Remove Solar Cell from Outdoor LED Lamp

I wanted to find out how to remove and the solar cell from one of those $4 outdoor solar
lamps that you just stick in the ground. I couldn't find anything online so I took it upon
myself to figure it out. It was pretty straight forward but I thought I'd post my findings anyway

Note:
$4 Outdoor Solar Lamp will yield:
~3V solar cell
~photo resistor
~AA rechargeable battery
~bright LED
~circuit and some resistors
~metal sleeve and stake if you need it for something.

Step 1: Tools

All you really need is a small philiips screw driver and a Dremel. Unfortunately for
some unfathomable reason I have not brought myself to purchase a dremel tool, if only
because a friend's is always available. I did have some wire clippers on hand which was
messy and time consuming but got the job done.

~Dremel
~Phillips screw driver
~Flat head screw driver or something with a  thin metal edge.
~Wire clippers
~Multimeter

Comments

[jonney_o]

I removed a few solar cells using Rubbing Alcohol on a Q-tip. Reaching from underneath the plastic cap where the Pos and Neg leads were cut through. The Rubbing alcohol immediately releases the Hot Glue or Hot Bond, which allows you to just lightly push the cell up though the top using the Q-tip. No cutting the plastic, no mess. Hope it helps

[JoshuaZimmerman]

My local Dollar Store, called Dollar Tree, had the slightly cheaper version of these lights for $1 each. They were made completey of plastic with no metal. I may have bought 100 of them for projects.

Getting a solar cell, AAA battery, and LED circuit for $1 isn't a bad deal.

I've been seeing quite a few decent solar lights at Home Depot for under $4. A handy thing to have around.

[Nerdz]

Saw these at Ocean State Job Lot (like a upscale dollar store-or a downscale harbor freight store)

How much current does the cell put out? I was thinking of getting one for this purpose, but for 4 bucks you can get much better on ebay for the same price

[jackel3415]

If I did my calculation right about 10-15mA unless my units were off.

Yea, it isn't the greatest that's for sure but I figured for the price I might get a half decent solar panel and the rest of the parts aren't a bad deal. I'll probably have to order a much stronger one for the other project I'm working on. On the bright side with a few changes to the basic circuit and you might have a half decent Pummer. (just speculation though)

[Garasvaldi]

we can find the same one or one very similar here in Georgia, USA 2 for $5 and on rare occasion $1 each.