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Best option for low cost reliable solar node (leaf.dance)

submitted 1 month ago by zerodawn@leaf.dance to c/meshtastic@mander.xyz

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I'm on a budget and i'm looking to mount a node on a pole in my back yard. I have access to a 3d printer, i have soldering skills, and i'm okay with buying individual components and assembling them myself. I'd like it to look nice but it doesn't have to if that keeps costs down.

The first goal is reliability, i won't be able to easily access it once it's up. The second goal is cheap, i'm on a fairly tight budget. It's possible the device might be in wifi range where it's mounted so that would be a nice bonus.

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[–] roofuskit@lemmy.world 8 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

3D printed enclosures will take a lot of effort to make weather proof, it's not naturally water tight. And the appropriate filament, if you don't already have ASA, will probably cost more than just buying a weatherproof enclosure and making it suit your needs.

You also probably don't want WiFi on a solar node, especially if budget is tight as you'll need a bigger panel and bigger battery capacity to accommodate the significant power draw.

You'd be better off making the solar node a client_base and having a second cheaper client_mute node inside your home marked as a favorite node.

The Rak Wis block boards are a pretty good low power board for solar nodes with connections for a battery and panel already on the board.

Then you could use a cheap heltec v2 or v3 as the indoor node that's wall powered.