We have been wanting to design and build an open-design, relatively inexpensive but fully functioned charge regulator for solar PV, wind, pedal and small hydro systems for a while now. The majority of off-grid renewable energy systems are based upon lead acid batteries. Lead-acid batteries need to be protected from over-charging by the renewable energy … more
The Joule Thief is an interesting relatively simple circuit which allows a little bit more energy to be extracted from what would normally be considered a ‘dead’ battery. Typically a electronic device powered by 1.5V batteries considers a battery to be dead when the voltage drops below 1V. Items, such as mp3 players and TV … more
I have built a number of small, portable off-grid solar photovoltaic (electricity) systems. These are small enough to be moved relatively easily, but provide useful amounts of power for charging phones and laptops or for low power LED lighting. The great thing about solar PV power is that it is scalable and work in very … more
This year I have made most of my Xmas presents, using a number of the facilities at Nottingham Hackspace and at my own work studio. For my Dad I built a bat detector. This is a device which will convert ultrasonic sounds created by bats and convert them down to a lower frequency so that … more
This year I have made most of my Xmas presents, using a number of the facilities at Nottingham Hackspace. My mum received a Kindle and I decided to make a case for it. Through people at the Hackspace, I had come across an interesting hinge which could be made using a laser cutter and ply … more
If anyone has been visiting his website over the past month or so, you may have seen some weird things or not been able to gain access to the site. Annoyingly this website was hacked by someone calling themselves ‘Mr SoFaH’. With a bit of investigation, this guy has hacked a few small websites (including … more