You're probably right. This is really my first complete system and it's mostly designed to be cheap.
I looked into AGM and solar designed batteries but balked at the cost. No one sells them locally that I could find and shipping was a lot of $$. I've noticed Costco is now selling some new batteries. So far the ones I'm using are ok, but then I've been taking good care of them. After years in the car and towing business I understand lead acid batteries so part of it was comfort level. Zeke Yewdall wrote: >>I have this hooked to a bank of deep cycle marine >>batteries, Do not use car batteries. Waste of money. >> >> > >Actually, in my experience, marine deep cycle batteries are a waste of >money too. They are not true deep cycle batteries like ones designed >for PV systems. We used a bank of four of these for years, and every >year and a half, we'd be buying another one or two for $120 each from >Sears. Part of the problem was that we would add two new batteries >each time, and keep the best two of the previous batch. This is not a >good idea, as the worst ones will pull the others down to their level. > But I would still be suprised to get more than 4 or 5 years out of >them. The ones designed for solar use will last 5 years easily, or >perhaps 10 with care. And they don't cost that much more than marine >deep cycle ones. About $90 for a 200AH 6 volt T-105 battery, or $230 >for a 400AH more durable L-16HC one. If you can get the AGM >batteries, they are the best, but do cost a bit more. I got two of >them which were on their way to recycling from a decomissioned PV >system (probably 5 years old when I got them), hooked them up to my PV >system, and haven't looked at them for the past two years. Still have >lights and sound every night, and fridge in the summer. Also, in >battery bank design, it's best to have everything in series. If you >have too many parallel strings, the current doesn't divide perfectly >equally, and some batteries can fail before others. Obviously, you >can't always avoid parallel strings, but this one a good reason to go >to larger cells for the big banks, because it means fewer strings. >You can actually get single cells with 2000 AH rating, but you'll need >a forklift to move them too. Also, fewer, larger, cells are faster to >service -- fewer caps to open and look in and add water too. > >Zeke > >On 11/30/05, Mike Weaver <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > >>4. I've already done most of this: >> >>I bought an aircooled small diesel $300.00 and use it to spin a GM small >>frame alternator. I put a larger sheve on the diesel to get the right >>speed. >>It puts out 1450 KW. I have this hooked to a bank of deep cycle marine >>batteries, Do not use car batteries. Waste of money. >>I have an 1800 watt inverter hooked to this. Total cost under 1,000.00. >>It runs on homebrew biodiesel. >> >>This was an el cheapo project - I use it to power my biodiesel >>processer/shed, and as back up power. >> >>If I were doing it over again/or was planning it to power a house: >>I would get a bigger small diesel (9-12 HP) and either buy a real genset >>or get a rebuild HO alternator. Many cars have 24 volt systems >>nowadays. You can also re-wind GM alternators for power output. I >>would get a water-cooled diesel engine and use the heat the keep the >>power shed/house warm. I would wire a system that would start the motor >>when the power in the battery array dropped to a certain level. The >>farther down you drain the batteries, the faster they wear out. >>I would have bought more batteries. I have 4. I would like 8-10. >>57.00 ea at Costco. >>I would add at least one PV array. >> >>Isulate/soundproof the power shed. It's loud. >> >>Go to 24 v if you can, or even 48 v. >> >>Spend the money to get a pure sine wave converter. >> >>On your prevous questions, I've installed a second alternator - - I used >>a GM and an old Chrysler mechanical regulator. I used to be in the >>towing business and used the rig for quick starts. This was 20 years >>ago, tho'. Now I would just buy a more powerful alternator - with the >>advent of giant sound systems there are a lot of places rebuilding them >>for more power. >> >>Not knowing what kind of car you have, it's hard to answer. If you >>happen to have a 1 ton truck with a diesel motor and a PTO (power take >>off) you're home free. If not, Evergreen is right, it's way too much >>hassle. Look at point 4. >> >>Email me if you want the specifics of my system. >> >>-Mike >> >>Evergreen Solutions wrote: >> >> >> >>>Michael, >>> >>>Unless my gmail is lying, and it might be, I didn't see other >>>repsonses to this email. I'd just like to ask a couple questions (and >>>say thanks for the chest freezer/fridge, that thing is awesome!) >>> >>>1. Having recently replaced several alternators, I'm wondering how you >>>would plan to add *additional* alternators to your car, since they're >>>spun by a belt generally connected to the waterpump and the camshaft >>>assembly? >>> >>>2. Adding to the previous question...you're talking about adding >>>additional drag to the motor, which will degrade your performance/fuel >>>economy, much like an air conditioner. >>> >>>3. Were I you I might consider swapping for a heavy duty alternator + >>>sound system capacitor + 6-8 gauge wire routed to your trunk to power >>>your "Grid". >>> >>>4. Even better than that, build/buy a small bd generator to power >>>them/whatever else you have around. >>> >>>5. Charging a DEAD battery is tough, since they're not designed to go >>>completely DEAD and will need replaced quickly if they do completely >>>die. W/ a rapid charger you're looking at about 2-4 hours for a >>>complete charge, 4-8-12 w/ a traditional charger, and that's one >>>plugged into 110v, not from a car. >>> >>>6. Another bad thing about car batteries is LEAD and ACID, two things >>>you don't want to be introducing to the environment if you don't have to. >>> >>>7. In high school I had visions of a device for recharging batteries >>>that went something like this: captures rain in a funnelled system >>>(big opening = more rain), rain travels downhill turning a series of >>>wheels/cogs that via a system of gears works down to a very tight >>>ratio (one spin of the first wheel = ~10 of the smalll wheel) which >>>spin alternators to generate a charge to the batteries. The higher the >>>system starts aerially, the more primary wheels, the more kinetic >>>energy. Never built it, but...seemed reasonable. Then you could use >>>your captured rainwater for your crops/drinking/whatever. >>> >>>Keep us informed :) >>> >>>On 11/19/05, *Michael Nehring* <[EMAIL PROTECTED] >>><mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>> wrote: >>> >>> Hi all, >>> In about 8 months or so, I and my (future) wife will buy our first >>> house. One of my goals is to have a relatively high level of energy >>> self-sufficiency (without going bankrupt since we currently don't >>> have a >>> ton of cash lying around). >>> >>> First question: does anyone know of any charts/statistics of household >>> energy consumption. I'm not so much interested in kilowatthours >>> per day, >>> but rather how the usage is divided up. This will make it easier >>> to plan >>> what areas typically need to be improved. >>> >>> On another note, have any of you guys already looked at this: >>> http://mtbest.net/chest_fridge.html. It's a fridge that uses only .1 >>> kw-hours/day (that's around 37 per year, and at $.1/kWh, that's less >>> than $4 year if you're on the grid). The idea is surprisingly simple. >>> >>> Another question: does anyone know how many kilowatt hours are >>> stored in >>> a "normal" car battery (a battery for a standard sedan, I >>> suppose)? I've >>> been thinking about hooking an inverter up to a car battery (or >>> probably >>> an array) to power various devices in the house. However, I don't know >>> how much power is actually in a fully charged battery. >>> Here would be one idea to charge the batteries: I just install a few >>> extra alternators in my car, and have those charge the batteries >>> which >>> would be stored in the trunk. Assuming the car is running biodiesel, >>> then the electricity would be produced by biodiesel. Does the idea >>> sound >>> reasonable? Or does it have too many drawbacks and pitfalls? Are >>> there >>> other 12V batties that are better designed for household-type >>> uses? (12V >>> so that I can charge it with an alternator, since I have a few >>> alternators lying around, and can get them for near to free if I >>> go for >>> used). How long does it take to charge an empty car battery? If it >>> doesn't take long, maybe I could build a simple treadmill-like device >>> for the car, so the car spins a wheel, which in turn spins a dozen >>> or so >>> alternators to charge a dozen batteries at once. While it isn't >>> the most >>> efficient method, it would be cheap, since the motor would stay in the >>> car, and the car would serve other purposes (that is, getting places). >>> >>> I guess that's it for now. If any of you guys have any tips for >>> common >>> sources of waste in a house, I'd be happy to hear them (I'm already >>> planning a rainwater harvesting system and a greenhouse for winter >>> food >>> production). >>> >>> Thanks, >>> -Michael >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> Biofuel mailing list >>> Biofuel@sustainablelists.org <mailto:Biofuel@sustainablelists.org> >>> http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org >>> >>> <http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org> >>> >>> Biofuel at Journey to Forever: >>> http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html >>> >>> Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 >>> messages): >>> http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ >>> >>> >>>------------------------------------------------------------------------ >>> >>>_______________________________________________ >>>Biofuel mailing list >>>Biofuel@sustainablelists.org >>>http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org >>> >>>Biofuel at Journey to Forever: >>>http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html >>> >>>Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): >>>http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> >> >>_______________________________________________ >>Biofuel mailing list >>Biofuel@sustainablelists.org >>http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org >> >>Biofuel at Journey to Forever: >>http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html >> >>Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): >>http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ >> >> >> >> > >_______________________________________________ >Biofuel mailing list >Biofuel@sustainablelists.org >http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org > >Biofuel at Journey to Forever: >http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html > >Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): >http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/ > > _______________________________________________ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
