Mini Portable Solar Powered Fan

Although the summer is very hot, it has an abundance of sunlight. Build this mini solar powered fan to beat the heat using the sun. You won't have to worry about carrying around this fan either, because it fits in most pockets. Enjoy!

1. Small solar panel
2. Small motor
3. Mini fan blade
4. 3 small popsicle sticks
5. Tape or hot glue
6. Scissors
7. Pliers (helpful, but optional)

It is likely that your motor comes with a gear on it you must remove the gear for this project. If you cannot remove the gear with your hands, it could help to use pliers or wire cutters to remove the gear, if you have them.

Connect the positive terminal of the solar panel to the positive terminal of the motor, and Connect the negative terminal of the solar panel to the negative terminal of the motor. Your solar panel and motor may be pre-wired, if so, you can skip this step.

Put your fan blade on the motor. Make sure to orient the blade so it blows outwards. Test your fan in the sunlight. If it doesn't move, the blade might be too heavy.

Cut 2 small pieces off the 3rd popsicle sticks and use the pieces to attach the 2 other popsicle sticks together with hot glue or tape.

This is one of the hardest steps. Put a piece of the third popsicle stick onto the main stick about in the middle of the stick. Then add another piece going up from it diagonally. This will make more sense if you look at the picture.

On the opposite side of the place for the solar panel to sit, put a piece of popsicle stick perpendicular to the main popsicle stick area. Put this at the top.

Tape or glue the solar panel onto the diagonal platform and the motor to the top flat platform. Use tape or glue to move the wires out of the way if necessary. Remember, if you are using tape on a place with exposed running electricity, it is best to use electric tape. After everything is ready, test your new solar powered fan in the sunlight.

If your motor is not moving, check that the solar panel is in direct sunlight and that there is nothing blocking the solar panel, also check that the motor and solar panels are connected properly. If nothing works, your fan might be too heavy. Try taking the fan off and seeing if the motor moves. If it does, your fan is likely too heavy.

If your popsicle sticks break over and over, you can fix them with a small amount of hot glue. Tape can also work but the popsicle stick might be a bit bendy.

Note - The fan I used was a bit too small, but my next largest one was too big and heavy, the ideal fan size would be right in between these two sizes. There is a picture of my smaller and larger fan blades compared to a penny above (the smaller one being the same type I used).