What have done towards your prep?

[Pete Grey]

(12 March 2018, 16:32)Mortblanc Wrote: If one is dealing with a solid fuel stove that is kept burning 24/7 is the flask thing not a bit redundant?

You have the kettle on the stove already and the thing is burning 24/7 so you are not "wasting" anything.

Hi MB the kettle and flask are for emergencies when there is a power outage, we use the flask as once the water has boiled we don’t want to waste it, but we do keep the coffee pot on the stove most winter evenings.

[Lightspeed]

(12 March 2018, 16:32)Mortblanc Wrote: If one is dealing with a solid fuel stove that is kept burning 24/7 is the flask thing not a bit redundant?

You have the kettle on the stove already and the thing is burning 24/7 so you are not "wasting" anything.

Not really. The idea is to have a largish volume of hot water on tap, rather than having to specifically heat water for a specific need.

The issue with this concept is scale the hot water tank such that its gets hot enough but without reaching boiling point.

[Straight Shooter]

Nice sunny day here today, so i have a wander down the bottom shed and polytunnel on the scrounge for some treated timber boards i stashed ....found it soon enough......then i came across the alternator ...so i picked that up and in the barrow it went along with the boards,,,,as i walk up the path i notice a old bicycle growing in the hedge (sil brought it down last year in the move ) hello i thought that's handy ......in my head ...i am making a generator ....alternator /bike bike / alternator ....weld some bits together ....not a huge project....i stop and gaze at the volume of water from the brook i am rerouting , there is a good head of water and enough volume to spin a pellton wheel to power up that alternator this source is Always running but more volume in winter and spring ....i have talked and threatened to set this up a few times ....circumstances dictate ....now is the time to bring things together....the plan will incorporate the two methods via a common frame set up of the alternator that fits both modes ....will let you know how i get on ......planted more onion sets i had left over (found them in the shed ) a nice row of thirty......in the workshop i knock up two raised bed extension boxes for the potatoes from the scrounged timber ....and set them ready, i sow some cabbage,leeks and spring onions......the weather guy says its going cold again and high winds .....fleeces at the ready......broad beans will be sown tomorrow ( in trays ) along with some early potatoes ........loads of straw to mulch up .......top polytunnel will be move (again) within two weeks .

[Mortblanc]

If that is an old style generator it might make some power but if it is a modern alternator it will require a real high RPM to kick the regulator into gear and pump juice.

Only way I was ever able to get one to generate power was hooking them to a gas powered lawn mower using wooden and metal wheels and V-belts and running it at about 500 RPM.

Pumped it into a battery and then an inverter.

I did not like that system much. It was much easier to park by the lamp post that had a plug at the base, plug in the charger, and steal power from work.

[Straight Shooter]

This alternator is off a modern car MB ....given me by my bil a bit back , so it should work ....if the volume and head is enough, which looks good ....but before i get wrapped up in it .....i will test first (you could well be right) the idea is not to waste energy through a belt....but a direct drive off the pellton wheel shaft via a clutch type setup.....i will concentrate the flow via a slue gate with a take off relief ....not rocket science i know ......at the same time i will form a reserve water tank....very windy here today and temp dropping....not done much today.....she's on my case ! ........she discovered (Harry) the escape hatch.....window in workshop.....she has now bolted it shut with 1" SS bolts ....and tied my boot laces together....bastard !

[Lightspeed]

SS re alternator generating paddle wheel: MB's right. Alternators have to spin a good rate to output good current, and they are designed to spin at very high rates.

If my back of envelope math is correct: ....If 26" wheel AND TYRE ( its the tyre that makes the diameter 26") driving a 1.5 diameter alternator pulley from the outer diameter of the tyre, then the wheel would have to rotate at 120 RPM to spin the alternator at the equivalent rate to its speed when driven by a car engine running at 1000rpm.

120 rpm under load seems to be a big ask from the system you describe.

[Straight Shooter]

Back to the drawing board then LS....i will not waste any time on it ....but i will have another well out of the rerouting.....happy days !.........many thanks MB and LS .

[Pete Grey]

I’m thinking of putting a snorkel and flippers in my GHB.

[Mortblanc]

(14 March 2018, 23:57)Straight Shooter Wrote: Back to the drawing board then LS....i will not waste any time on it ....but i will have another well out of the rerouting.....happy days !.........many thanks MB and LS .

There is hope for your set up. I have seen it work, but one has to know the rate of spin and use the pulleys and belts to best advantage. Most alternators are set up to charge with the engine at idle, which is only 650-750 rpm on most vehicles.

Simply measure the diameter of the main pulley wheel on the crankshaft and the diameter of the pulley wheel on the alternator. It is simple to work the math to equal those ratios using the water flow or wind velocity you have on hand to force the alternator wheel to turn at a rate equal to engine idle speed.

My little lawn mower engine was turning about 500 rpm and using an 18" wheel did the trick for me. A small fast moving stream might require a one or two meter waterwheel.

See why people decide to go solar?

[Lightspeed]

(16 March 2018, 19:15)Mortblanc Wrote:

(14 March 2018, 23:57)Straight Shooter Wrote: Back to the drawing board then LS....i will not waste any time on it ....but i will have another well out of the rerouting.....happy days !.........many thanks MB and LS .

There is hope for your set up. I have seen it work, but one has to know the rate of spin and use the pulleys and belts to best advantage. Most alternators are set up to charge with the engine at idle, which is only 650-750 rpm on most vehicles.

Simply measure the diameter of the main pulley wheel on the crankshaft and the diameter of the pulley wheel on the alternator. It is simple to work the math to equal those ratios using the water flow or wind velocity you have on hand to force the alternator wheel to turn at a rate equal to engine idle speed.

My little lawn mower engine was turning about 500 rpm and using an 18" wheel did the trick for me. A small fast moving stream might require a one or two meter waterwheel.

See why people decide to go solar?

That was exactly the math I did MB.

The alternative is to purchase an old 12v dynamo and regulator. But SS was looking for a free of charge way to re-purpose the old alternator that he had to hand.

Cost of dynamo and regulator is around £100 over here, For that money he could purchase a complete cycle wheel with weatherproofed dynohub. That would be good to go immediately he found a way to drive it from the stream. Output is a flea-power 6v x 3w so 6v batteries to capture the charge would also be needed. This all adds up to a fairly expensive setup...