Underwater Light Orbs

An-D

So, I'm moving into a cool little lakehouse with a dock that goes into a pretty private cove. It gets really dark down there at night though, so I'd like to light up the water so swimming in the evening isn't as creepy/scary/dark.

What I imagine making are softball-sized light orbs. Super bright LED light inside a waterproof, plastic ball tied to a little weight via some twine. I'd give them enough twine so they float somewhere in the middle of the water. It doesn't get too deep. Maybe 10 feet at the very deepest in the middle - most of it is 3-6 feet deep.

What is the best way to go about this? I'm no engineer. I just have a lot of optimism and the idea that it would look really, really cool if I had ten or so light orbs floating underwater down by my dock.

I want them to be:

1) Move-able. I plan on collecting them when I'm done at night.

2) Rechargeable. I don't want them to be one-time things. I'd like the ability to open the ball, turn off the lights or replace batteries or recharge or whatever.

3) Waterproof (obviously) and somewhat durable (in case they are accidentally kicked while someone is swimming).



I've seen some online that are either really expensive or one-time things. I'd like to make them on my own, and hopefully not spend a whole ton of money. Can I get some advice on the best way to make these? What kind of lights? Where can I find clear orbs that I can put lights in and hopefully waterproof? Is there anything I'm not considering while I imagine how cool this would look? Is this a fool's errand?

Thanks for your help!

godmode

Here's what I imagine would work: buy some inflatable clear plastic beach balls from here. There are your orbs for buoyancy! You could cut a small hole in a side, perhaps 90 degrees from the inflation valve. Get some cheap waterproof lights (here's an option on Amazon), and insert them halfway into the hole in the beach ball so the battery casing is still exposed. At that point, use some sealant to repair the edges of the hole, tie some string to the bottom of the lights, anchor them with rocks or something, and you should be golden!

Disclaimer: I've never tried this before, so I don't know if it will work. But I figure as long as the lights work, and you seal the holes properly (I'm thinking with some Gorilla Glue (is that waterproof? I don't know), or some other waterproof variant), you should be alright!

Update: Gorilla Glue DOES claim to be 100% waterproof! So: Measure the beach ball holes you're cutting using whatever lights you obtain as an outline, so you don't have a big gaping hole that you can't seal again.

Furthermore, this is a cool idea, which is why I put all this work into looking this stuff up :P

Librarian

Problem is he doesn't want orbs that float on the water, but some that are in the water and will light the water itself, not just the surface.

So you might want something like this:

http://www.amazon.de/Ansmann-Aqua-Light-LED-Unterwasserleuchte-2-er/dp/B002BICYE4

Those things can either float or stick to surfaces with a suction cup. They need batteries and are 100% water proof. Unfortunately I can't find that product on amazon.com. Maybe you should look for big gardening or DIY stores, they will have something like that for pools or garden ponds I'd guess.

godmode

All he'd have to do to keep them below the surface and light the water is cut the string to length. The lights you linked look like they're more suited for a pool, not a lake. I can't imagine they'd shine from the bottom of murky water, considering mud gets stirred up in natural water. I dunno. Just brainstorming here, honestly!

Ruckus

A beach ball, even a small one, would probably be too buoyant to anchor to the lake floor easily. Something like these with a hole cut and either one or two C or D cell battery with multiple LED's inside would probably be easier to get close to a neutral buoyancy (you'll want them to have a slight upward force, but not so much that anchoring them is a challenge).

I'd also recommend that your anchoring be attached to whatever you devise to plug the hole you make (making the hole essentially the "bottom" of the sphere). That way the internal air pressure will keep water from entering, even if the plug isn't 100% air tight.

An-D

You guys are awesome.

I'm worried that the beach ball might make it difficult to turn the LED off or replace batteries or whatever I have to do. Once its sealed, it would be hard to get anything back out. That's how I imagine it right now, anyway.

The hollow balls that Ruckus posted looks like you might be able to open them. I'm looking at the 150mm ones. Not sure exactly how to go about ordering them. Or how to get the number that I want (thinking 12 right now). I'm going to shop around and see if I can other ones that I don't need to buy in bulk.

Aioua

do you need them to look pretty and ball-like?

You could just get some clear plastic bottles. They've already got a watertight seal built in. Then you just need to find some battery power lights.

An-D

I was thinking about water bottles tonight while wandering Wal-Mart. Or tuperware containers. Or those little balls that hold toys that you get for like fifty cents. They would definitely be the cheapest way to go. I would prefer the lights to be round-ish.

For the lights, I'm probably going to get those LED headband light things and disassemble them so they're just a mess of wires so I can fit them easily in everything...and so the lights kind of poke out in every direction. Its basically what I did when I made an arc reactor for a Halloween costume a few years back.

*EDIT*: I think I found a winner.

Pel

A POM bottle?

I don't think your ornament will work out. You want to make absolutely sure that your container is waterproof, which generally means a screw-on lid. Fortunately you can get such items by the fistful, for cheap, at any grocery store. Just go to the jelly aisle and pick whichever jar looks coolest. Eat or dump the jelly, and voila! Also peruse the drink aisles and possibly the canned food aisle. Olives and artichokes and the like sometimes have screw-on containers and come in interesting shapes.

I would make the screw on lid a priority. Air trapped underwater will force a lid open with very little trouble. Pressure differences and all, even only a few feet down. I also wouldn't worry overly about the shape. It won't be too visible at night, underwater. You'll mostly just see a fuzzy glowing effect which will be cool.

You will probably also have some issues getting the thing to sink. Consider just throwing the whole thing in a net, such as the type oranges come in, and weighing THAT down by the drawstring. Some bottles have convenient loops, handles, or holes, but if you want something round-ish a net might be your best bet. I'd probably start with the light and then work backwards to find a container in which it will fit. Places like Big Lots or generic ebay auctions will be your friend here.

One last thing: I'm pretty sure that you can get this idea to work, with a bit of determination. You might, however, find, that a bunch of mysterious cool looking glowing orbs down in the murky water make the lake CREEPIER rather than less so. Good luck!

An-D

My plan with the weigh is to just tie some nice twine to the orb, and the other end to some heavier washers/nuts/something similar. I think with the added weight of the LED stuff in the globe, having them float underwater won't be that big of a deal.

I have to travel back across the state tomorrow, but within the next week, I should have everything I need and I'll document the building process and the results.

Dunadan019

that plastic ball doesn't look especially waterproof. you might have to add some caulk/weather stripping and a positive latch to get it to work without flooding.

An-D

From the reviews, I'd imagine that they don't open that easily. People fill them with glitter and confetti and stuff. It'd be a really awful product if they open way too easily and spill all that stuff out. One of the reviews is also by a photographer that uses them in bathtubs (they look like bubbles) and they seem to float pretty well. Underwater will be a different story, but we'll see.

I'll probably buy some kind of heavy-duty clear tape to wrap around the center line as a 'just in case' measure.

Pel

Well, don't be afraid to try, but you will probably be disappointed in the long term if not the short. The pressure difference means that the air inside is basically spring loaded once the thing is submerged. You will probably have to add a gasket and then, instead of tape, try a nice wide rubber band or 2. Personally I wouldn't take the chance since the light you put inside will almost certainly be ruined if even a small crack opens up.

Edit: that photographer is, I think, talking about using them as fake bubbles in a fake prop bathtub, not actually in the water.

Dunadan019

IMO, I'd go with something that looks like this
http://www.amazon.com/Case-Clear-Plastic-Round-Ornaments/dp/B005HHSY86/ref=pd_sbs_hg_11
and then fill the small hole with a cork from a wine bottle or another type of plug.

An-D

This might very well be a trial and error type of thing. I'll know by next weekend.

Spherick

Another thought to save money (if you have a soldering iron) is just to buy a large sheet of prototype board, some 9V battery clips, 5V power regulators, 330ohm resisters and some LEDs and make your own lights for much, much cheaper than buying pre-made things. Heres a decent tutorial on how to hook it up. Will probably cost at most, $6 or $8 for each unit.

An-D

Making my own LED lights would be an interesting experiment. I'll have to find my soldering iron though. I am not an organized packer.