The ambitious project, shared in a video on October 31, demonstrates a working alternative to traditional home energy systems and puts a spotlight on the growing problem of e-waste. According to TecheBlog, Doel’s setup is capable of powering his microwave, kettle, oscilloscope, extractor fan, and editing system, all from a wall-mounted pack of what many would consider trash.
The device’s construction comes at a time when more than one million disposable vapes are thrown away every day in the UK alone. Each of these contains a rechargeable lithium-ion battery similar to those found in phones and laptops. Yet, despite their reusability, they often end up polluting landfills. Chris Doel saw an opportunity to challenge this wasteful pattern and spark a broader discussion on sustainable reuse.
His previous builds include a fast-charging power bank and an e-bike battery made from similar discarded vape cells. But this project pushes his mission to a new level: using street litter to fuel an entire living space.
From Vape Shop Returns to Battery Modules
To begin, Doel collected around 500 empty disposable vapes from local shops, which were happy to hand them over since they typically pay out of pocket for their safe disposal. From there, the real work began: stripping down each unit, extracting the batteries, and testing them one by one.
Many cells were unusable, discharged too far below the safe limit of 3 volts, but the viable ones were labeled by hand, measured, and grouped by capacity. According to TechEBlog, he only used batteries with at least 5 watt-hours of charge remaining, rejecting the smaller 1.8 Wh cells.
The surviving batteries were then bundled into groups of nine using custom 3D-printed holders. These formed individual modules that mimicked the layout of electric vehicle battery packs. Fifty-six such modules were linked together and mounted onto a wall using aluminum rails. Each connection was soldered using copper tape and protected by a fuse, while a repurposed battery management system from a mobility scooter handled the monitoring.
Powering Off-Grid Systems With Vape Waste
With the wall assembled and wired, Doel installed a 3 kW inverter to convert the 50 volts of DC power into 230 volts AC, suitable for household appliances. After disconnecting the workshop from the main grid, he flipped the switch, and everything remained on: lights, tools, even the microwave, which beeped back to life.
According to a walkthrough from Chris Doel’s video, the system produces enough power to run his home for just over eight hours or his workshop for up to three days, depending on the devices in use. The final unit weighs approximately 38 kilograms and would have cost about £2,500 to build using new lithium cells. In his case, it only took time, some tools, and a lot of solder.
Doel tested the setup further by switching off the main power to his house entirely, rerouting electricity from the vape wall via the inverter. The result? His microwave operated, the lights turned on, and he was even able to boil a kettle in under 100 seconds, all using what once fueled blue raspberry-flavored vapor.
The Environmental Cost of Convenience
Doel’s intention goes beyond DIY electronics. Through his YouTube work, he wants to expose the staggering environmental cost of disposable vapes. “These ridiculous disposable vapes have actually got fully rechargeable lithium-ion batteries inside of them,” he explains in his video. He points out that each cell is still capable of holding a charge but is discarded after only a few uses.
According to Doel, the real issue lies in the design of these devices: the built-in circuit boards continue drawing small amounts of energy even after the vape is no longer functional, eventually rendering the battery unusable. That’s part of why nearly half of the cells he tested were already too far gone.
Though recent regulations in the UK have begun banning single-use vape devices, Doel remains skeptical about their long-term effectiveness, noting that complete kits are often still cheaper than replacement pods. He plans to expand his setup by incorporating solar panels for daytime charging, aiming to take his home completely off-grid.
For now, the vape wall stands as a functional, slightly chaotic monument to persistence, experimentation, and the idea that today’s trash might still have a spark of usefulness left in it.