Wood You Like a New Power Bank?

There are lots of options when it comes to USB power banks, but most of those options fall into one of two categories: bulky high-capacity bricks that can charge a laptop, or slim, pocket-sized chargers meant for a quick phone boost. Either way, you are looking at a sea of boring plastic rectangles from which to choose. If you want something with a little style, you are going to be hard-pressed to find anything that fits your requirements.

Fortunately, commercial devices are not the only option available to us. Power banks are built around some pretty simple hardware; if you are not afraid of soldering irons, building your own DIY solution isn’t especially difficult. In a recent project, YouTuber Proto DIY built a very unique wooden power bank with solar charging that demonstrates how easy these builds can be. Even if a wooden power bank is not what you had in mind, the same basic steps could be used to bring your own idea to life.

As a first step, Proto DIY hollowed out a block of wood with a rotary tool. A wax polish was applied to the wood to give it a nice, finished look. Next, the display and USB connectors from an H961 power bank charging module were desoldered and reattached with wires. This allowed the display and connectors to slot into holes in the wood, where they sit flush with the surface. This was wired to a stack of five 3,000 mAh rechargeable batteries, for a total capacity of 15,000 mAh.

An adjustable MT3608 DC-DC boost converter was installed and set to supply an output voltage of 5.4V. Finally, a solar panel was installed on top of the wooden case. With the help of a TP4056 charging module, this solar panel can recharge the onboard batteries. The module’s LEDs were desoldered so that they could be installed in the case itself, to give a visual indication as to when the power bank is charging.

Be sure to check out the video below for a complete walk-through of the project.