12v homemade Fluorescent light
I made this 12v fluorescent light with a driver from maplin, at a cost of around £8. This was in the clearance section however so they may not be available anymore. The connection is simple, with the diagram shown on the front, connecting the + and - to the corresponding battery terminal and the other two wires to each end of a flourescent tube. I used a 11w tube and simply extended the wire and soldered to the terminals on the tube, using hot glue to attach the bulb to the heatsink, although a proper socket would be better. The heatsink needs to be pretty large to dissipate all the heat. It shouldnt be getting more than warm generally.
WARNING: the output of the fluorescent ballast is over 600v. You DO NOT want to get a shock from it. Dont touch the controller while it is working and do not have any bare connections on the high voltage side.
