I have so many battery powered lights that I'm ruining my wallet every time I have to get new ones.
So I came up with an idea to connect all the lights to the power outlet. Where should I start and how hard is it gonna be? I'm not so gifted on this subject.
(most of the lights require 3xAA batteries)
>>997857
>Where should I start and how hard is it gonna be? I'm not so gifted on this subject.
stop right there... you are to dumb to continue.
/thread.
>>997857
you figure out the voltage and current draw of your lights and buy a suitable AC adapter
>>997876
I thought it would be more then that
>>997857
It would help to post a pic of some of the lights, since different LEDs draw different amounts of power...
For most non-high-output, non-Cree or similar style LEDs, it's okay to assume that they draw about 20mA of power at the most. (that is, 20 thousandths of an amp...)
RGB LEDs can draw ~20mA per channel, for any channels used at once.
There is different ways to do this.... more on that in the next post.
At the moment this is what I would tell you to buy, to run a LOT of lights. I'm showing examples on aliexpress because I am USA-anon and can get stuff dirt cheap there.
1. You need a power supply. The top pic is a 12v dc power supply that is pretty small physically (1.5 x 3 x 4 inches) but that is rated for 8.5 amps. I *personally* would not run it at 8.5 amps constantly, I would load it at no more than maybe 75% of that. So lets say we will only draw 6 amps off of it. That means it will have enough power for about 300 normal-style LEDs.
2. Most of your LEDs run off 3 batteries, which is 4.5 volts. To connect them to a 12v DC power source, you would need "DC-DC buck converters"--the bottom pic. These are a little circuit board (1 x 2 inches) that convert a higher DC voltage to a lower DC voltage: you connect the 12v to one end and the lower voltage comes out the other end. You need a multimeter/voltmeter to adjust them properly, but you can get one for $5. These particular converters claim to deliver 2 amps max, but again, that's running them hard. I would only run them at ~1 amp each. That means each could run ~50 normal LEDs.
3. You could hook up multiple buck converters to one power supply, and set them to different output voltages if needed. Some lights may need 4.5 volts (3 batteries) while others may only need 3 volts (2 batteries). You just need to make sure you're not drawing over the power supply's total limit.
Other things you'd want:
fuse + fuse holder
metal enclosure for everything
power cord
power cord switch
>>997941
Now maybe you exaggerated when you said you had "a lot" of LED lights to run. Maybe you only have a couple dozen, or less.
You can just buy "wall-wart" style power supplies, and hook your lights up directly off them.
They usually have a 2.1mm barrel jack, and the center pin is usually the [+] side.
(pic related) the top one is a 4.5 volt, and the middle one is a 3 volt. You would buy ones that put out the exact end voltage you need (or maybe no more than 1/2-volt over or under the amount you need).
You need to make sure that the ones you buy put out DC, since some put out AC.
These two are rated for 1 amp each, but I would not run them more than 33% of that. You could still run ~15 LED lights off each of them.
You can even buy the little plug-to-wire adapters to make a neat connection to the power supply: search for "CCTV power connectors" to find these (this is the very bottom pic)
These are simpler to use and generally have overload protection of some kind but you don't have any way to see what that is, because they're welded shut. Most use a polyfuse that cuts them off if they overheat, but that will reset when they cool down.
I dislike leaving them plugged in and unattended tho because they only have a plastic casing, and usually have no safety/reliability ratings. Many bear the CE marking but what it implies is complex and it's often falsely claimed anyway. Being plastic--if they would fail and catch on fire there is nothing to contain the pieces. Lots of people still use them that way tho.
Buy rechargeable batteries.
Assuming 4.5V LEDs, you can probably get away with getting a 5V USB wall wart charger, then hacking up a USB cable for the 5V and GND.
>>997941
Op here Beautiful answer kudos to you! Now I have to dig in the Swedish market to find these (or something similar).
To answer you as of today I own approximately 30-40led candles/lights
>>997941
>>997956
>>997964
>>997975
>>998063
>>997876
or you know...
>>998071
OMG that is true! how well would that work in practice?
PC power supplies have 5v leads and 12v. You should be able to buy a decent one for next to nothing that comes with documentation as to what wires provide what voltage, etc. I would think that would cover most your needs.
>>997941
Might want to point out that that is 20ma per channel per led, unless you want them to use a 5050 strip that draws enough power to blow some caps and shit
>>998411
>>998071
I explicitly question the ability of Christmas LEDs to not be more than normal LEDs and maybe a rectifier. It would only take 50-60 LEDs to withstand 171V, and if you used a rectifier, you double their brightness and reduce their flickering. Or a single capacitor, with or without the rectifier.
If you honestly believe string LEDs have complex control circuitry, I have a bridge to sell you.
>>998071
>or you know...
Yea we know they make strings of LED lights, but they use LEDs that all require the same voltage and current flow as they are connected to the power in series.
(-and they sure as fuck aint laying 4.5 volts on each LED-)
>>998335
>For the love of god don't buy cheap chinkshit power supplies. Get something UL listed. The extra $10 is worth not having an electrical fire.
I said how to do it well: get ones with metal enclosures, run them at no more than ~75% and put a minimally-sized fuse in the power cord.
Also FYI: UL listings are a USA-only thing. You're unlikely to ever find anything with a non-US plug that is UL listed.
>>998344
>PC power supplies have 5v leads and 12v.
This is true: PC power supplies work very well for other uses and you can find them rather cheap (often free from old PCs) but they have fans that are noisy and you gotta jerry-rig them,,,, and doing this would void any warranty they had.
>>998474
>Might want to point out that that is 20ma per channel per led,
I said that when I said "RGB LEDs can draw ~20mA per channel, for any channels used at once."
>>998618
>For any channels used at once
This does not sound singular at all, it sounds more like you are saying 20ma on any channel at the same time.
>>997857
a solar battery charger?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/USB-Charger-0-5W-Solar-Battery-Charger-For-4-pcs-AA-AAA-Batteries-J14U-/121493399027?hash=item1c499225f3:g:23kAAOxyjP1R14L7
>>998812
That would be a hassle. Have only had a bad experience with rechargeable batteries
>>999007
Did they touch you in your private places?
My lights don't need AAs
Are the 3 AAs connected in series or parallel? If they're in series, consider a USB charger or a powerbank. I've started to convert all my gadgets that require batteries to 5V USB, so I can power them with a powerbank which I can recharge with a built in solar panel. Depending on how often you use the lights you could get away with a sun recharged powerpank, or need to charge the powerbank on the power outlet, or just run them straight off a USB charger. I just like the version with the powerbank because it's still mobile (albeit a bit more bulky).
>>999140
They would be in series. But wouldn't that be highly inefficient? I mean he would need one for each candle?
