I remember when these things first appeared. They were so hyped up it was ridiculous. The implication was that with a brief spell of shaking the flashlight would provide hours of light. And to be fair, you did kinda get hours of light if you regard a faint glow when you look directly into the end of it as "light". James sent this light from the USA and sadly it's one of the many fakes that appeared when the Chinese manufacturers realised that the concept was so flawed that they might as well just fake it from the start. The real ones produce a visible pulse of light when shaken vigorously.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:- http://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm This also keeps the channel independent of YouTube's advertising algorithms allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty. ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ujio2shR7Lg
While looking absolutely nothing like a real flame, the neon flicker flame lamps are strangely pleasing to look at. This is one that came directly from China via eBay, and had a very intriguing manufacturing fault.
I'm guessing that the reason the electrodes went white when the lamp was opened is because they also have the function of a getter which absorbs residual oxygen in the lamp. I can't find anything about the electrode material or coating online though. I do have some different lamps that have shiny metal flame electrodes, but they gradually reduced in the flickering effect over time.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvO67jRAE4A
While attempting to clean this vintage solar flapping leaf ornament I found that the plastic had degraded to the point where one of the leaves broke off unexpectedly. This turned out to be a good thing, as I did a full reverse engineer of the circuitry and being older than the mass produced variants it is made with discrete components as opposed to the modern "blob" chips.
The circuitry is based on a two transistor stage that will self trigger at a threshold as the solar panel charges a capacitor, but can also be pre-triggered before that threshold by the current induced in the pulse coil. This arrangement lets it self-start, and then pulse the magnetic pendulum as it passes over the coil to keep it swinging at its resonant frequency.
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#ElectronicsCreators
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV39Eowzy-c
It's a year since I experimentally sealed some solar lights with a thin layer of clear silicone sealant. It's very easy to do, but it's best used on metal or chromed solar panel surrounds as the silicone can peel from plastic.
The technique involves putting a plob of silicone in the middle of the solar panel and then placing a square of polythene/polyethylene plastic over the top and then squishing the silicone into a layer that covers the panel and surrounding bezel. Once it's had time to cure (usually just a day) then the polythene will just peel off leaving a solid film of silicone over the solar panel.
A test before and after showed that the silicone did not reduce the output from the solar panel.
One year later, including an unusually hot (too hot!) summer and a fairly grim winter, and the silicone looks as though it has handled the extremes of UV, heat and cold well.
One light did stop working though, and it's that one that is featured in this video.
There are many ways you can ruggedise standard solar garden lights against environmental extremes to make them last a very long time.
Here's a link to the original video showing the silicone coating:-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmEyu-JAsnM
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
http://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czfa0S5uwcI
This is a common module found in air conditioners and cleaners for the "ioniser" function. It puts a strong electrostatic charge on the air, which helps precipitate out airborne particulate, assists with its ability to be filtered, and also adds a tiny amount of short-lived active air molecules as found in natural outdoor air.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DQgxJmifLAo
Do not attempt this experiment yourself. It involves exposed hazardous voltage and also quite a lot of meat-based smoke. (Really stinky!)
Let me do the dangerous stuff so you don't have to.
This was a test to see how much electrical current the classic Spam processed meat would pass. It turns out that it's very conductive, but not ideal for electro-cooking, with a lot of very unpleasant smoke.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1iY9hut8kPY
When I bought this lamp it wasn't smashed. Subsequent testing of the globe material did unfortunately result in total destruction of the globe. Not a big issue as we were going to take it to bits anyway.
This is (was) a free-standing waterproof light that is just begging for a solar panel. It's basically a concrete effect resin base with a very breakable glass globe on top with a single LED filament. The choice of AAA cells is a bot of a disappointment compared to the three times greater run time that could be achieved with AA cells. There's a 6 hours on - 18 hours off timer function that will extend battery life greatly.
The light actually looks quite nice. The supermarket it came from is a posh UK chain called Sainsburys.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
http://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7ESvCd79TE
If you asked 100 Scottish people how they make their porridge you would probably get 100 different answers. So the true answer is "Any way you like."
Here's how I make mine, and a look at a commercialised version which basically adds a huge amount of sugar to kickstart your sugar cravings as early as possible in the day.
A link to AvE's channel of Canadian technical shenanigans.
https://www.youtube.com/user/arduinoversusevil
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
http://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm
This also keeps the channel independent of YouTube's advertising algorithms allowing it to be a bit more dangerous and naughty.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6ofLi_Rd2U
There's quite a wide range of these ultrasonic water fog generating devices available on eBay. Unlike the traditional ones that have a large piezo disk submerged under water, these ones have a ring of piezo material that agitates a stainless steel disk with a wick pressed gently against it. This results in a very efficient water atomiser that requires very little power to operate.
Here's an eBay search link for this style of unit:-
http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_sop=15&_nkw=cartoon+usb+humidifier&rt=nc&LH_BIN=1
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DabnOLtLFnc
A look at how capillary thermostats work and how to use them.
Capillary thermostats are a simple electromechanical thermal switch that uses a very thin metal tube to sense temperature at another location, by using the thermal expansion/contraction of liquid or gas to activate an adjustable switch.
The search keywords for finding a wide range of units on eBay are:-
"refrigerator thermostat"
Note that there are quite a few similar looking versions and a massive price range for the same thing.
If you enjoy these videos you can help support the channel with a dollar for coffee, cookies and random gadgets for disassembly at:-
http://www.bigclive.com/coffee.htm
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJg97X1VxJ0