Trail Camera Solar Panel Charged Battery Power Supply
We currently have two trail cameras in the garden both of which use AA batteries. Due to my concerns over the environmental use of alkaline batteries I started using rechargeable batteries to power the trail cameras. Although they seemed to work OK I was having to recharge them after 2 or 3 days. Both of the trail cameras had ports for external power supplies. The Bushnell NatureView manual said that you could use any external 6vDC supply, with the Browning Recon Edge it only advised that you should only use one of their external battery packs.
I decided to use a 12v sealed lead acid battery system charged by a solar panel to power the two trail cameras. I have been running this for several months now and it works really well. There is now no hassle with recharging batteries or using alkaline batteries.
All of the components were sourced from ebay and here is the list:
| Component | Cost |
|---|---|
| RITAR 12v 9AH Battery | £19.93 |
| 10W Mono-crystalline Solar Panel | £17.99 |
| 6V12V10A Auto Solar Panel Charge Controller Battery Charger Regulator | £6.46 |
| DC/DC Power Converter Regulator Module Step Down Adapter 12V/24V to 6V 5A L&6 | £8.71 |
| Weatherproof Dri-Box Waterproof Outdoor Plastic Enclosure for Electrics - Medium size | £12.99 |
| 1.7mm x 4.0mm Male DC Power Plug Tip Jack Connector - for the Bushnell NatureView camera | £1.10 |
| 2.1mm x 5.5mm Male DC Power Plug Tip Jack Connector - for the Browning Recon Forge Edge | £0.30 |
| Round Twin 2 Core Cable 12v 0.5mm² rated 11amp | £15.50 |
| Connector strip chocolate block 10A | £0.20 |
| Total cost | £83.18 |
This might seem expensive, however the Browning Recon Force Edge uses 8 AA batteries and the Bushnell NatureView HD uses 12 AA batteries. At £6 for a set of 12 Duracell alkaline batteries only 7 changes of batteries and you have paid for it.
You will notice that I have put in a couple of switches (I had these in the workshop) just to isolate the 12v & 6V supplies should I need to.
The solar panel was attached to the top of our greenhouse.
The dry box just sits on the ground next to our fence and as you can see keeps the contents dry.
The Browning Recon Force Edge with the power cable plugged in.