You need to read my postings about getting small structures to flicker for my garden railroad — it’s at http://www.45mm.com/lighting/flickering.html — and answers how to do exactly what you want.

\dmc

I have been using solar powered tiki lights that flicker very realistically for over a year. Presently, I’m looking for a circuit that will give me the same effect but with my 12 volt garden transformer based garden lighting system. The solar is great, looks very realistic and can run eight to ten hours on good days light. But, the batteries last less than a year, the run time gets short fast as the batteries get old and the batteries are a land fill menace.

Anyway, the tiki torch look doesn’t really go with my So. Cal (the “OC”) Spanish style house. I tried hooking the circuits from the solar lights up with a resistor to my garden lights but it didn’t work.

Some of the lighting companies that have carried the solar powered lights are; Malibu Landscaping lights, Hudson lighting, Norwood International, ABC Products, Universal Lighting and Decor. After checking most of these companies lights it looks like they came out of maybe two manufactures and were then re-branded. Prices differ greatly from the really great ‘On Sale – End of Season’ clearance price of $3.00 each (regularly $15) to the absurd $65 each for what looks, in person, to be the exact same light.

Anyway, if you come up with an easy to build circuit please let me know.

Thanks