----- Original Message -----
From: "Kyle Mcallister" <[email protected]>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, January 18, 2009 11:57 AM
Subject: [Vo]:Homegrown wind generators
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This is an interesting collection of hobby projects. The wind turbine is
sort of "cargo cult" technology. Most of the elements are there and it will
generate electricity, but not very well. The commercial wind tlurbines now
sprouting up everywhere took decades of work and are deceptively simple. The
blades have the sopisticated shape of aircraft wings or propellers,
optimized for the task. A gear train spins the generator shaft much faster
than the blade hub turns. sophisticated electronics transforms the variable
output of the generator into standardized power for the grid. The Dutch
windmill ground grain -- essentiallyh an energy storage system. The farmer's
windmill pumped water, another stgorage syhstem. The illustrated unit
couldcharge batteries, still another storage system with a standardized
output.
There is no inhrent reason why the know-how and technology of the modern
wind turbines cannot be scaled down for individual households or an isolated
community. Jed sujggests that some entrepreneurs have done so.
Mike Carrell
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. . .
Just to prove I am something more than Vortex-L's
youngest curmudgeon, here's a bone to gnaw on:
http://www.free-energy-info.com/Chapt14.html
Go down the page about 25% or so, and look at this
nice, Woodwright's Shop approved little windmill
generator. Granted, most of the other stuff on the
site is pretty kooky, but this is a workable thing.
Now, considering that:
1. I live in Buffalo, home of lake effect (big winds
in winter)
2. The wind causes us to need more supplemental heat.
3. Heat is the easiest thing to make with electricity.
4. My home faces a quarter-mile of empty field, where
the wind comes from.
I can build a few of these, scaled up of course for
more power, and let the wind do the rest. Turn it into
raw heat via resistive elements, and that will help.
Building them might be fun too...I can entice the
neighborhood kids into dragging bar magnets around to
collect magnetite dust, in exchange for a few
Snicker's bars. (see note at end)
I suppose however that some envirowhacko is going to
say that these will chop up birds. I like birds, and
would not want to see that happen, so I suppose
putting chicken wire shields around them might help a
bit, plus make them look scarier to the neighbors. But
then a grasshopper might jump through and get pureed,
so...well, as the grasshopper's cousin Jiminy Cricket
said in the original Pinocchio, "you can't please
everybody."
Suggestions on how to make this better? Such as,
efficiency (I want it to be something cheap, however,
than anyone can make), and such? The idea would be to
help locals put these up and build them for very
little cash outlay, and possibly get people together
in the local area to make these for fixed-income
people who are old or disabled and cannot. No, this
idea did not come from some Liberal-Christ-Superstar,
it came from my own cerebral cortex, and predates the
feelgood love-orgy of the day. There must be others
who want to do the same thing?
NOTE from above: To hell with you if you think by
offering the kids candy bars in exchange for
collecting 'da stuff' to make the stators is
encouraging the 'obesity epidemic.' Number one,
they'll be burning the calories running around
dragging the magnets, and number two, I consider it my
divine duty (ha!) to counter the plague of anorexia
and fear that is ruining the happiness of women
everywhere. If you think this media-drivel doesn't
really weigh (pun not intended) on women, you either
don't get out much, or you're gay, or just stupid. If
you don't get out much, come on and help do some REAL
change, not the garbage of the gov'ment, and if you're
gay, hey, come on and help out too, I welcome you.
Stupid people, however, need not apply.
--Kyle
P.S.: IQ of 200 does not mean a person is not stupid.
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