# wind turbine question?



## wtxprepper (Jul 30, 2013)

If I'm posting in the wrong place I apologize didn't know where else to post this, but on to my question. At work we have two small engine gas generators both rated at 3500w surge and 3000w continuous, well the motors have seen better days and the boss told me to take em if I wanted them. So my question is can I take the generator motors off and use them for an off the grid electric source using a wind turbine. Where I live we see 10-15 mph wind daily si that is not a problem. I have searched everywhere and even got on sites such as windy nation but couldn't find the answer I was looking for so hopefully yall can give me some insight. Thanks in advance


----------



## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

The mods will probably move it to the right place, energy and electric I would think.

Here's the thing can it be done theoretically, yes. Practically? No. If you really want the details we could go into it but basically they are just not what you want IMO on a wind turbine.

I would hate to see them scrapped if they are still good though, you could consider looking into replacing the motors but unfortunately it most likely isn't going to save much money.:dunno:


----------



## stanb999 (Nov 14, 2011)

wtxprepper said:


> If I'm posting in the wrong place I apologize didn't know where else to post this, but on to my question. At work we have two small engine gas generators both rated at 3500w surge and 3000w continuous, well the motors have seen better days and the boss told me to take em if I wanted them. So my question is can I take the generator motors off and use them for an off the grid electric source using a wind turbine. Where I live we see 10-15 mph wind daily si that is not a problem. I have searched everywhere and even got on sites such as windy nation but couldn't find the answer I was looking for so hopefully yall can give me some insight. Thanks in advance


Try "home power" magazine website. They have some good info.

Then get over to, Build it solar. "SolarGary" has a really good alternative power site. Best site IMHO if you want to do more than just tinker and dream.

Here is a link to his wind energy pages.
http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Wind/wind.htm


----------



## helicopter5472 (Feb 25, 2013)

Problem is those type generators take about 3000 plus rpms to produce their rated output. Wind generators have permanent magnets which take way less rpms 100 or so to make output. so although it is possible, you would have to have a good sized set of blades and a series of pulley's to increase the rpms to the 3000 plus it needs to run, then the next problem is if you low wind days you won't get the output, and on high wind days too much which would destroy the generator. That's why nearly all wind generators are DC (direct current) versus AC like a gas/diesel generators in which they can regulate the engine rpms.


----------



## zimmy (Aug 17, 2012)

*wind turbine*

The rpm of those alternators are just too high to bother with, your best bet is to buy or build a generator specifically for wind applications like a permanent magnet alternator.

I had a large 17.5kw Jacobs turbine on a 150ft pin truss tower running for twenty years here on the property. Just kept throwing money at it to keep it running all those years. I had a crane come in last year and removed the turbine and 80 feet of the tower, sold the turbine and tower and put the money into solar, i would advise you to do the same.


----------



## rawhide2971 (Apr 19, 2013)

WOW That looks like it was a major job. I would love to dabble in Solar, and have picked up some solar panel kits but have not really gotten started on it. After I get this last daughter married off I might have a better shot..she is marrying a real live Rocket engineer and he's pretty darn handy....but the rascal is going to be living in Kansas..... and I ain't lost nuthing out there.


----------



## wtxprepper (Jul 30, 2013)

Alright, they are both complete and the engines still run, but I would have to find an alternate fuel source and a way to convert it to run off something other than gas, and in a shtf scenario going to be loud and a dead give away that's why I was thinking running them off a turbine and using sprockets for gear reduction ti speed them up a bit


----------



## hiwall (Jun 15, 2012)

Sell them. Buy solar.


----------



## Jimthewagontraveler (Feb 8, 2012)

Wrong components.
Sell and buy solar.
+ 1


----------



## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

wtxprepper said:


> Alright, they are both complete and the engines still run, but I would have to find an alternate fuel source and a way to convert it to run off something other than gas, and in a shtf scenario going to be loud and a dead give away that's why I was thinking running them off a turbine and using sprockets for gear reduction ti speed them up a bit


Your plan of running them off a turbine IS doable but it is just more trouble than it's worth imo. A very large VAWT or several together could get some useable power in 15mph winds with some gearing but you would likely still be better with a different generator. Even a vehicle alternator would likely be a much better choice, and they are far from "ideal".

You could certainly run them off of wood gas/methane/propane but if they are iffy on gasoline it might not be worth it. That is one of the biggest mistakes people make with alternative fuels imo, they take an old worn out motor because it's cheap or they don't want to risk a new one, and with no experience try to run it on wood gas for instance. Then when they have trouble they are discouraged and blame the fuel.

If they are in decent shape then it might be worth a little time spent tuning.


----------



## zimmy (Aug 17, 2012)

I can say to anyone on this forum that if you truly are preparing for what is to come, you need to divert all or most of your funds into prepping and eliminate unnecessary things like cable TV, fancy cell phones, boats, fancy clothes and furniture, and any other worldly goods that isn't necessary. Even if you are an ambitious, resourceful, individual, stuff like this cost money. , and lots of it.


----------



## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

zimmy said:


> I can say to anyone on this forum that if you truly are preparing for what is to come, you need to divert all or most of your funds into prepping and eliminate unnecessary things like cable TV, fancy cell phones, boats, fancy clothes and furniture, and any other worldly goods that isn't necessary. Even if you are an ambitious, resourceful, individual, stuff like this cost money. , and lots of it.


I don't spend a lot of money on "luxuries" like those but I don't spend much money on being "prepared" either. The vast majority of stuff that I have done has saved me money, not cost any. I have some solar for sure, but I have many other ways to generate electricity. More important than that for me however was to make sure I could live a happy and healthy life if it all went wrong and I didn't have any electricity at all.

I find the stuff that you have bought to be interesting (I have installed hundreds of solar panels myself so I know it takes work and planning) but it is very different from my own strategy. To each his/her own :beercheer:


----------



## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

I saw once on the www where a guy was taking the crankshaft of blown engines in generators and machining them to take a pulley so the gen head can still be used as a belt driven unit. You can then use pulleys to run an engine at half the normal speed with a LOT less noise.


----------



## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

LincTex said:


> I saw once on the www where a guy was taking the crankshaft of blown engines in generators and machining them to take a pulley so the gen head can still be used as a belt driven unit. You can then use pulleys to run an engine at half the normal speed with a LOT less noise.


Have done this minus the crankshaft with older models, there was a coupler on the output shaft. We also had some that were basically just the powerhead with a pulley and gauges that were factory put together. The governing is a bit of an issue though, another reason I love DC power.


----------



## LincTex (Apr 1, 2011)

cowboyhermit said:


> with a pulley and gauges that were factory put together. The governing is a bit of an issue though,


Yes, some engines like Onans and Wisconsins (the heavier the better?) do better at holding steady RPM.

I don't like PTO shaft generators because tractors often have slow reacting governors (too little or too much Hz)


----------



## wtxprepper (Jul 30, 2013)

Ok so after hearing from the experts "yall" I have decided to go with 2 permanent magnet motors. Anybody have any good recommendations? I have the money to buy new from places like windy nation just need to know what is good and what is not. I have thought about solar panels but after researching I still don't understand it


----------



## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Solar panels are simple when you have them in your hands, much information on line seems intended to make them complicated. There are two wires coming out of them, much simpler than a wind generator. They are reliable and last a long time without maintenance. They are also incredibly cheap right now, all things considered. A wind generator will definitely be a more complicated setup.

That being said, I do like wind power a lot, it just takes a bit more work and knowledge imo. The size and type of motor you want will depend on several things but mainly what kind of turbine you intend to build. Some of the "simplest" solutions can be vertical axis turbines, especially if you have steady, low speed winds.
I have used quite a few alternator based solutions, whether factory, modified at home, or from a place like this; http://www.windbluepower.com/
Many will say that these are overpriced, not very efficient, etc:dunno: For me they worked when I needed something off the shelf and there are very few alternatives. I like these because you can easily spin them with many different power sources.

Salvaged dc motors from things like treadmills have been used and of course it is possible to construct an efficient motor yourself if you have the time/initiative, it is certainly a good thing to know how to do.


----------



## wtxprepper (Jul 30, 2013)

Well if I go solar powered any good suggestions on panels cuz they are all over the place ranging in price but just because it's expensive don't mean it's good lol


----------



## zimmy (Aug 17, 2012)

This guy builds low rpm permanent magnet generators in his shop, I would consider this for a vertical axis turbine.


----------



## zimmy (Aug 17, 2012)

Depending on how many solar modules you buy, the price will very. Sunelec.com didn't even bother to reply to several emails so I bought $10,000 worth of modules from Civicsolar, shipping cost was more from the west coast but for some reason Sunelec wouldn't reply to my emails even after I called them and they instructed me to email them for a price quote. http://www.civicsolar.com/product/perlight-solar-plm-280p-72-280-watts-solar-panel


----------



## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

wtxprepper said:


> Well if I go solar powered any good suggestions on panels cuz they are all over the place ranging in price but just because it's expensive don't mean it's good lol


There were some threads on this not too long ago, some people have a bit different opinions on brands, price, how many cells etc.

For me personally all the "full size" panels with metal frames (that look like the ones in Zimmy's pictures) are basically a commodity, once the basic conditions are met all I care about is price per watt. I am up in Canada so prices vary but lately people are getting deals in the neighborhood of $1/watt, that is amazing considering what the prices were just recently.
I prefer to have a junction box on the back of the panel instead of the standard connectors but even that isn't a deal breaker for me and many prefer the connectors. Personally I prefer to stick with a 12V system for a lot of reasons (mainly just the ubiquity of things that use it) but there are advantages to a higher voltage system as well.

These may or may not be helpful for you
http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f16/solar-generators-20036/
http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f16/d-i-y-solar-generator-less-than-500-a-15496/


----------



## wtxprepper (Jul 30, 2013)

Thanks zimmy and cowboy yall are life savers appreciate all the help, the ones zimmy posted are 98 cents a watt and they are perfect for my bol, but still thinking about doing both cuz I have a hook up on optima marine batteries for 102 bucks a battery compared to 240 a battery, and every bit of electricity helps


----------



## cowboyhermit (Nov 10, 2012)

Don't be afraid to buy some extra battery capacity, adding batteries into a bank that has seen some use is not a big deal but it is not ideal either, whereas adding charging is not a problem. If you have a solid battery bank and inverter or dc setup then you can charge it any way you want, solar, wind, the grid, generator or dc charging setup, heck even a vehicle in an emergency.


----------



## zimmy (Aug 17, 2012)

These cells were bought through the government disposal program at least 20 years ago. They were new never put in service when I bought them and they are still working fine with no signs of degradation. Buying quality batteries from the start is well worth it.


----------

