Some silicone would be pushed outside the connection as the heat shrink tube compresses on the connection by heat. Repair if possible. Like more helpful tips on fixing solar lights? SKILL #1: How to Use A Multimeter to Check Wire Continuity Then connect the two wire ends by twisting them together. Did you make this project? We let it charge in the yard for about a day and a half (which is usually enough). Squirrels are a bit of a problem for many homeowners who have electrical wiring connections outdoors. "If the strand of lights is bad and unfixable then I would suggest throwing them away and replacing them," says Maderazzo. At end of wire that comes out of the bottom of the pole, put a plug with short wires on the end, but don’t shrink wrap or solder it on yet.Measure the length of the wire from the top of the pole to the end of the wireCut a piece of ¼ inch drip tubing about 3-4” shorter than the total lengthTake off the plug, and slide the drip tubing on the wire all the way to the bottom of the case, including inside the poleThere should be enough wire hanging out the end to attach the plug. Cut a vertical slit in the coating with a craft knife and peel it back with your fingers. 4. Test things after each step so you don’t get all done and it doesn’t work. Soldering is the process of melting two wire ends together to join them. If your light was old, chances are the battery is dead. Spread all of its strands and intermesh the two strands together before twisting them securely or. Fit it back again and put the battery back in. For more ideas on how to improve the design of your solar string lights, you can Sitnah’s Instructables on how to configure solar lights on your own roof design. Let it coat and don’t touch it until it cools. The battery case cost about $2.50, the solar panel 3.49. "I would never suggest cutting any light strands, ever—this can be incredibly dangerous." 2. What I used:Solar light string with 20 LEDs, 4 AA Battery Holder Case Wired ON/OFF Switch Cover, 3 (4 with extension) sets JST Male Female Connector 22AWG Wire. Step 2 Examine the insulating material from the broken edge of the rope lights. Down below is an example of a solar fairy light diagram. On my string of 12 solar lights only 2 now light up. 9. Altair - a Tripod Mounted Refracting Telescope. Thanks to all these instructables, with a special thanks to Josehf, I'm learning a lot and fixed the lights "my way". If you haven't … You should be able to work out something thats stopping the circuit from working. Chewed wires can be daunting to fix, so if you can, try buying solar lights that do not have exposed cables. When I tested the lights, they give off a faint, anaemic glow, nothing like when they were new. 2. This is a quick and easy fix. Measure the total distance from the roof of the patio to the top middle of the big beam holding up the front of patio roof.Mine measured 26” so I cut wire at 36” to have some slack & extra because the wire is small and sometimes breaks off when trying to strip it.Attach a male plug to it on the end. Use a helping hand to clamp the wire before soldering. Touch both ends of the leads to check if the multimeter is working. Where possible, just try to replace the parts. 3. Step 12:I wanted all the panels close together so they are easy to get to, so I put them in the middle of the roof. New solar panels with 225mA output, batteries better and lights stay lit all night long !Easy to take down suspected part if a problem comes up, as all the “sections” unplug from each other. The basic tools you need for stripping a wire and fixing them are typically the following. Solar post lights are some of the most common types of solar lights you can expect to find in home improvement. Here’s an example of one of our lights. Highs in the 70's, sunshine! How to repair wires on solar lights is really easy with these few simple tricks. Once and a while you might experience problems with your lights and you might have to do something called troubleshooting. And the wires on these things are so flimsy, hanging them with the rose covers on them is like asking for it to get messed up. This case will go under the patio roof where it is protected from rain, etc.Open the 4 AA Battery Holder Case Wired ON/OFF Switch Cover and “wiggle” off the inside piece that covers the wires and switchPull the wires that are going outside it to the inside.Remove the 3 “double” battery terminals (my lights only use 1 AA NiCd 600 mA battery each)Move the “single red wire” terminal at the end to the slot opposite the negative terminal with the switchMight have to remove the (now) extra dividers to fit the circuit board into the caseMight have to make the hole where the wires feed out of the case bigger – some of mine had a hole that was large enough, some didn’t, If the circuit board has a switch, leave it in the on positionSlide wire shrink wrap onto the wires before twisting them together (I forgot that so many times, I put a big pink note on my worktable to remind me)Hook up the battery wires.Feed the Solar panel & LED wires thru the hole to the outside of the case.Put plugs on the LED (female) & Solar panel (male) wiresMake sure the switch is still in place on the outside, then put the inside cover piece back in place, (if you are not adding a new solar panel, skip to step 7), Adding a new Solar Panel:Solder wires to the new solar panelGlue the new solar panel to a light switch cover, putting the wires thru the switch plate hole, Make a hole it the front of the original case, big enough for a female plug to pass thru, and pass the wires thru it (making the hole big makes it easier to replace eventually)Put a female plug on the end of the wire. Make a small square cut out at the top of the pole that holds the solar panel case.Thread the bottom wire thru the pole, line up the wire with the square cut out, put the pole on. How to Fix / Repair Broken Wires, Cords and Cables - YouTube Heat shrink tubing – a rubber material for securing the soldered area. If this is the case, bring down those solar string lights to fix the broken wires. Sometimes the wire filament inside the light bulb may be broken but when it is in certain positions it will make contact and light up, therefore a new bulb may be required. This is usually printed at the cable sheath. To make sure your wiring connection is safe, you can cut the wire again and re-strip it. I wrapped a small piece of blue painters tape around the wire a bit above where it meets the plug – just enough to make it stay together and not let it slide up & down the wire, but easy to pull out if need be. Simply screw them back in. *Photo credits from this section are from ChrisFix. The switch is one of the first parts to go, from corrosion. To fix Christmas lights if the entire string goes out, start by unplugging the string and opening the fuse case, which is the plastic box attached to the electrical prongs. Share it with us! And one good AAA battery for testing. The dry wall installers chewed up the wires in a few boxes with their router when doing the cut-outs which I take to be a pretty common mistake. Remove the broken wire piece first. What Tools You Need for Repairing Wires Basic solar string light repair and battery question. If the fuse doesn’t blow, the wire would melt and cause a fire. You might want the hole in the front if the front of your lights face the roof)Put the wire you cut in step 7 thru it with the male plug inside the case“Plug” any extra holes in the case with hot glue or caulking, etc.Screw the case back together. 2. Sometimes the problem could be something quite simple, such as another source of light hitting the solar panel, giving the impression that there is still daylight. SKILL #1: How to Use A Multimeter to Check Wire Continuity, Why Your Solar Lights Have Wiring Issues and How to Approach Repair, Loose Wire Connections From Excessive Wire Tensions. Place a piece of masking tape on each wire on either side of the damaged portion you are cutting away, about 2 inches on either side of the damage. You can use a file or sandpaper to scrape off the lacquer at the end of the copper wires. Then you will use butt splices to attach the ends to the solar panel and to the lights. Quick tip: You can cover the sharp ends of the alligator clips with heat shrink tubing so they won’t cut through the wire. Heat the soldering gun. Then, twist the spot where the wires join with your fingers to tighten up the connection. Note: Don’t let any copper wire stick out as it might jab the heat shrink tubing and cause shorts. Then check the switch. Step 2 Required fields are marked *. I have spent as much time outside as I can. Taking pictures of the circuit board and wires will really make it easier if you are a newbie like meMark the “on” side position of the switch with red marker.Mark each spot of solder where a wire is attached with a magic marker - makes it easier to figure out where a wire goes if it comes off.Mark the wires that go to the lights for positive and negative Mark where each wire goes on the circuit board - I colored each solder spot with red or black magic marker. I know there are probably some better ways to do some of this, but I improvised and mostly used things I already had. Solution: The solar light may be faulty, if possible, use a screwdriver and take the light apart. If that looks good, then the problem could be the ground wire of the solar panel, check that this goes back to the ground on the circuit board. Parallel wired light strings have two wires down the length of the string and each lamp is wired between the pair of wires. Aside from being an ornamental part of your garden, house or street, these lights are green lighting alternatives to your old incandescent bulbs. I’ve had them about 8 months but didn’t keep the packaging … SKILL #2: How to Properly Strip a Wire Is the solar light still not working after battery replacement, repositioning, and checking the … Connect the two ends of the wires. Step 4 Thread the broken strands of wire together so that at least an inch or two of the two pieces overlap. If you have a cable that is extremely worn out and its electrical wires keep getting exposed because of new tears in the outer jacket, it’s probably best to replace it. SKILL #3: How to Properly Solder a Wire If it isn’t the wind, perhaps it’s the cute little squirrel who gnarled the wires on your solar lights. As it heats up, use a damp sponge to wipe the tip and remove all the oxidation. Get a tiny screwdriver like one for glasses. Soldering gun -for connecting two wires or a wire to the PCB. After soldering, wipe the tip of the soldering gun on to the damp sponge to clean off excess solder. Hanging the first 10 to the one side of the hook, and the last 10 to the other, and alternating the direction of the hooks, helps hold them in place also.You have to do this one light at a time because they are not all evenly spaced, but it is worth it in the end. If the strand of lights is broken (meaning wires are cut or the bulbs won't light up even after following the steps above), it's best to just throw it out. Check the wiring to be sure all the wires are attached and the solder points are not broken. Slide a heat shrink tubing at one end of the wire. Sitnah’s Instructables on how to configure solar lights on your own roof design. Turn the knob at a higher resistance setting than that of your solar light resistance rating. To understand it more comprehensively, you can watch this video: You can either replace the faulty wire with the same wire gauge or cut the part that’s causing discontinuity and simply rewire it. Slide the heat shrink tube over the top of the connection. Sitting there I remembered I needed to put out my solar lights into the garden. Power up the string then temporarily touch the wires from the … 10. Use a match or fine sandpaper to remove about 1/2 inch of the enamel coating insulating the wire. Here are the steps to connect the multimeter: 1. When you get to where you want to put the battery/circuit box, cut the wire to reach the beam with some slack and put a male plug on it. There wasn’t enough left over wire to reach the end sets of lights, so I used cheap gold/silver speaker wire to reach them. If you bought your solar lights at the dollar tree, and they don’t work when you get them home after you charge them up, it is a very easy fix. How to Repair Broken Solar Post Lights Top Selling Solar Post Light: GTMax Lamp Post Solar Powered Light – 6.5 Feet (Adjustable height) Click here for more information, reviews and to buy. Dirty Solar Panels. We hope this article has helped you troubleshoot and repair broken wires on your solar lights. Solar lights on my 3 light lamp. 4. To solve this issue, simply cut the wire at a point before the LED light that doesn’t illuminate. To improve the brightness of your light, you will have to clean the casing. A good indication is rust or broken wires. That’s why you would naturally be upset the moment they fail working. The solar panels on the top of solar lights will collect dirt and grime over time, making them less capable of receiving sunlight. I need to make something like this for my back yard. However, solar lights do cost a little more than conventional lights. Some of the most popular solar lights this 2020 are solar string lights, solar LED garden lights and solar street lights. 11. Rose lights shown unlit during the day, and lit up at midnight. How to Fix a Rope Light By Renee Gerber Things You'll Need. Strip the wire like in the previous section. Check the wire beneath it as well. Yesterday we had a three-wire Christmas light string where the first half of the string was working, but the second half of the light string wasn’t working. Light Bulbs. Here are easy Do It Yourself steps to troubleshooting your Solar Christmas/String Lights. This will cause the wire to heat up. If at one point you get a reading of 1 or “OL”, this means at that point there’s no continuity. Your case may be different, probably is, so you will have to improvise hereMake a hole in the bottom back of the old case (this spot is based on mine facing south on the front edge of the patio roof, and the hole doesn’t show from the ground. The solution. Then all that is left is to use rubber tape to wrap around the butt splice connections. Remove 1/2 inch of the outer insulation. After a few seconds, feed solder at the top of the copper strands, just enough to coat it. While it may be your own fault – like when you try to cut down solar string lights by yourself or try rewiring them to configure it with your own landscape or wall shape – there’s usually a universal way of fixing broken wires. Since different types of solar lights have different configurations and designs, you can troubleshoot repairs in a variety of ways. Properly tin up the tip of the soldering gun to help speed up the heat transfer from the tip to the wires. Before you can fix wires, you must first have an idea on how to check wire connectivity, how to properly strip a wire and how to solder. Broken fairy lights are frustrating and it can take hours to fix them. 3. Other wiring connections have screws used for securing these wires to the electronics. Your email address will not be published. Repeat with the other section of cut wire. Refresh the Panel In many cases, solar lights stop working because the plastic covering the solar panel gets cloudy. Silicone paste – to lubricate and protect wires from oxidation. One portion is working fine, while the other end is not working or is not turning on. Why Your Solar Lights Have Wiring Issues and How to Approach Repair. In this article, we’ll explore the ways on how you can troubleshoot and improve your damaged solar light wires. Take out the batteryOpen the battery/board case for the solar lights, If your lights have an on/off switch on the circuit board, set it to on. Fix minor damage on any type of electrical cable with electrical tape, repair damaged charger cables with Sugru putty, or fix more serious damage on electrical cables with heat-shrink tubing. Replaced batteries and did the clear polish trick. Place the tip of the soldering gun underneath the wire and feed a little bit of solder in between the tip and the wire. I.AM.LOVING.IT! b. HeiSolar a leading China-based manufacturer of commercial solar-powered LED lighting products. Solar Lights~DIY Quick Fix Hallelujah! Birds singing, squirrels being squirrely! Just clean the see-through cover in hot water and washing up liquid and wipe around the casing. Water proof plugs if you want to put the lights where the plugs will be exposed to rain, etc. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Saturday night we sat out on the back patio enjoying the cool, not cold, evening. 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