How to Build a Bike Generator with Control Panel (LowTechMagazine)

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• iamtanmay@wolfballs.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨years⁩ ago

  Bro.... I was thinking this the whole week. Lost electricity last weekend (weird installation of a new electric meter). Thought about minimum daily electricity in emergencies:

  • 10W for router or <1W using smartphone as router (160Wh/16Wh for 16 hrs of use per day)

  • Pot meal in a pot 100Wh or Pressure cooker 50 Wh per day (boiling rice/potatoes/pasta)

  • Small LED Light (3W), small laptop (6W) for work/play ~150Wh per day (16 hours)

  200 to 250 Wh is enough. DIY folk made 200W bike conversions. 1 to 1.5 h pedaling per day.

  I also want to study how the alternator as well as inverter work, and how to make them from scrap. Simple lead acid battery is enough. Those are easy to make from old parts.

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  • squashkin@wolfballs.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨years⁩ ago

    I really like the idea for a while although idk how practical it is and what the best use case would be

    solar panel systems may be affordable in comparison and can cover low power needs

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    • iamtanmay@wolfballs.com ⁨3⁩ ⁨years⁩ ago

      Solar is very cheap and has same equipment with added regulator between cells and battery. Pro: Free energy that lasts 25-30 years. You can make your own with off the shelf components easily or buy decent 200W kits for <2000$, like: https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Jackery-Generator-Portable-SolarSaga-Emergency/dp/B09NQ77VZ2

      Cons: Only for certain weather and locations. In an apartment you may not have right orientation or space

      Bike gen is old, reliable tech that works in all conditions. Plus in an emergency, a bike is a good backup transport to have

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