Big Joule Theif

[Xenomorph]

Simply amazing!
A CFL that runs for days on one battery

[Lidmotor]

My Replication of the Slayer007 1.5 volt CFL

@Everyone-----I finally did it and IT WORKS!!!!!!! You can light up a 13 watt flourescent bulb with one AA battery using Slayer's circuit. Follow the directions and use the 2" ferrite core and the magic happens. Thanks much for this circuit Slayer. .
Here is the video of my replication:

YouTube - Slayer007's 1.5V CFL---- My Replication


Lidmotor

[boguslaw]

Is this original schematic used ?

I'm wondering if I could use that circuit to charge photoflash cap to dump it across xenon tube and coil... How could it be done ? Maybe by using diac to prevent overcharging cap ?

I'd like to build automatic device for generating magnetic pulses whcih will charge 400V photo cap and dump it across xenon tube and big coil for generating magnetic pulse which has healing capabilities.

I'm not electronic , maybe someone with experience could propose such modification of Joule Thief circuit ?

[slayer007]

so you have the transistors connected like darlington pair right? the 2n2222 seried with the 3055.

does the 2n2222 get hot, or does the heat all go to the power transistor??

Here's my new build by the way:

YouTube - Joule Thief - Build, Scope Shots, 10 LEDs 03

-shlodo

No it dosent get hot at all.
But i'm just running it off one or two AA batterys.

[shlodo]

I managed to get my light a little brighter using a differant transistor for the trigger.

I used a 2n2222 for the trigger insteed of 3055.
It gets a little brighter with the 2n2222.
And then I allso hooked the Collector of 2n222 to one of the Hv side of the light.
And it got quite a bit brighter.

So now I'm using the 2n2222 to trigger the 2n3055 and the 2n2222 allso has a HV line coming from the light to the collector of 2n2222.

It uses a little more power this way but it puts out a lot more light.
And it has a lot more power on the charging side allso.

so you have the transistors connected like darlington pair right? the 2n2222 seried with the 3055.

does the 2n2222 get hot, or does the heat all go to the power transistor??

Here's my new build by the way:

YouTube - Joule Thief - Build, Scope Shots, 10 LEDs 03

-shlodo

[slayer007]

I managed to get my light a little brighter using a differant transistor for the trigger.

I used a 2n2222 for the trigger insteed of 3055.
It gets a little brighter with the 2n2222.
And then I allso hooked the Collector of 2n222 to one of the Hv side of the light.
And it got quite a bit brighter.

So now I'm using the 2n2222 to trigger the 2n3055 and the 2n2222 allso has a HV line coming from the light to the collector of 2n2222.

It uses a little more power this way but it puts out a lot more light.
And it has a lot more power on the charging side allso.

[shlodo]

I think you should try swapping the charge and the source part to see if charging voltage really have power not just "surface charging".

Ive just put the circuit on a board and will do more testing, swapping batteries. Ive done load tests and it holds charge.

It droppped down a little bit after charging but not much.

I have not tried a current test to see if the crrent is going backwards. It could be tricking my meter.

-shlodo

[Lidmotor]

Got my 2" Toroid core today----Tomorrow I 'sew' it

Thanks for the tip about the nail polish. Someone else recommened teflon tape and I tried that today and it worked great. I got the Toroid core today and will start wrapping it tomorrow. Also today I had another go at the 'Inverted Joule Thief' and wound 200 more turns on the secondary. Better perfomance with more light and better charging.
Here is the video:

YouTube - Inverted Joule Thief Part 2

Lidmotor

[Inquorate]

Nail polish

Thanks for that idea, I've built a coil winder and was going to pump out a few Bifilar coils.. But I guess now they will take a little longer..

'Patience is a virtue, possess it if you can. It is sometimes found in women, but never in a man' - Peter Strelein (my grandfather)

[Bast333]

Lidmotor's shorts

Another possibility is clear nail polish. Capillary action will help pull it a layer or two down into it and it will hold the wire in place. It does take a couple of minutes to completely dry, but I only can steal a few minutes at a time to work on this stuff. Personally, I like seeing the wires of a well made transformer. Not that any of mine can be called well made.

P.S. Huge fan of yours and others on this forum. I spend much (much) more time reading than posting. Trying to make an effort to give back to that and those from which I have received so much.

[slayer007]

In between each layer I would put a layer of masking tape.

I'v done this with all my coils I have made,
It makes it easer to wind the next layer and helps insolate.
So they dont short out between layers.

Edit.

Allso you might want to add a second transistor Like in the circuit I did.
That way you can have more power going to the base if you need it.

[Lidmotor]

More for less?--(More windings same brightness/less voltage required?)

very nice Job.

The light looked Very bright allso.

Have you tried it with any less voltage?

It will light LEDs on a 1.5v AA on the BEMF but not a CFL on the secondary. I got it to light a small flourscent bulb bright at 6v and .5amps. The big bulb in the video took 12v at 1 amp. More windings on the secondary might make the difference. I'm going to save my wire for the windings on the toroid core when I get it. 800 turns should do it. That may take a looooong time to "sew" onto that ring. I'm worried about shorting out between the layers. I have had trouble with that happening on the 'rod' core. You have to insulate each layer to keep it from happening.

Lidmotor

[slayer007]

very nice Job.

The light looked Very bright allso.

Have you tried it with any less voltage?

[Lidmotor]

Inverting a Joule Thief

I'm still waiting to get my Toroid core in the mail so I tried something a little different while I waited. I wrapped a ferrite rod with three windings, modified the JT circuit a little, and turned it into an inverter CFL driver. Worked pretty good. Here is the video:
YouTube - Inverting A Joule Thief

Lidmotor

[slayer007]

@Slayer007:
How would you integrate the BEMF Booster into the toroid winding concept?
Would you use a bifilar secondary to send the BEMF through the coil again?

No, I was just sending the BEMF from the collector back through the one ac coil.

That way it would have enought current to light a 110v night light.

The ac coil has a lot of voltage but not much current.
It wouldnt light the night light even tho it was around a 1000v.

But sending the bemf that was about 5v back through the coil would raise the dc voltage up to around 170v.
And it would light the light.

It's just a different way to get the voltage down and the current back up.

Like I said I was just having fun try differant way to use this circuit