CO2...breathing while exercising on the bicycle. Exhaling. Same as a coal power plant but minus the sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, mercury, cadmium and lead. So I'm sort of a "clean" power plant (minus the heavy metals and acid rain). CO2 meter I bought was at co2meter.com. They don't seem to be selling that particular model anymore. In the winter with doors & windows closed the co2 level can go from about 500 ppm to 3000 ppm in less than ten minutes (the alarm goes off at 1500 ppm). I usually opened the window before it got any higher.
Initially I had a 350 watt prototype, but that didn't work out (too much stress on the shaft, and it kept slipping...the stand was also very awkward). I also purchased other shaft couplings on Amazon but they didn't work out (wrong inner diameter, and boring them wider damaged the set-screw threads). I didn't have any plans, so I was figuring everything out as I went.
As far as the parts, most were from ebay vendors (names given). I've estimated the payback period at current rates to be...oh...120 years give or take (maybe I'll live that long with all the exercise I'll be doing
). Here's the list:
1) Purchased From:bikesdirectbikes (Feb 2006, then sat in my garage for 3 1/2 years):
NEW BICYCLE TRAINER - INDOOR BIKE EXERCISE STAND 1 $69.00 USD $69.00 USD
(includes any seller handling fees) $20.00 USD
Total: $89.00 USD
2) 250 Watt - 24 Volt Motor (Style: MY1016)
Sale price: $30.00
Shipping & Handling: US Postal Service Priority Mail $11.00
Seller: tncscooters
3) Flexible shaft coupling (between bike roller shaft & DC motor shaft)
Flexible Coupling Coupler 8 x 10 mm for stepping motor
Sale price: $14.99
Seller: d_kwa2520
4) 12/24V 24A Adj Solar Charge Controller w/Display
Sale price: $69.00
Shipping & Handling: Standard Flat Rate Shipping Service $10.00
Seller: cs419
5) miscellaneous: batteries, battery clamps and fuses/fuse holders at advance auto parts (again, should've gotten deep-cycle somewhere else but I went cheap)
scrap wood, measured to proper level
two 7/16" galvanized foot-long carriage bolts (with nuts & washers) at Lowes, to fasten the wood blocks to the bicycle stand
scrap wiring, had some 10awg black wire and some 14awg red lying around.
1 1/4" drywall screws (hold the motor down to the wood base)
Dan