Dioder Monitor Relief Lights

Materials: Dioder, zip ties

Description: I'm a graphic designer, and I spend way too much time looking at the screen. In an attempt to reduce eye fatigue, I've mounted a set of Dioder lights on the back of my monitor. I use an Ergotron arm to hold my monitor aloft, but this hack will work with any monitor (or even your television set).

All I did was mount the Dioder lights on the back of the monitor, and Velcro the controls to the back, so when I want them, I can reach behind the screen an access them. I used zip ties to connect the wiring to the monitor arm, leaving a little excess wire to accommodate the various arm positions. It took no time at all to do, and significantly reduces eye strain when working.

Plus, it looks cool when you let it cycle through the colors, which is reason enough to do it...

~ Skipernicus Gripweed

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Indirect Lighting for MANDAL headboard using LEGO

Materials: MANDAL, DIODER, LEGO bricks

Description: I used the MANDAL headboard to add some shelves to my desk, where I can display my LEGO models. They needed some highlighting so I started adding DIODER led strips on the top and bottom of the shelves.

But DIODER doesn't look too good , so I wanted to hide it, creating some indirect lighting. I built frames using LEGO that you can slide onto the shelf. These frames hide the DIODER. By adjusting the distance between DIODER and the frame, you can control the brightness and the reach of the light beam.

You can use LEGO in many different ways to hide lights on any kind of shelf. Have fun creating your own version of this hack!

Check out the project-page on Snapguide for detailed instructions!

Check out How to Add Indirect Lighting to Any Shelf Using LEGO+LED by Martin Storbeck on Snapguide.

Or go directly to the snapguide via this link.

~ Martin Storbeck, Stuttgart, Germany

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LEGO Dioder Lamp

Materials: Dioder LED light

Description: This is a hanging lamp containing the Dioder light system inside it. My aim was to make a hanging lamp out of LEGO pieces that I can control just like a normal lamp. As I am not an electrician, I did not wanted to cut off the cables of the lamp but to do it the most easiest way possible.

What I used:
Approx. 500 LEGO bricks
An orange textile power chord
A power plug

So my solution was developed like this:

STEP 1 - The Lamp itself
As we are talking about LEGO, you can design your lamp just the way you would like to. I wanted a lamp that fits on my eating table, so mine is of the size of 87x8x13.5cm

The only thing you should be aware of: more LEGO bricks mean more weight. Consider this as the hanging hook or whatever system you will use can handle this weight.
Enough talk: construct your lamp. If you are about to use the Dioder system that I used, please plan enough space for the long power cable and the plug. In my solution, I made a basement exactly at the middle of the lamp inside it, so that I could simple put the cable and plug on there.

STEP 2 - The ceiling power cable
TURN YOUR POWER OFF! And check twice that it really is turned off! Attach the textile chord to the power cables from the ceiling. Insert a hook in the ceiling right where you want your lamp to hang above and pull the textile cable through this hook. For safety reasons i make a knot here, just in case that the lamp might fall of for whatever reason.

Now attach the plug to the chord and insert the Dioder in it to see if it works. Hopefully it won't work, because you have not turned on your power on again! So turn your power on and if you attached it correctly then there should be light.
TURN IT OFF AGAIN - just for safety reasons.

STEP 3 - The plug in the lamp
Now put the Dioder system inside the lamp on the bricks-base you build. In my solution I built some kind of "dome" around the plug so that even these bricks can work as hanging system that does make the plug hang inside the lamp. Depending on your design you certainly will find some way to attach the plug or the chord to the bricks.

At the moment I do not own black LEGO plates, but started collecting them so that I can close the upper part of the lamp with them.

See more of the LEGO Dioder lamp.

~ Carlos Pinto, Hamburg, Germany

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Our Princess is in another castle!

Materials: Three Lack shelving units, 5" long 5/16" bolts x8.

Description: Desiring shelves somewhere around the bed, and needing a night stand with some late night reading illumination, I decided to do it all at once.

Took three separate Lack shelf units, and framed the bed, which ended up looking like a castle. Considering some Mario themed decorating to come, the name was obvious.

One unit each side, shelves facing inward towards the bed (as pictured), and one laid horizontal across the top, facing "up". The "top" and "bottom" shelves of each unit were left off.

The extra shelves were used in various locations. One on each side were used to shim the width of the assembly to fit the width of the bed, and give some symmetry to the way the top unit was laid into the (now top) shelf of the side units. These shimmed pieces were bolted to the side units via 5" 5/16" bolts with large fender washers via holes drilled all the way through each. Likewise the back/bottom of the top unit was bolted to the top shelf of the side units using the same bolts.

The four other extra shelves were attached together in pairs on the back unfinished side via the supplied wall brackets and screws. Used as "feet" for the unit to get the height needed to clear an electrical outlet on one side of the bed. Also to help keep the height while the whole unit was mounted to the wall also using the supplied brackets similarly as described in the instructions. The feet are then basically non functional but their placement also adds to the look and symmetry to the unit (not pictured anyways).

The piece was finished off with a color DIODER strip to provide mood lighting, on the bottom of the top (horizontal) unit.

~ Mo Chunk

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