Windmills = jobs lost

[moribundman]

Originally Posted By: labman
How about an alternator out of a junkyard with blades added to it? How big of blades would you need to generate 50 amps?


I say it depends on how fast the wind blows in the, uhm, lemme see if I get this right, "Nothern USA?"

 

[unDummy]

Originally Posted By: labman
How about an alternator out of a junkyard with blades added to it? How big of blades would you need to generate 50 amps?

The blade will be very big and need to be geared/pulley'd to spin that alternator fast enough. Not feasible. 10amps if you're lucky!

http://otherpower.com/otherpower_wind_alternators.html#car
http://www.watchtv.net/~rburmeister/Randys WindGenny.html

 

[labman]

Interesting Links, thanks.

 

[Gary Allan]

Man ..just like everything else ..that ROI kills these things on a residential level. You've got to be one resourceful DIY'r ..or you just ain't gonna be generating.

I'm still better off with co-gen with some 2 cylinder idling diesel for a big rig (what they use when they park).

 

[moribundman]

labman, look at your location.

 

[Win]

With all the antennae on my house, a windmill would not look very much out of place.

I just don't want a kludgy looking one, and I only have so much DIY time available. Scratch building a windmill alternator would cut too far into it, although I think it's very doable.

I wasn't really thinking of ROI, more of a play toy / learning experience, although it would be nice to spin the meter backwards.

 

[Shannow]

Win, they are doing them a lot down here with LG washing machine motors.

They can look pretty respectable, and give decent power.

 

[labman]

With the clean power bill coming up, the ROI could go up. Can I get credits for my windmill?

One thing I have in mind is taking my computer off line. Maybe if I had bought a better UPS, it would cope better with the way electricity flickers on and off before going off. It has a 650 VA inverter. A windmill or maybe a solar panel, a big battery, and the UPS should be more reliable than the power company. I already have a pair of #10 wires running from the UPS to a group 27 marine battery in the garage.

 

[moribundman]

It's bothering me so much, but labman won't fix it. Somebody, please tell him. He won't listen to me!

 

[Win]

Our electric service at our primary home is abysmal; brownouts, overvoltages, and drop outs are common. I've been meaning to look at it on a scope - I bet the waveform is also horrible.

Anything of value electronic wise, I run on a voltage regulated UPS, and my older gear made for lower line voltages, I keep on Variacs.

Our weekend house is on a coop, and I haven't spent enough time there to gauge the quality of its power service.

When I built my ham shack, I put a separate wiring system in the walls for DC, so I already have some infrastructure in place for off grid power to it.

 

[Win]

Originally Posted By: Shannow
Win, they are doing them a lot down here with LG washing machine motors.

They can look pretty respectable, and give decent power.


Yeah, but what looks respectable to us, and what looks respectable to our wives, can be pretty different!

 

[labman]

Maybe looks is the key. I was out and went by a home with a quaint looking wooden windmill in the yard. So hide your LG motor inside a wooden windmill.

 

[moribundman]

labman, look at your location.

 

[Gary Allan]

Hmmm..seeking independent off grid power source .......global communications ...

Have you found a good source for primers?


j/k - really j/k

 

[unDummy]

http://www.homepower.com

The above is a good read. You can buy the cd/dvd's back to the 1st issue. Current issue #131 is the 2009 wind buying guide. Lots of do-it-yourself projects over the years.

 

[Win]

Originally Posted By: Gary Allan
Hmmm..seeking independent off grid power source .......global communications ...

Have you found a good source for primers?


j/k - really j/k



Just following fearless leaders edict - you know, nukes for those peace loving Persians, windmills for us

...

 

[gonzo]

are the West Virginia coal miners gonna loose their jobs?That's all that state needs is more poverty.Windmills aren't very manly either...(supposed to be funny)

 

[Tempest]

Quote:
are the West Virginia coal miners gonna loose their jobs?

Our government wants to bankrupt the coal industry so it is very possible.

 

[Kruse]

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/07/08/pickens.wind.farm/index.html


What happened to all the profit?

 

[jsharp]

Originally Posted By: Kruse
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/07/08/pickens.wind.farm/index.html


What happened to all the profit?


I was just going to post this -

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Pickens-ca...n&asset=&ccode=

As a number of us said last year and were ridiculed, it was never about long term profit for Pickens or about energy independence. It was just another "investment" pump and dump scheme.

Put in a few $B, reel in the fish and suck in the government cash, then get out with a healthy profit before reality sets in.