The 12 volt outdoor at Solar stores are twice as expensive; it can't be that hard to convert 110 light units to 12 volt - so has anyone tried this? Thanks.

-- Diana Lynn (lynndiana@usa.net), February 19, 2001

Answers

Will not work. AC voltage bulbs are different from DC. Usually, 12 volt outdoor lights are powered by 110 AC with a transformer to reduce to 12 volts. If you are trying to get a 12 volt DC light to come on from detected motion, it would be sampler to start with 12 volt bulbs and add a low voltage detector circuit.

-- Lynn Goltz (lynngoltz@aol.com), February 19, 2001.

Lynn is correct with a minor exception.

If you know someone who is a real circuit guru they can take the Motion detection circuit out of the AC unit and then hook up to a 12V driver circuit.

It won't be easy, you'd be better off with the 12V stuff, sorry.

-- (perry@ofuzzy1.com), February 19, 2001.

why cant you use an inverter,, 12volt to 110?

-- Stan (sopal@net-port.com), February 20, 2001.

Inverters ain't cheap, or waterproof. The cheapest I have found, so far, are at Solartron Technologies, solaronsale.com.

-- Marty Boraas (boraas@miliserv.net), February 20, 2001.

Wal mart carries inverters in the 30.00 range in the automotive area, I think their 300 watt models.

-- mitch hearn (moopups1@aol.com), June 07, 2001.

SmartHome has low volt DC PIRs here:

www.smarthome.com/7482.html

-- Brian Johnson (eebrianjohnson@yahoo.com), June 26, 2001.

If you dig around in most electronic circuits with a multimeter, and trace the path of the 120vac,it almost always goes to a transformer and a set of diodes to knock the voltage down to 5vdc. Simple to get it to work off 12vdc. They're not all the same so I suggest going around to flea market/swap meets and garage sales and pick them up for a dollar or so. Have some fun experimenting, it's really quite easy.

-- DaveA (dhidave@tcq.net), January 24, 2002.