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   Matt Hamilton (eriner@noauthority.social)'s status on Tuesday, 10-Mar-2026 12:37:50 JST Matt Hamilton

   Looks good. Huge improvement over dogshit AA NiMH solar lights. Just need to hydrojet under the concrete to lay HDPE conduit then wire up the rest.

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     Partisan Night Slut :pns: (pns@noauthority.social)'s status on Tuesday, 10-Mar-2026 12:37:50 JST Partisan Night Slut :pns:

     in reply to

     @eriner

     Pudda #NANC on that shid.

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     Partisan Night Slut :pns: (pns@noauthority.social)'s status on Tuesday, 10-Mar-2026 12:42:39 JST Partisan Night Slut :pns:

     in reply to

     @eriner

     Comme ça...

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     Matt Hamilton (eriner@noauthority.social)'s status on Sunday, 05-Apr-2026 10:33:08 JST Matt Hamilton

     in reply to

     To do:
     * connect lights on the other side of the walkway
     * spotlights on the gutters to light second story peaks
     * well lights for foliage
     * flood light on garage stone fascia
     * misc lights for trees in front yard, the fire pit, parking pad/road, etc.

     The lights make a huge difference.

     Please ignore all the junk on the porch.

     We’ll see how the connectors hold up to the rain tonight. I did my best to shrink them, but they’re not meant to splice three wire ends. 🤷♂️

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     Richard (richard@noauthority.social)'s status on Sunday, 05-Apr-2026 10:33:08 JST Richard

     in reply to

     @eriner

     >Please ignore all the junk on the porch.

     No

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     Matt Hamilton (eriner@noauthority.social)'s status on Sunday, 05-Apr-2026 10:33:08 JST Matt Hamilton

     in reply to

     • Richard

     @Richard Listen, I'm in the middle of cleaning. (it has been there for three weeks :pepe_clown:)

     ✙ dcc :pedomustdie: :phear_slackware: likes this.
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     Matt Hamilton (eriner@noauthority.social)'s status on Sunday, 05-Apr-2026 10:33:09 JST Matt Hamilton

     in reply to

     With 14 path lights and 8 spot/flood lights at 5w each, that's 110w for 10hrs: ~1kw/night (~1.5kw Winter).

     A 100Ah 12V battery would power these lights for one non-Winter night but provide no overhead in the event of cloudy days.

     I went with a self-heating (worry-free Winter) Vatrer 300Ah 12V LiFePO4, a Victron 100/20 MPPT, and a 200W panel. The MPPT has a "street light" mode so no additional on/off timer is required.

     The light fixtures themselves are combination of Gardencoin/Gardenreet.

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     Matt Hamilton (eriner@noauthority.social)'s status on Sunday, 05-Apr-2026 10:33:09 JST Matt Hamilton

     in reply to

     The bulbs are replaceable, MR16/G4.

     Wire is 12/2 with a thick jacket intended for direct burial.

     The battery has an internal 200A fuse, but replacing that is a bitch (cutting open the battery) so I put a 180A fuse on the terminal lug, a 5A fuse on the main line, and 2A on each branch.

     I'm using Sopoby heat-shrink crimp butt connectors in addition to tile tape to seal splices.

     I didn't cheap out (much) on this project, but save a little doing it myself. It should last a while.

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     ✙ dcc :pedomustdie: :phear_slackware: (dcc@annihilation.social)'s status on Sunday, 05-Apr-2026 10:33:38 JST ✙ dcc :pedomustdie: :phear_slackware:

     in reply to

     • Richard
     @eriner @Richard Just do it....
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     Matt Hamilton (eriner@noauthority.social)'s status on Sunday, 05-Apr-2026 10:47:10 JST Matt Hamilton

     in reply to

     • ✙ dcc :pedomustdie: :phear_slackware:
     • Richard

     @dcc @Richard "random 1990s dresser-drawer on the porch", or meticulously-engineered defensive man-trap? Only the guy who tries to push it out of the would know.

     Also @Richard, given the glare on the picture, consider an ascent up the hill with NVGs staring into the Sun that didn't go dark after cutting the power at 4AM. :smugj:

     ✙ dcc :pedomustdie: :phear_slackware: likes this.