lighting/power idea brainstorm

[helomech]

Sniper-T,


Helomech,
I had thought about that but I was concerned about the alternator/power converter wearing out and about the cold temperature causing constant ice buildup and equipment damage.

The alternator in my truck is going on 25 years old. I don't think that would be too much of a concern, and if it is buy a spare. Between the two they should outlast you. Besides you can make an alternator, just buy some magnets and look the plans up online. Also the water wheel can be used for much more than powering an alternator. You can run almost anything off it. You can run a compressor, mill, heck anything that spins.

[robsdak]

robsdak,
No offense taken in the slightest. I am mostly looking at a general loss of power and consumables for whatever reason. Exponential rise in fossil fuel cost, war/invasion, emp, or any of the other million things that could go wrong and make our fragile little world fall apart.

I think I will look into the fat rendering a bit more, and I also was looking into the Russian bees. I know they dont produce as much honey but apparently they are very cold hardy and produce lots of wax. More research is needed on that though.

Also, love the Firefly quote. "Everybody wants to be a gorram hero, don't they?"

that's where i was heading earlier. just pick 1 event and plan accordingly. reason being, whatever happens the preps are going to over lap. don't just limit yourself. unless your wealthy or have access to a printing press, prepping is a slow and steady race not a sprint. we 'all' (meaning us here) have different ideas of of how too approach prepping, but it's all works out in the end. ok, blanket statement. for instance, take me. i live in the south, winters are fair to mild, summer sucks. hotter than 2 hells at times. my focus is with security, food/water and shelter. if it's a non-event, say power outage for extended period, i am good. i have water and fuel stored, garden,can said garden and in a fairly safe area. not saying i couldn't do more, i do everyday an little at a time.

i don't know what area your in, but the Italians do well everywhere. i think. that's what i have and the are a very docile bee and produce a fair amount of honey. the Russians can be mean and protective. i work mine without protection alot of the time. just a smoker and a hive tool. ***not that i condone this activity for others, just what i do and comfortable with*** i do wear a bee jacket/protection when working with hives other than mine.

yeah, i miss that show. yes,yes they do.

The alternator in my truck is going on 25 years old. I don't think that would be too much of a concern, and if it is buy a spare. Between the two they should outlast you. Besides you can make an alternator, just buy some magnets and look the plans up online. Also the water wheel can be used for much more than powering an alternator. You can run almost anything off it. You can run a compressor, mill, heck anything that spins.

helomech, this is where i was going with that. water power is easy to do and maintain. can be used for AC/DC just depending on the system built. spare parts are as close as the next abandoned truck, bicycle,etc.

[jamesneuen]

Could I run a water based system without the use of batteries? I'm not sure how a generator does it. Spin at a high enough speed to generate the needed power and disengage it when I don't need it but what happens when there is too much power supplied? (I am not electrically inclined in any way whatsoever)

[helomech]

Yes you can. The generator unit will spin up, but will not have much resistance till a load is applied. That is why a generator bogs down when you put a big load on it. So it can spin with no issues if there is no load. It will still be producing voltage, but not much amperage.

[jamesneuen]

Sounds like I need to snag an alternator or 2 from a scrap yard, get a cheap inverter and just play with it to see what I can do.

[helomech]

There are lots of plans on line, you can look up wind generators, they are the same principle. What works with a wind generator will work with a water wheel. Alternator will get you 12 or 24 volts DC depending on the model. A generator head will get you 125/240 volt AC, but will be more sensitive to RPM. There are ways to make a water wheel that spins at the proper RPM.

[robsdak]

Could I run a water based system without the use of batteries? I'm not sure how a generator does it. Spin at a high enough speed to generate the needed power and disengage it when I don't need it but what happens when there is too much power supplied? (I am not electrically inclined in any way whatsoever)

just a question. why no battery storage? easier than trying to do an on demand system. alternator hooked to a water wheel via say 10 speed bicycle wheel, then easy enough to control speed.

Sounds like I need to snag an alternator or 2 from a scrap yard, get a cheap inverter and just play with it to see what I can do.

sounds like a plan. like helo said, youtube, google it. plans are out there, you just need too look.

[helomech]

alternator hooked to a water wheel via say 10 speed bicycle wheel, then easy enough to control speed.

Easier way is with a water chute from a constant source pond. You can divert enough water so that the wheel spins at the proper speed. I would go with batteries if it was my system, much less loading and unloading of the power.

[jamesneuen]

Just looking at the longevity of the batteries without dropping a ton of money into the industrial style ones. I will be using batteries most likely but don't want to rely on them as a long term solution.

I like the idea of the water wheel coming from a dedicated source. Especially since a moving source of water is one of the requirements I have for the property I buy.

[helomech]

Batteries will last a very long time, IF you don't run them down. If they are always kept fully charged, and only act as a buffer than they should last a very long time. And when they do fail, then your system would run just like you wanted in the first place. It will just be harder to get the voltage to stay in the correct range if doing A/C voltage. D/C is not critical, because the alternator always puts out the same voltage (withing its operating range) just the amps vary.