How to Build a DIY Solar Phone Charger With Stuff Around Your House

Building your own solar phone charger is a fun project that allows you to harness the power of the sun to charge your devices. With just a few simple materials, you can make an easy DIY solar charger that will let you charge your phone or other USB devices anywhere the sun is shining.

What You'll Need

To build a basic solar phone charger, you'll need the following materials:

• Solar panel: The solar panel converts sunlight into electricity. You'll need a small 5V or 12V panel. These can be purchased cheaply online or at electronics stores.

• Battery: To store the energy from the solar panel, you'll need a rechargeable USB battery pack. Look for one with at least 10000 mAh capacity.

• Charge controller: This component manages the power from the solar panel to efficiently charge your battery. You can find small USB charge controllers online or repurpose one from a portable solar charger.

• USB cable: You'll need a USB A to micro USB cable to connect your battery to your phone. Standard phone charging cables will work.

• Box or enclosure: To house your charger, you can repurpose any plastic container, box, or project enclosure.

• Double-sided tape or velcro: To secure the components in place.

• Wires: Short wires are needed to connect the components. Scavenged USB cables or jumper wires work well.

Assembling the Charger

Building the solar phone charger involves basic wiring of the components:

1. Attach the solar panel to the top of your plastic enclosure using double-sided tape or velcro.

2. Use double-sided tape or velcro to mount the charge controller and battery inside the enclosure.

3. Connect the solar panel positive and negative wires to the corresponding charge controller terminals.

4. Connect the battery to the output terminals on the charge controller. This allows the solar panel to charge the battery.

5. Run a USB cable from the battery to a port on the outside of the enclosure. This will connect to your phone.

6. Ensure all connections are secure, then place the lid on the enclosure. Your solar charger is complete!

Here is a diagram of the wiring:

Using Your Solar Phone Charger

Using the solar charger is easy. Simply place it in direct sunlight and connect your phone via the USB port.

• For optimal solar exposure, place the panel facing upwards in bright sunlight. Adjust the angle as needed throughout the day.

• It may take several hours in full sun to fully charge the USB battery pack on the first use. After that, a few hours of sun will top it off each day.

• Keep your phone plugged in to trickle charge throughout the day. The solar panel will supply power whenever the sun is out.

• Check the battery indicator lights to see the charging status. When the battery pack is fully charged, your phone will charge at normal speeds.

• The battery capacity determines how many full phone charges you get before needing to recharge the solar panel. 10,000 mAh should give you 2-3 charges.

With this simple DIY solar phone charger, you'll stay powered up anywhere the sun is shining! Customize yours with fun duct tape designs or expand it to add more solar panels.