Homebrewed Electricity > Other
Engine Govenor and stand alone solar reccomendations.
dnix71:
http://www.instructables.com/id/Generator-Governor/ Here is a failed project from someone who had a failed governor on an existing generator. He went the high-tech route (Arduino).
You want the generator to spin the correct rpm so the frquency out is correct. The gen head must have a correctly functioning AVR so the voltage stays within limits.
After hurricane Andrew in 1992, I went to Perrine with a busted Onan to provide some kind of power to a pastor there. It was 45 days from the storm until poles were replaced and power restored. I blew up a 120v chain saw trying to run it from the overspeeding Onan with the busted governor. The generator had been mounted on the back of a bus and the driver had backed the bus into something that broke off the intake manifold.
The fix in that case was to set the rpm with a throttle wire and use a fixed load (his refrigerator) The voltage was checked manually and the fridge load was low enough the a fixed rpm worked.
In your case, my suggestion is to do what most modern inverter-based generators do. Use the engine to drive high-powered alternators that feed a battery bank. Run your critical loads from the inverter.
http://www.nationsautoelectric.com/tad.html There is a 230 amp one-wire alternator sold here that is designed for diesel trucks. It has a wide pulley. You would need to change the pulley on your engine, then manually set the rpm to a level that is the minimum needed to prevent the voltage from sagging under full load. This is not the most efficent operation, but it will work. 230 amps at 13v is 3kw. You should be able to run most of your home from that.
You don't need a lot of battery. Just a couple of 6v golf cart batteries to make 12v is enough. You aren't running from batteries, but the alternator needs it.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Pure-Sine-Wave-Inverter-5kw-DC-12V-48V-/142532980067
This seller is ozcart, from Australia, but the inverter is from China. You would need to select the options you want.
george65:
I have a bunch of engines that could drive an alternator including my lister which is already set up with 2x80A alts. I could add a 3rd if I wanted but not sure how much more power I would get out of that as the alts seem inefficient and last time I played with it I get the feeling the roughly 2K the alts put out was about the limit of what the engine would drive.
For AC gen heads the normal load is 3Kw on these engines.
For the solar, seems what I really need is a high voltage, high current, buck and boost converter. Something that would take the 300V+ DC my array puts out and convert that back to 24V ( ideally for me) so I could run my inverter(s) or would just function as a standalone.
Amazed there aren't units out there to do this.
Bruce S:
george65
With the low end ability of that 617, I won't not bother with a turbo, the 300TD I had was great, but if it hadn't come with the car I would not have bothered.
I'm going out on a limb here, but I'm betting you're going to use WVO. Leave the beauty the way it is.
Since you probably have this on a stand, there was a post on here with a similar issue quite a while back that had pictures, wiring and schema all here.
I thought it was BT Humble. Those might help you.
eigenmorph:
Hello George,
My last post on the Changing Metered Phases should perhaps have been on this thread. I meant to say that the Volvo electric window mechanism is actually ideal for a solar panel tilt mechanism. You probably spotted that right away. I checked the motor itself yesterday to get an idea of its needs. It will run on anything from 3 volts, taking about 2 amps. Maximum current on load at 12 volts was around 3 amps. The torque is impressive.
Perhaps an easier candidate for your engine control is a stepper motor out of a printer. The photo is of the paper feed motor and its gearbox from an old Epson printer. It is a really neat package and will work the throttle just fine. Have a look at www.stepperstuff.com The book Easy Step'n by David Benson will get you up and running in no time. It includes circuits and PIC programs. For straightforward speed control there is not really any need to resort to a microprocessor. It just depends what you feel comfortable using.
All the best. Jim
george65:
Hi Jim,
Thank for your Idea with that. I did pick up on what you meant as I couldn't see a window mechanism being precise enough for throttle control.
I have given both these ideas away as being in the too hard and not worth it basket.
I'm a bit jaded and pissed off with the governor thing. I have spent many hours trying to find something suitable and come up empty. I looked at lots of DIY controllers and to be frank, they all looked like dog's breakfasts. wires everywhere, multiple boards, bits of this and that.... I cannot possibly see how they would be reliable and accurate long term. Once upon a time not so long ago it wouldn't have worried me but since coming here I have got a different outlook. I have got lazier/ more house proud/ less time on my hands/ less energetic/ whatever change of position... and now just want to do something, do it once, have it work and and not have to frig around with it any more.
There are a LOT of things that annoy me with this place and not done to my liking. Really it amounts to the fact I have come from a 100 year old house that was done RIGHT to a 20 yo one that was built as they all are now, as fast and cheap as possible. I had a power outlet on every wall in the other place, there is one per room here. I had over 20 Circuits at the other place, there is half that here. The taps in the yard are all in incontinence places so I am adding to and moving them. There is not enough down pipes so the verandah flooded with the one lot of rain we had. Things like this are driving me nuts so I don't want anything else that not going to work properly and for a long long time. I have enough to fix already.
I found loads of commercial controllers but I'm buggered if I can find a complete kit with everything I need. Again, don't want to spend hours looking for abstract parts to put something together to make it work only to find the bit is incompatible for some reason I didn't forsee etc. I must be putting in the wrong search terms because I can't find anyone that sell a kit with all the bits I can just hook up to the engine, calibrate and have the thing work.
Surely they must be out there, I just can't seem to find them. I don't have the knowledge to build and program something myself.
I think I'll use one of my little diesel stationary engines, probably the 12 HP Lombardini and get an over size gen or just keep an eye out for a pre built one and use that. I could use my lister as well but I'd get a lot more out of the other engine and for the amount of times I'll need it.....
Same goes for the solar. Getting jaded with that too. Wanted to run the water heater direct as well but what a pain in the arse and expense that seems to be to do. There's nothing I can find to use panels to generate power on the go apart from running the panels into some batteries through a charge controller or several and then use an inverter. I can do that with the engines but i'll be limited to the 2000W my inverter does and I'll need a 24V alternator or 2 which are exy here. I have all the 12V internally regulated alts I want but modifying them seems another overly complicated exercise for the outcome.
I have also given up the idea of the variable tilting panels.
I got onto the PVwatts site and run the numbers. I want most power in the summer. I will need the AC and that's where there is the most power to be gained anyway. I won't need the air autumn or spring and winter there is much less power available anyway. The difference in annual gain between the " Ideal " all year round tilt and the optimum summer tilt on a 10 KW system can be made up for by adding -1- extra 250W panel!
I was really surprised after crunching the numbers how little difference the tilt made. For the trouble and complexity, not to mention what I think would end up a less secure installation, for me, the trouble, expense and less peace of mind is just not worth it. The Max Loss in winter having the panels at the summer angle would be 40 KWH a month.
My conclusion was that the weather and a run of cloudy days is likley to have more influence than the tilt angle all year round.
The other thing with going for the summer angle is the panels will be lower which will be better on cloudy days and will make them less vulnerable to high winds blowing them off the roof. For extra power in winter I will probably just hook up my induction motor generator and use that for some extra back feed.
I did find something in looking for a panel tilt mechanisim I can use for something else.
A car Scissor jack turned by a wiper motor. I want to build a small tipping trailer for my ride on mower and This would be ideal. Hinge the tray at the back, put the jack half way along for extra lift, Couple of Limit Switches..... easy.
Hopefully the next bright Idea I come up with is more within my capabilities or at least I can find info on how to do it I can follow. :0)
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