myrrph
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Post by myrrph on Dec 8, 2015 10:44:14 GMT 10
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shinester
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Post by shinester on Dec 8, 2015 14:25:57 GMT 10
Peddling produces 70W of power. Peddle for an hour you have 70Watts x hours = 70Wh . You can make your own by getting a circuit bike [$100 second hand], which is good because it has a flywheel and adding a electric bike motor [$80]. You'll need a battery, such as a 14Ah gel cell [$60] and a charge controller [$10]. So all up about $250. I see this as a good stealth power production at a cost of Kilojoules.
Having said that, a 40W panel [$60, family prepper in Vic has used ones for $20] will produce 100W of power/day on average in the middle of winter in Vic. It will produce 240Wh or so in summer. Add in the same battery and charge controller and the cost is $130. With at least as much power [more] without any peddling and about half the price. If you can stick a panel on your roof/backyard without it being stolen SHTF then this is the best option.
What can you do with 70W-100W/Hrs of electricity anyhow? A phone and hand held CB use about 10Wh/day in your normal use. Laptop about 40W/hr, basic LED lighting perhaps 3-5W/Hr. So, you'd have enough for lighting, charging a phone [or radio] and that's about it. Definitely won't be keeping a fridge cold.
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myrrph
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Post by myrrph on Dec 8, 2015 14:30:58 GMT 10
yes Shinester... its all about backups. Would rather have solar, wind, Steam? and if all else fails... bicycle.
redundancy always helps.
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shinester
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Post by shinester on Dec 8, 2015 14:53:45 GMT 10
Yeah totally bud. The more the merrier. Peddling as mentioned is potentially more stealth.
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Post by graynomad on Dec 8, 2015 21:29:37 GMT 10
This has been doing the rounds of late. If you look at the VA meters they both show 10, so let's give them the benefit of the doubt and say you could produce 100WH (10V x 10A x 1hr) if you are nice and fit. They claim "power your house for a day", well the only way that can make sense is if "powering your house" means running a LED light for a while later that night. As a last-resort backup to keep the radio running and a small light to cook by maybe, but that's about it. Another thing to think about with any method that requires human exercise is the time and calories you use, while you're peddling you aren't patrolling or working on other things and you are using energy so you need more food. All in all I say this is busted  |
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Post by Peter on Dec 8, 2015 22:17:58 GMT 10
Gray, that was my concern. I'd rather be using that energy growing food than expending it.
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myrrph
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Post by myrrph on Dec 9, 2015 0:10:46 GMT 10
Its the redundancy gentlemen ... when you suddenly are showed in, and your other preps fail you. The cycling is an option ... tho steam would work too ... if you know how to build a steam engine
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Post by graynomad on Dec 9, 2015 9:02:12 GMT 10
Yes as a backup it's a good idea. And for people living in apartments (like you I think Myrrph) who might need to keep a low profile (no solar panels hanging out the window etc) it may the best option. And let's face it, even just a single small light and a radio is a 1000% better than nothing.
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Post by graynomad on Dec 9, 2015 9:05:19 GMT 10
... if you know how to build a steam engine I plan to look into building a Stirling engine, it's kind of a steam engine but low pressure and low tech, to the point that I think it is viable to DIY. All it needs is a difference in temperature between one end of the cylinder and the other, and you can do that with a fire or a Fresnel lens. |
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myrrph
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Post by myrrph on Dec 9, 2015 10:17:17 GMT 10
yah i should look at something like that too haha
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shinester
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Post by shinester on Dec 9, 2015 11:09:10 GMT 10
If you're down in a bunker [does anyone actually have one on here??] then you'd either have a genset a huge amount of fuel or you're peddling [maybe you have some solar but it might draw attention] to keep the lights and the ducting fan to keep the air flowing. Personally I've got tons of redundancy and as you can see I love having plenty of options  ============== 220W + 900Ah batteries [needs much more solar] + 2400W Inverter 160W + 75Ah battery 40w + car battery [in car with BOB] 40W + 14Ah [UPS] 7W for phones/radios/AA batteries .. and I've got a gen [fuels too precious], as well as a electric bike motor and circuit bike [heavy flywheel] so I 'could' peddle if I wanted to to make power and more than enough juice stored in the batteries to weld it into place ============== Uninterrupted power supplies, aka UPS. These are back up power units for computers. What's cool about them is that they use deep drain batteries [usually 7 or 14amp], have a regulated 240V output from a few sockets [you might need a cheap adapter], provide a charge controller for your battery from the mains so the battery stays charged and they keep your computer going for a little whilst so you can save your work They are also 'cheap' second hand, for in effect quality in a simple package. To give you an idea, I picked up an ebay item for $20 which has an output of 880W [240V] and 2 good batteries [they're almost always charged so last quite a while, cheap to replace anyhow] and as mentioned a charger for the battery. If you hook up a 40W solar panel to a charge controller and then run that output to the battery, you'll have a whole system. Mine has a rear port for an expensive cable but automotive spade connectors connect up just fine. I'll probably get another one in the future, though I'm probably a little obsessed with POWEEER The main plans for power are lighting/radios/tools/laptop . Besides a few days for what's left in the fridge/freezer I have no plans for keeping them going. If things weren't out of control,
Electricity isn't necessary for life [and ought be way down the list], it's just 'easier' having equipment and tools that use it. |
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Post by graynomad on Dec 14, 2015 8:55:47 GMT 10
We have a UPS on each computer, saved our arse the other day when the RCD on the solar tripped.
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Post by graynomad on Dec 14, 2015 8:59:08 GMT 10
Correct, we're on solar and independent of external sources, but with my preps I do not assume we will have power because something might break. So I have also been accumulating tools etc that don't need it.
Hopefully we will have power and everything will be nice and comfy, but if not that at least we should be able to function.
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myrrph
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Post by myrrph on Dec 14, 2015 10:39:38 GMT 10
I live in an apartment with minimal access to a roof for 24/7. I do have 2 rivers beside me, so I won't have issue with water.
That said, I probably can't go with a genie ... so solar (for the part of the house that has ample sunlight like 8 hours in a day) and probably the bike is what I have.
Sometimes its not what is best or not best. Sometimes its what you have and the rest is improvisation.
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tyburn
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Post by tyburn on Dec 15, 2015 0:03:45 GMT 10
I live in an apartment with minimal access to a roof for 24/7. I do have 2 rivers beside me, so I won't have issue with water. That said, I probably can't go with a genie ... so solar (for the part of the house that has ample sunlight like 8 hours in a day) and probably the bike is what I have. Sometimes its not what is best or not best. Sometimes its what you have and the rest is improvisation. I also live in an apartment (also in Asia ha!), although I have roof access. I have thought of getting a solar panel, although since evaluating our solar water system over the past few months, have found that we had that many rainy/foggy/misty/smoggy/generally overcast days that we had to use the electric back-up most days anyway. I actually already have an exercise bike that has not been used for several years, but is still sitting in the corner in the forlorn hope that I will have time to use. With the aim of lessening my beer gut, but also having an additional charging system for our phones, laptops, torches, lantern etc, I am now looking at what I'll need to set up a small generating system on the bike. Once I get the info together, hopefully I can get some sort of system up and running (although knowing my bad luck and quality of Chinese products, I'll probably manage to give myself a shock instead). |
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Jul 7, 2024 11:02:41 GMT 10
