ILLUMINATED BY THE SUN...FLOWERS

I had some garden solar lights that didn't work at all,their electronics plaques were completly oxidized that made them useless. But then I found that the solar charger plaque was still working giving 2.5 volts directly exposed to the sun.

Then I image that with some aluminum ,soda or beer can ,and the garden solar plaque, could make sunflowers charging a old phone battery in order to illuminate a stone owl that I had already on the backyard

It is wireless,compleatly independent light, so it can be moved around to light any place you like to stand out

Cut the can by the middle,then cut six "petals" obtaining the shape with a scissors,it's some easy to do because the aluminum can is very thin and malleable

Paint then with a gold or yellow colour paint

Take the downer lid of the solar garden light,make a 8mm drill on the center, do the same on the flower

Thread the tube in the stem,put the lid and the two parts of the flower and tighten the nut

The stem came from an old tv antenna,1/2" aluminum tubes

Cut the tubes in different sizes


Take a bolt ,make some conic head on it


Expand them with a bolt,insert the nut and then made lips around it in order to hold the nut.

Thighten the previously armed flower,to the stem

The base is a piece of log rescued from a bbq fire,made four 12mm holes for the stem,communicated in betwen.

Also was made a pocket to insert a phone battery,connected to the four holes

Dismantle the garden solar light,take out the battery and the electronic plaque

Cut the cilyndrical wall of the light get the circle with two wires,the solar charger,identify the anode and cathode solder a wire longer than the "stem"

Pass all the wires throw the holes an the pocket,connect in serie two of thesolar charger,connacting in serie is one + to the - wire ,then you get more than 5volts on each couple of solar chargers

Do the same with the other couple of solar charger

Solder a diode to the + wire of both of them

Now we can connect them to the battery

The lightning is made with a multicolor fading led,it has only two legs and the change of color is made by a chip that fades the light in different colours

On the pictures the led is tested with a 3v button cell

Rise the battery wires throw the pocket (battery case) and one stem

Take out the wires throw the hole and the support made on it.

Place among the battery and the led a little switch and a 150 ohms resistor

We can see the different faces of the multicolor led fading over the stone owl

The fade is made at a slow pace,the led has a chip that changes automaticatly into green , blue and red

This kind of leds are very brilliant ,thanks to that is a nice option to stand out some specific place

Hope you like the instructable and inspire you to make it,if you do please vote the contest