Building Solar Panel

[HarryC]

I'm going to build a solar panel system for my garden with my son. He is already quite good at making things from wood, so I thought something like this project would be educational for him: https://www.electronicproducts.com/Sustainable/Solar/How_to_build_a_solar_panel_system.aspx
Has anyone made anything like this solar panel for their garden ? Where did you buy your solar panel parts?

 

[billvon]

Has anyone made anything like this solar panel for their garden ? Where did you buy your solar panel parts?

I would strongly suggest you NOT try to build a panel if the goal is a fun project. They are painful and messy to build, and won't last very long. Notice that even in that project, the guy builds a solar panel - but all the pictures after he completes the panel build are of commercial, off the shelf panels.

If you want a good project, buy some surplus 12V panels, mount them on a wooden frame and do something with the power (lights, a pump for a fountain etc)

 

[HarryC]

We have just bought a cheap soldering iron from Aldi, and we have a welding kit and a fastener kit like these: https://www.accu.co.uk/1559-prokits.

I didn't think about what we could connect it to, I was just thinking about what he could learn.
A string of small LED lights would be a good idea. There are a few youtube videos that look easier to follow, they put solar panels on foam and then solder the solar panel cable to a switch and then to LED fairy lights lights.

 

[Frogslayer]

What batteries are you going to use? Powering lights from a source powered by lights is funny to say out loud lol.