Can I power the Pimoroni Pico LiPo 2 by connecting a [5V Solar panel](https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006030000833.html)?
Futhermore can I power a 5V Ultrasonic sensor?
My tank has wifi coverage.
Goal is a reading every ~hour is more than enough into Home Assistant. Thank you in advance!
You have to do some maths and some measurements. How reliable is the sun in your area? How big is your LiPo? Will it provide enough energy for a few rainy days? How much current does your system draw when running on LiPo/USB? You can probably influence the latter by intelligently writing your software but expect it in the range of 25mA@5V idle plus whatever the ultrasonic sensor draws.
Otherwise, the system claims that it provides 5V, so it should power your Pico and the ultrasonic senor. But to be honest: I would not expect much for that price. The good thing is: it is not expensive so you can just buy, test and learn.
One thing you also have to think about: the Pico Lipos have a power button directly on the pcb. This is fine while tinkering on your desk, but once you have it in an enclosure or even in an oil tank, you might have problems turning the system on. There are no connectors for a sort of remote power button.
Edit: the HC-SR04 (I assume you are thinking of this sensor) draws 15mA@5V. But you will have a problem with wiring: the sensor needs 5V, so you would connect it to VBUS. But when the solar panel does not provide enough voltage, the system will run from LiPo, which is connected to VSYS and is only 4.2V max (typically 3.6V).
Edit2: The Pico Lipo does not have a WLAN chip.
Thank you for your reply!
Does that mean that if goes to 0% it won’t come back on? 😬
I’ve ordered the JSN-SR04T / AJ-SR04M as the sensor.
Was thinking Pimoroni Pico LiPo 2 which has wifi, right?
If it is off, you have to press the on-button.
Good choice for your use-case. It basically works the same as the HC-SR04.
No, it doesn’t.
Sorry I was thinking of the Pimoroni Pico LiPo 2 XL W which makes me think how am I going to solder / connect my devices.
This is absolute overkill. For the sensor, you need two pins, not 40.
Why not just use a Pico-W (or Pico2-W) together with a LiPo-Amigo-Pro? The Pico-W still has 26 pins, so that is plenty even if you want to attach more peripherals.
Pico W + LiPo-Amigo-Pro = is 15 GBP
Vs Pimoroni Pico LiPo 2 XL W at 21GBP. Save myself 5GBP I suppose and get headers.
It is not only about the money. The Amigo Pro is much more flexible. You can attach wires and thus route all functions to a panel when the system is inside a box.
