Easy IKEA SUNNAN Hack (non Destructive)

by kenyer

28K5620

Intro: Easy IKEA SUNNAN Hack (non Destructive)

Easy IKEA SUNNAN hack (non destructive)

I always have a lot of stuff moving in the shop-window of my toy shop. To make it a bit lighter on battery consumption and better for the environment  I use the IKEA SUNNAN to make toys solar-powerd. The SUNNAN costs about 15,- euros in Holland and has a great solar battery charger with the batteries included.

This Hack is easy and non destructive to both toys and SUNNAN.

STEP 1: You Will Need

Materials:
  • Some double wire
  • 2 or 4 flat ANP-connectors
  • Ikea SUNNAN LED-lamp
  • An electrical toy

Tools:
  • Crimper
  • Wire stripper

STEP 2: Make the Cable

To make the cable:
  • Strip the last 5 mm from your wire. (if you have thin wire, then fold it double)
  • Put the stripped wire in the flat ANP-connector (The most common flat connectors will fit. The color will depend on the thickness of the wire you use)
  • Crimp the connector on the wire with the crimper
  • Do the same for all four wire-ends (two wires * two ends)
You will end up with a cable with two connectors on each side.

STEP 3: The Solar Module

The solar module
  • Get your Sunnan lamp
  • Push the solar module out off the lamp (just push from the bottom, you won't need any tools)
  • Turn the module upside down
  • Put the connectors from one side of the cable in the slots in the bottom of the module (they should fit nicely)

STEP 4: Connect a Toy

Select the toy
This module won't work on all toys. There are 3 batteries inside from 1.2 volts each. That will give you 3.6 volts in total. Toys with electronics inside might need more or less. Be careful not to blow anything up.
I used it on toy motors and that works great.
In the past I used it on 4.5 volts LEGO motors and a 3 volt marble machine. Both worked fine. The marble machine never had any problems in two years running for 8 hours a week.
Now I use it to power an Eitech crane with three 6 volt motors.

Connect the toy
  • Open the battery compartment
  • Find the begin and end connectors in the battery compartment (this are the connectors that are not connected to the battery next to it)
  • Connect the cable to these connectors (In this case it was easy and could I just stick them in. Sometimes you will need to make a stick in the length of a battery from a chopstick or something to put your cable in between the stick and the connector.)
  • Charge the solar module by putting it in the sun.
  • Play!

STEP 5: Still a Lamp

You didn't change anything on your SUNNAN, so when you need your LED-light to give light again, just pull the cable out of the solar-module and put it back in the lamp.

20 Comments

BartholomewH 8 years ago

Are you sure it will not explode? :D

kenyer 8 years ago

After some years of daily use, no explosions yet. It might be time to change te batteries by now, the crane is getting a bit slow.

BartholomewH 8 years ago

Great idea and an detailed instructable!
FAVED

kenyer 8 years ago

Thank you, I still use it every day.

lnoels 9 years ago

Je kan natuurlijk ook gewoon een stroomadapter gebruiken en aansluiten op het stroomnetwerk.

kenyer 9 years ago

ja dat kan natuurlijk ook, maar dit is echt veel leuker toch? :)

Rich_Limburger 10 years ago

Even in the rest of the Netherlands it costs 15 euro's ;-) i purchased 2 today and was amazed by the flood of light it emited after the batteries were charged. It would do very well as a bikelight :-)

kenyer 10 years ago

I'm not allowed in the rest of the Netherlands so I only know what they cost in Holland :-)
Making the SUNNAN into a bikelight would be a really cool project. Let me know if you do so.

Rich_Limburger 10 years ago

:-D k i will, i'm looking into some info to make a quick 'n dirty bikelight out of it together with some elektroscrap i have.

Rich_Limburger 9 years ago

cool, i just voted for the bike-light. Thanks for the heads-up

jackjackboom 11 years ago

So the light from the lamp powers itself and the crane??

kenyer 11 years ago

hihi, LOL. Would be great if the lamp could power itself :)

eclipsiumrasa 11 years ago

Well, the solar module from the lamp powers the crane. Or it can be put back in the lamp.

jackjackboom 11 years ago

Ohh. I see. But that would be cool to connect both the lamp and the crane to the solar supply.

kenyer 11 years ago

Twee in serie is misschien wel net genoeg voor een Arduino. (heb ik nog niet geprobeerd)

diy_bloke 11 years ago

misschien ook maar even een gaan halen. Goed idee