Outdoor 12 volt power

[WilsonBo]

Hi

I want to light the buildings on my garden railway. LEDs are the obvious way to go and I am inclined to use a 3S 11.1V LiPo for ease and hopefully infrequent charging. I have got a mains supply reasonably close, but I would like to avoid trying cables if possible.

My questions are whether any one has experience of this sort of set-up, and if so what they might recommend as
a) a weatherproof battery box
b) weatherproof switching, either manual or remote control if possible!
c) reliable, weatherproof wiring connectors.

The interiors of my buildings are dry but no doubt humid, so I will want to protect the wiring and connections inside them as well.

All advice gratefully received

Cheers

Wilson

 

[JimmyB]

I would look at DIY shops and look for an IP65/66 enclosure that meets your requirements, however, plan for water to get inside and design accordingly, i.e. drain holes at the lowest point, raised of the ground and anything in the enclosure not sitting on the bottom. This is how I managed my 18 Volt supply outside, and the principle can be adapted for battery use.

Kippo Signal Box

In my engine siding I decided that the points (switches) control would be motorized via a local...

tumble-down-falls.blogspot.com

 

[The Shed]

The following item as linked below is a new replacement alternative to Schneider products that are in use on my own garden railway, examples provided as sources for further or alternative information.

VIMARK 10-ENTRY RECTANGULAR JUNCTION BOX WITH KNOCKOUTS 118MM X 76MM X 158MM






These are used along with the Wago Connectors for the 18V Ring Main (Alexa, Voice or the App for activation) for the layout and garden lights.
WAGO 32A MULTI-PURPOSE JUNCTION BOX 39 X 39 X 44MM GREY (790KJ)

WAGO 32A 2/3/5 WAY LEVER CONNECTOR various pack sizes



The following as an example for remote On/Off.
433MHz DC12V Relay 1CH Wireless RF Garage Door Remote Control Switch Transmitter

Should humidity be an issue?
1g Packets of Silica Gel Sachets Desiccant Pouches Granules

 

[GAP]

This refers to how I got 12V and 5V out into my garden.
Sealed Lead Acid (SLA) battery more suitable and safer than LiPo.

Servo Controlled Points

Because I was having some issues with my Aristocraft and LGB manual points; The LGB points I had would not throw properly with a manual lev...

ringbalin-light-railway.blogspot.com

I use 12mm poly irrigation pipe to run my wiring outside mainly because;
it is cheap and readily available
designed to go into the ground
and the fittings are waterproof, a little silicone put on the fitting before sliding into pipe increases water resistance.

 

[Gerard]

If you are running with 24Volt AC on the line (when using a digital layout) you do not have to use battery powered lights. You can take the power directly from the rail next to the housings.
You can buy 24 Volt LED lights that have all necessary electronic stuff build in.

Gerard

 

[Paul M]

Hi

I want to light the buildings on my garden railway. LEDs are the obvious way to go and I am inclined to use a 3S 11.1V LiPo for ease and hopefully infrequent charging. I have got a mains supply reasonably close, but I would like to avoid trying cables if possible.

My questions are whether any one has experience of this sort of set-up, and if so what they might recommend as
a) a weatherproof battery box
b) weatherproof switching, either manual or remote control if possible!
c) reliable, weatherproof wiring connectors.

The interiors of my buildings are dry but no doubt humid, so I will want to protect the wiring and connections inside them as well.

All advice gratefully received

Cheers

Wilson

There's plenty of good products on the market. Just ensure you get the highest IP rated equipment you can.

IP66 is probably the best for you, I think 7 & 8 may be a bit extreme.

 

[WilsonBo]

The following item as linked below is a new replacement alternative to Schneider products that are in use on my own garden railway, examples provided as sources for further or alternative information.

VIMARK 10-ENTRY RECTANGULAR JUNCTION BOX WITH KNOCKOUTS 118MM X 76MM X 158MM

View attachment 320772

View attachment 320773


These are used along with the Wago Connectors for the 18V Ring Main (Alexa, Voice or the App for activation) for the layout and garden lights.
WAGO 32A MULTI-PURPOSE JUNCTION BOX 39 X 39 X 44MM GREY (790KJ)

WAGO 32A 2/3/5 WAY LEVER CONNECTOR various pack sizes



The following as an example for remote On/Off.
433MHz DC12V Relay 1CH Wireless RF Garage Door Remote Control Switch Transmitter

Should humidity be an issue?
1g Packets of Silica Gel Sachets Desiccant Pouches Granules

Thank you.
The remote control looks exactly like the sort of thing I was thinking of.

 

[WilsonBo]

If you are running with 24Volt AC on the line (when using a digital layout) you do not have to use battery powered lights. You can take the power directly from the rail next to the housings.
You can buy 24 Volt LED lights that have all necessary electronic stuff build in.

Gerard

Thank you, but my track is unpowered, running battery powered locos and (hopefully) ultimately live steam.

 

[Gizzy]

Thank you, but my track is unpowered, running battery powered locos and (hopefully) ultimately live steam.

You could still use the track as a bus in that case....

 

[Gerard]

Thank you, but my track is unpowered, running battery powered locos and (hopefully) ultimately live steam.

I am using small lipo batteries for playmobile locs. The batteries each have an electric circuit to prevent the danger of overloading. As extra measure i installed USB connections for the loafing cables using usb 5volt as the only possible option ( since there is an usb connector).
This works very well , even for the kids themselves.

Gerard

 

[dunnyrail]

What has not been mentioned is a Solar panel and rechargeable battery setup, a say £30ish option with the Solar inside the shed by a south facing window should last many years. Running the LED’s to the garden perhaps with modified wiring to change a bought ootion.

 

[Dan]

When using multiple leds in a building you can use them connected in series. I have 3 of the 20ma 3 volt leds in series and I control the current via the Cl2N3 regulator and can tie these to 12 or 24 volts DC as the cl2n3 limits current to 20ma thus giving max led light. This device is like having a variable resistor that works on its own!!
This cl2n3 can regulate current to 20ma up to 90 volts.

 

[GAP]

I just use LEDs placed in parallel across a bus with dropping resistors on one leg that way if one fails the rest keep going.
I calculate the resistor value using an LED calculator like this.

https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/tools/led-resistor-calculator/