/diy/ - Do It Yourself

Junkyard alternator and a v-belt.

Bam, 12v @ 60a charger.

>bonus round
Wood gasifier fueled.

Battery Life in Hours = Watt Hours / ( Voltage x Current in Ampere)

If I have the following,

Battery: 12 volt, 105aH, 1260wH Deep Cycle Marine Battery Lead Acid
Usage: 4amps

The above should mean the battery will last 26.25 hours. before being dead. However, you don't want to run a battery dead, right? That's usually bad. so, you can only run them down to x%. So, how does that translate to usable time for the above battery before it needs to be charged? Is it just 26.25 - x% or something?

>- Basic machinery and car maintenance
Like what?

Motors consume a lot of electricity.

In some areas of the country, you have a higher chance of having internet access over electricity. If not 4G data access via phone, rural WIFI services are quite plentiful. The data transfer rate is about on par with DSL during good weather. You'll see reduced service in rainstorms, fog, and snow.

>>229950
Useful in a pinch, but not really suitable for extended living. It's tough to do required work and pedal a bike at the same time.

>>211890
Solar panels are quite fragile and often rated for a 20 year lifespan, with the largest amount of degradation in the first 5 years.

They are also not in the realm of an amateur to repair or maintain.

Small scale wind is where it's at. It's not technologically complex. Some magnets, blades, and bearings. Bigger designs have problems with lubrication. They also have oil cooled bearings. Anything under about 10-15 kw though likely has regular old bearings with grease. This is the only wear part on wind turbines.

If you run into rough weather, you can easily remake blades...they are often the first to fail in a catastrophic occurrence. With replacement, your wind turbine is up and running again.

Deep cycle batteries are BY FAR the most expensive component of a system of power generation. This is one of the perks with hydroelectric...you only need a few batteries to act as a buffer, other than that, the system is "on" constantly, though the amount of power generated will change with weather / time of year.

Again, like wind, hydroelectric generators are easy to maintain. Replacement parts usually include the wheel itself, water nozzles, and bearings.

Communications.
Electrical & Mechanical engineering/repair.

Plus, I'm a prepper.

>>71987
Now, the main problem being is that both of these power sources are intermittent power sources. There will be days without wind. There will be days without sunlight. There is only about 3-6 hrs a day where solar panels produce peak output.

Hydroelectric produces a constant output, no matter what time of day or time of year it is.

A wood gasifier powered generator also solves the problem of providing a constant power source. Wood is plentiful in Virginia. The main problem is reducing maintenance, as the engine itself is a fairly complex mechanical object. Price per kwh though for small scale, a wood gasifier powered generator cannot be matched. For under $2000 and some craigslisting, you can have 15 kW. Don't need that much? That's fine, less load for the engine. Better fuel economy.

I have researched off-grid power sources since 2007. I have experimented with them. I know what works and what doesn't.