After following an alternative energy board for most of last summer, I learned a lot. One thing I learned was how to build my very own transformer to power 120v lighting (regular house-hold bulbs) using a 12v system thanks to Lasersaber. In this case I used a refurbished car battery, but you can use any other type of small electronics power source. The goal of using such a circuit is to bypass a traditional inverter in order to save power and to be able to use 120v bulbs which are more readily available. Below is a list of things you’ll need and where to purchase them to build your own Joule Ringer 3.0 – I highly recommend you use these specs exactly otherwise there’s a chance it will not work:
2n3055 Transistor (buy a few)
Heat Sink (Optional)
28 AWG Magnet Wire
16 AWG Copper Wire
8″ Ferrite Rod
Alligator Test Leads
LED Bulb
Warning High Voltage can be deadly, so please exercise caution when experimenting with electronics. Once you have all your parts, follow the schematic below to hook up your circuit. I did have a little trouble getting it going the first few tries, but it was due to not following the schematic precisely. If you have questions, please comment below and I’ll try my best to help out – or you can head over to our Facebook page. Below the schematic, I’ve posted a YouTube video showing how it works.
Christopher de Vidal February 6, 2013
“The goal of using such a circuit is to bypass a traditional inverter in order to save power”
I know that most inverters can have around 90% efficiency, are you saying this circuit is even more efficient?