesome idea. Thank you! Please more hack videos

[@RWBHere]

Thanks Clive. Very nice. A couple of colour-changing LED's and a higher capacity cell would be the icing on the cake.

[@Capt_Lucy]

I'm glad you're willing to show your mistakes. It helps me feel better about my own. Interesting as always; Cool idea/hack.

[@JM-iv3cv]

Clive, if only you knew how much I've learned watching your interesting videos.. Thanks a lot man! :)

[@rayok123]

Excellent simple and easy hardware hack to build up skills and confidence, more like this please

[@thewolfin]

0:50 diagram really helped. I would be completely lost without it. Thank you for spending the valuable SignPen ink.

[@eideticex]

That was a really nice improvement. I might have to find some of those myself. My mother loves having LED lights around her yard and I just had to pull up a batch that haven't been working so great lately. This looks like a good replacement that with a little care might last longer.

[@caterpillarman]

I could hear a collective echo of “NO dummy, it’s backwards” through the KZbin comment section. Love the videos. Keep it up.

[@flipgodfrey1621]

I actually really enjoyed watching that, and it inspired me to give it a go myself. Loved your accent too!

[@MegaWayneD]

Cheap pre-injection swabs from Ebay are incredibly handy to have for whenever you ever need to clean something with solvent. They're also great for cleaning tape recorder heads and removing nail varnish!

[@charliedobbie8916]

...At the same time!

[@juststeve5542]

I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried "wrong way round!".

[@nigozeroichi2501]

Ugh! I was just at my local diy big box store and was looking at garden lights, BEFORE seeing this video, I HAVE to do this, that looked really pretty😲

[@awmperry]

I find myself wondering if this could work with three LEDs in a triangle - perhaps RGB, perhaps some other combo - and the dome adapted to rotate... moving the crackle relative to the LEDs could give a really nice effect.

[@charliedobbie8916]

If you're not careful you'll start inventing disco lights...

[@jayherde0]

A hook on a swivel would work. Of course, in the dark(ish), you could set it upside down.

[@Lumibear.]

I have done this. Had a rgb moving disco light, changed the crystal dome it came with for a crackled glass sphere. Yes it looks good.

[@JCGver]

How about using those automatic fading LEDs, not sure if the pcb would be able to work with them. But if you put a couple of those LEDs in the dome it might get interresting once they start going out of sync

[@awmperry]

Charlie Dobbie - Exactly the effect I'm talking about, but with this crackle effect. And, as I say, three LEDs to maximise the colour variation. Jay Herde - the key would be to have the dome rotating relative to the LEDs so the pattern changes rather than just turns.

[@SpydersByte]

that's a stunning pattern right there, had to click the video just to find out how the hell you made it. Easy project too, might have to try this some day.

[@rpbajb]

"So let's open this up..." The adult analog to "Once upon a time..." I love this channel.

[@revoltoff]

Most relaxing voice in existence

[@korishan]

Marvelous!! This gives me ideas for my solar lights in yard! 😉😎

[@gordonlawrence4749]

That's given me yet more ideas of what to tinker with.

[@phantm24]

very nice, I put some small floating led's in a crackle pot and got much the same effect, makes a great wallpaper for the mobile phone.

[@ALAPINO]

That terminal effect is really cool!

[@joinedupjon]

looks like it should be a back projection from a hawkwind gig - well done sir!

[@JESTAz]

Excellent final result it looked really nice

[@tomgeorge3726]

Hi Clive, the switch will still leak/condensation, I'd remove it or seal the hole up. For something cheap like that, spray the board with a couple of coats of clear paint.

[@LakeNipissing]

Nice effect!! At 12:20 the paper makes it look like the light is projecting onto a large screen.

[@two_tier_gary_rumain]

Except that the blue is dominating. Hardly any green visible.

[@two_tier_gary_rumain]

12:16 tell me how much blue you see and how much green.

[@LakeNipissing]

I would say 40% bright green and 60% royal blue.

[@two_tier_gary_rumain]

More like 10/90.

[@grendelum]

As a still image it looks like when you wake up on some strange spaceship and look out the window as you pass a negative star...

[@MrFmiller]

That would be a good application for color changing LEDs. I like to couple them because the colors change at slightly different intervals which results in endless combinations of colors that change as the cycles progress.

[@charliedobbie8916]

Low voltage LED devices will typically switch the LEDs on and off rapidly. This causes a colour-changing LED to keep resetting its cycle, so you only get one colour out of it. You can fix this with a suitable capacitor to hold the voltage high enough to keep the chip running.

[@odin-eliottodinson7330]

And a diode so the coil can remagnetize.

[@RianQ]

I have a lot of Poundland solar lights I find the button cell batteries don't last more than a year. Switch corroded like you said so I bridged it too. I put some lovely Poundland clear nail varnish over the pcb to water proof it.

[@Pyromonkey360]

to improve the solder sucker you can use the rubber from an old crt flyback, and make it last longer

[@thehappylittlefoxakabenji8154]

yay I do the same but I use one of those binding sleeves they slip over the nozzle quite nicely !

[@Sam-lr9oi]

Sitting here with a bubbling stomach wishing you hadn't mentioned it. I'm gonna go eat breakfast. Looks very cool and psychedelic though, neat mod.

[@iPelaaja1]

My closest Poundland closed about a year ago, replaced by “Sainsburys Local” which there already are 5 or 6 within a mile radius... Now I have to walk over an hour (one way) to get to the nearest Poundland.. shame because i liked going in there, always great and interesting stuff, tools, electronic stuff and food, and cheap. Been to the far away one only once since...

[@bigclivedotcom]

That sounds like my favourite one in Edinburgh. If it is then Poundworld is in the Cameron Toll.

[@asystole_]

100mAh AA cell! Didn't know they made them that puny.

[@fp4man542]

Asystole I'd never seen a 100mAh AA cell till now. Most solar lights with that size of cell are about 300mAh.

[@maicod]

they're probably failed higher capacity ones ;)

[@thewolfin]

Ah the wonders of manufacturer binning. Saves it from the "bin" I guess.

[@SireSquish]

They do, they just put a sticker that says 32,000 mAh on it and generic branding.

[@TheSpotify95]

Indeed. I've got a 200mAh cell somewhere but I'll never use it. The minimum I'd ever use in anything is 1000mAh, preferably 1500mAh+. I'd rather that the lights shone for longer during the night...

[@SproutyPottedPlant]

Clive that is very beautiful, much better than with the cold purple/angry blue LED it came with.

[@thewolfin]

Cold white is nasty, dunno why it's even a thing. To me it's like "Hard" toothbrushes. Pretty much only detrimental, except for alternative purposes like cleaning. Blue light has negative effects on the circadian rhythm, will give you insomnia - part of the reason doctors advocate an hour or so of LCD screen abstinence before bed.

[@SproutyPottedPlant]

Wolfin I often end up with the hard toothbrush ☹️ many lovely lighting designs seem to be ruined by the use of cheap angry blue LEDs including the common durable low cost rubbery torches I am fond of. Luckily there are still Incan versions so I can drop in a module with a better LED. If I had Clive's skills and dexterity I would modify all my torches.

[@grendelum]

Wolfin - down here in the tropics we quite like cold white...

[@SproutyPottedPlant]

orion khan ah but what about angry purple/blue LEDs that aren't quite white like the ones in low quality flashlights?

[@coloradostrong]

Never understood why some of the solar products needed a switch on them, and also has anyone else ever had the misfortune of dealing with the solar butterflies ? They are solar or battery only …...no charging circuit. Really enjoy your videos

[@bigclivedotcom]

It's to protect the batteries during storage as they don't like being run completely flat.

[@ianmelzer]

I have one that has slow flashing RGB led. We found it at the dump, it needed to be cleaned out and new rechargeable batteries put in.

[@Neffers_UK]

An option you could consider for water resistance is the UV reactive glue goop used on mobile phone screens, it's rather messy and smells vile, but should be effective for sealing thin clear sheets to almost anything, thoroughly.

[@Malakie]

There is one thing you also should have done. I have done mods like this myself.. And one thing I always found is the battery drain became an issue. So I remove the generic battery which you will find are usually about 1000 mAh and put in around a 2000 or 2100 mAh NIHM battery. Now all my lights last all night without dimming at all. Prior, they would run out of energy before day light turned them off and started to charge them again.

[@Akira42]

Nice bead of vaseline wouldn't hurt around that seal, I think. Another top vid from Clive :)

[@dsloop3907]

Clive, have you ever seen the 3 volt wet cell D size batteries used in some European equipment as memory/programing back up? I took one to bits (use caution) just because I was curious, and everything metal within a four foot radius corroded. No, I did not spill nor spray the liquid about.

[@samdeur]

was surprised that it worked.. i thought it wouldn't have enough juice to power both led's but then i thought wait that's the all knowing Bigclive...i do recall seeing a vid don't know if it was you (seen almost all your vids i think) that all led's have different current needs / drain (what ever the correct term is).. nice effect btw.. kind of reminds me of those old lava lamps.. don't know why..hahaha

[@ZeedijkMike]

That really is a beautiful result.

[@NOWThatsRichy]

That Colour combination is good, I got a set of green /blue LED Christmas lights and those Colours give a great effect. I'd upgrade that battery though, since it is replaceable, most Poundland solar lights have only got those annoying non replaceable 40 mah button cells.

[@TrasteIAm]

Enlightening as always BC!

[@bennyboi0115]

Nice vid dude! when you wrote "BG" I thought hey! that's my initials

[@AngryNorwegianFisherman]

Is Poundland a brothel?

[@bigclivedotcom]

Yes. But a really good one.

[@Aedrieus]

I heard you get a lot of bang for your buck there.

[@IanTester]

No, you're thinking of PoundTown.

[@TinySpongey]

The local one at least doesn't sell broth.

[@crimsonhalo13]

No, that's PoundTown.

[@condew6103]

Interesting mod. I've of seen strings of identical LEDs, as many as a hundred all in parallel across a circuit that looked just like the circuits in one-LED solar lights. Hadn't thought the voltage was adequate to drive more than just one blue or one white LED. It would be interesting to apply a scope to the power going into the LEDs.

[@bonsiatreesseedsandplantsf4812]

Great video Clive can u do a video making a circuit board and putting all led in it for a 100watt leds please thanks

[@DildorTheDecent]

There's one those in the garden. It's not exactly like that though, think the solar panel is inside the glass since it's on a stick. Don't think mum would notice that it's missing for a while...

[@bigclivedotcom]

Yes, those ones have the solar panel under the glass with an LED mounted in front of the panel.

[@todesgeber]

pretty sure that container lid combo actually started as an actual candle. got about 30+ containers of various sizes and shapes, but they're all glass jars with metal lids and LDPE type seals. they all used to contain standard scented wax for about 5 bucks from Wallymart. some actually have clear glass lids...

[@capatainnemo]

yellow and red would look like lava

[@colinkraus7139]

Nice

[@robinlovell1617]

Hey Clive, I’ve had a couple of solar powered LED strings from amazon and they’ve both gone the same way - strangely some of the LEDs toward the end of the string have gone progressively dimmer. I’m sure there’s charge in the battery. Anyway I’m happy to send you one of them if you’d like to diagnose and resolve? They were only like £7 but seems a lot of value and I really like them, it must have happened to other people. Feel like a little project at no cost to yourself? Cheers, Robin.

[@iangrice329]

Those led scetchs look quite phallic!

[@maicod]

Love the bicolour pattern very much. It looks a bit like a peacocks tail.

[@joshmyer9]

I just noticed you’re not using that little spiral notebook anymore. That seems like some sort of a minor milestone to me, for whatever reason. I may watch too many of your videos too closely, upon self-reflection.

[@odin-eliottodinson7330]

You mean the one with the purple pen stuck inside the spiral? I miss that one.

[@maicod]

maybe it is spent or electrodoodled full ?

[@thewolfin]

Self-reflection, i.e., introspection is a vastly underrated skill. In fact, I'd go as far as to say it's actively discouraged.

[@WaltonPete]

I think BG has temporarily run out of spiral bound note pads. Normal service will resume in due course.

[@tomgeorge3726]

He may have sent it away for binding into an archive type book, then scanned and published, for sale on ebay...

[@jfguy9696]

nice to know you are human after all *smile* carry on good sir

[@stridermt2k]

I found some of that "good" tape that Clive covers the solar panels with and it rocks. Last year I tried to use clear packing tape and it was a big mess in a few weeks. Use the tape Clive recommends and do whatever else he says too...

[@teacfan1080]

at 12:36, it kinds looks like a total solar eclipse (although the corona is blue here!). The charging portion looks like the moon covering the "sun" getting the bright ring around side and a smattering of the "corona" around the outside, cool!

[@peterharms3639]

I should, I really should, but I’m not going to! Clive you are just so , “My kinda bloke”.

[@chrismueller8861]

Haha, Murphy's law at work - wrong polarity - I knew that was coming :-) Another good one: After removing n-1 of n screws, you might notice that you are trying to open the wrong device...

[@crimsonhalo13]

Looks like you've just created an alien artifact. An alien artifact that makes you trip balls.

[@Rienck]

awesome! I'm going to make it too. Thanks for the example :)

[@unlost117]

Wot a deck ed :P Luv ya videos man keep up the good work

[@GRPZ66]

Classic Clive. Love it.

[@brendanrandle]

some clear nail varnish around the edge of the solar panel might last a bit longer than the tape

[@dandel351]

Nice video Clive. How many leds could you fit on that circuit ? 3 or 4 maybe?

[@bigclivedotcom]

It depends on the circuitry. It would be a trial and error thing.

[@tedlanz5038]

I wonder what would happen if you slightly sandpaper the surface of the leds to give it a diffuse effect. Would that make better pattern???

[@phillipbartlett1819]

That was cool. Going to home Depot this weekend lol

[@TheFlacker99]

Do you have Plasti-dip in the Isle of Man? Its rubber spray in a can that's handy for D.I.Y. and waterproofing.

[@Ellipsis780]

I think you bridged the "off" position on the switch. Don't care. Beautiful color patterns.

[@celticqaidbear]

Would two color changing LEDs work also?

[@bigclivedotcom]

They would require the addition of a diode and capacitor if the light didn't already have them. Just a 1N4148 and a 100n capacitor so that the pulsing of the supply didn't keep resetting them to red. With the low current involved you may find that red tends to dominate anyway as it pulls the voltage down a bit lower.

[@jayherde0]

Clive - is that a cap across the LEDs and a diode in front of them?

[@odin-eliottodinson7330]

Exactly

[@colinbrammeld2038]

bigclivedotcom z

[@nirvanapaulpaulunderhill]

A solar light in the UK, all it does is piss down raining🌧 ☔️ 😂😂😂😂😂

[@SproutyPottedPlant]

Marconi Allotment Channel been sunny in England for a while, nicest summer I can remember. I Hope it lasts.

[@nirvanapaulpaulunderhill]

Knuckles the Echidna it’s coming tonight rain thunder 🌧☔️

[@nirvanapaulpaulunderhill]

Safcforme 😂

[@charliedobbie8916]

The Isle of Man isn't in the UK actually, although it is a possession of the Crown.

[@nirvanapaulpaulunderhill]

Charlie Dobbie The Isle of Man isn’t that in France 😂😂😂

[@namAehT]

you should do this with two of the RGB slow LEDs

[@raymondmucklow3793]

Just happened to be at my Mum's house she said looked like an eyeball.

[@yadt]

I want one. Maybe more than one. Argh, more things to do.

[@mattburrows2615]

I believe it should use slightly less power when running 2 leds in series which is an added bonus.

[@bigclivedotcom]

It does seem to run longer.

[@mattburrows2615]

bigclivedotcom guessing the higher forward voltage of the series leds utilises less of the spikes from the inductor.

[@ferrumignis]

Do these have constant current drivers? Green + Red Vf will be higher than a white LED Vf, so battery life will be reduced if it runs at the same current.

[@MadMorgie6318]

Hmm, I wonder how well two colour changing LED would do, their colours ever changing and contrasting.

[@avejst]

Thanks for sharing :-) Nice job :-)

[@jamesg1367]

It's like some sort of alien fungus. I like it!

[@scottfirman]

Thats how I am in the Spring, there are more important things to do than eat come nicer weather. Problem is,I also dont sleep much eather, not really good!

[@_BangDroid_]

Wow that's really cool

[@DeDeNoM]

That thumbnail has a strong tool vibe

[@thewolfin]

Tool with a capital T? Or the kind from a workshop? Doubt I'd ever see Maynard with his hands greasy.

[@overweightactor]

Oh, that's lovely.

[@domino52o26]

Gorgeous

[@ethanpoole3443]

Nice to know that I'm not the only one who forgets to eat when I get engrossed in a project.

[@yalgret]

Can one or two of these be used to power an Arduino? That would be really useful. Even if it only powers intermittently it could still be good for sensors.

[@bigclivedotcom]

I wouldn't recommend that. It would be better making a solar charged lithium power bank assembly.

[@jerrys9426]

Looks super. Doesnt having 2 leds in series though mean an effectively double forward voltage? Doesnt that affect the operation or is it pulsing the leds on and off?

[@bigclivedotcom]

It seems to handle the slightly higher LED voltage fine.

[@jerrys9426]

bigclivedotcom Thanks, gonna give this a go! 😊

[@doughy67]

That's what I was thinking. I guess putting in parellel would consume more power

[@charliedobbie8916]

Yes, but also diodes in parallel cause other issues. If they have a mismatch in forward voltage (for example, if they're different colours!) you may find only one LED will light, or one will be much brighter than the other.

[@superdau]

The LEDs will be pulsed anyway, even a single one. At least when it's a simple boost converter with absolutely no feedback. I haven't seen the circuit, but it will most likely just "charge" an inductor which will then pump current through the LEDs. The circuit will always put the same amount of energy in the inductor, not matter what the youtpur voltage needs to be.