Build Your Own Solar-Powered RC Lawnmower

While it’s a project too involved for most of us, I have no doubt a few are drooling at the idea of turning their lawnmower into a solar-juiced, grass-eating machine they can control from the comfort of their veranda.

The mower is the work of enterprising tinkerer Robert Smith. His first YouTube project was constructing a 63W solar panel from scratch and it looks like he was bitten hard by the building bug. Now, he has this curious contraption to keep his lawn trimmed.

The “SCRCELM”, as it’s called by Smith, is powered by two 20W solar panels hooked up to a pair of 12V batteries. A set of electric wheelchair motors, sourced from eBay, provide locomotion.

All the parts required are listed on his website, along with video tutorials of the endeavour. Google SketchUp was used to design the mower.

With summer upon us, this might be the perfect thing to reduce your dependence on two-stroke fuel, though I imagine the cost of implementing the panels and electronics would wipe out any potential savings.

[Robert Smith, via Instructables]

Image: Robert Smith