Solar Powered WiFi

There are times where we face power outages when we have some important work to carry out online. Your Home WiFi does not run when there is no power in your house. To fix that issue we will use the power of the sun to power our WiFi.

List of necessary items:

1. Solar Energy Kit
2. MT3608 Boost Converter
3. Copper Perf Board (Optional)
4. Wires
5. Nuts and Bolts
6. Battery Connectors
7. Heat Shrink Tube
8. Switch
9. Female Power Connector

Step 1: Disassembly of the Portable Solar Energy Kit

I will use this portable solar power system for this project, but it does not provide a 12 volt output, so we will need to boost it to the required voltage of the WiFi router. I will remove the four screws holding the cover in place. The battery will be disconnected from the charging circuit and the circuit will be removed as well after taking out the two screws holding it in place.

Step 2: Wiring the Boost Converter

I will use the MT3608 boost converter to boost the battery voltage to 12 volts. I will then cut a small piece of copper perf board for a base to hold the boost converter to the case of the solar power system. The boost converter will thereafter be mounted to the perf board.

I soldered in some wires for the input and output of power to the boost converter, and thereafter bridged the connections. I cut off the battery connectors of the charge controller, so that I can join the input of the boost converter with it. I soldered in the wires to new connectors.

Afterwards I crimped the connectors and used heatshrink tube to prevent any short circuit.

Step 3: Fixing the Parts to the Case

I marked in holes necessary to mount the boost converter and the 12 volt output connector. I also made an opening to install a switch while I was at it. Nuts and bolts were used to secure in the boost converter to the case. I spliced the negative wire of the input side of the boost converter to connect a switch to the circuit, allowing us to switch the boost converter as and when needed. I connected the output from the boost converter to the 12 volt female connector, paying attention to the polarity of the terminals.

Step 4: Adjusting the Potentiometer to Obtain 12 Volts From the Boost Converter

After the charge controller was installed back in place, the circuit was connected to the battery. We thereafter need a voltmeter in order to adjust the boost converter to output 12 volts. After making the proper connections, the small potentiometer needs to be turned several times to achieve the desired output.

For the MT3608, you need to turn it counter clockwise to increase the voltage and vise versa.

Once that’s done, we can screw the cover back in place.

Step 5: Powering the WiFi Router With Solar Power

The WiFi router will work even when there is no input power from the solar panel due to lack of sunlight, as long as the battery holds charge.

I hope you found this instructable useful. Feel free to comment your thoughts below.