Waterwheel energy?

[k0xxx]

I won't dive into this as it is not even an option unless you live on a fast moving river and then the corp of army engineers and dept of natural resources would never grant permission. Its hard enough just to get them to approve a boat dock nowadays.

A friend of the family back in Louisiana, owns land that includes an area of Mississippi River batture (the land between the river and the levee that floods most of the time). He owns a barge that is docked at his property. He tried for years to get a permit to add a water wheel to the barge to produce electricity.

The Corps of Engineers flatly refused. He even had a design to set the wheel in the center of the barge, so as not to increase the "footprint"of the barge. No was the only answer he received. Our government at work.

 

[jeffreydominic]

A good machine to study is the wind-up clock or the counterweight clock. All the parts in one of them can be used to produce the kind of machine you want.

 

[~gd]

Contrary to some of the "Experts" quoted above a well designed hydro electric component can replace the weakest link of both the grid and off the grid systems.
First the Grid, there is NO storage system in the grid. Power being used on the grid has to be produced at exactly the same time somewhere on the grid. Base load is usually provided by coal burners, nukes and sometimes hydro. Peaks are covered mostly by gas and oil burners.

Off the grid you can have dandy wind and solar power producers. But the sun isn't always shining nor the wind always blowing so to have power when you need it you need storage. Batteries are often used and someday we may have good cheap batteries but I tend to doubt it will be soon. Many use the grid as a backup storage, dumping excess power onto the grid [the grid loves this unregulated problem NOT because they are forced to deal with the problem and pay Top price for the power. When the sun and winds are down the customer buys power from the grid. Sweet for the producer-customer, he gets to stick to the grid and all their customers!
In the future the storage problem might be solved by converting eclectic power to chemical power [water + electric >> 2 hydrogen +oxygen which is clean and easy to convert to electric. Storage of hydrogen is a current problem. Where the geography is right the excess power can be used to pump water to the top of a hydro system [open or closed loop] where it can produce power as quickly as opening a valve. There are a few small projects in operation around the world and I have heard claims that Niagara Falls is a major project.

 

[Icu4dzs]

A good machine to study is the wind-up clock or the counterweight clock. All the parts in one of them can be used to produce the kind of machine you want.

That is exactly what I have been studying. It makes the most sense. the counterweight clock is what I have been looking into because it has less moving parts and does NOT need special metal to work...just weight.
Saepe Expertus, Semper Fidelis, Fratres Aeterni
Trim sends
//BT//

 

[sumi]

We have chains (like bicycle chains but bigger) which connect to the wheel and turn the generator which comes from a washing machine..

Washing machine generator?

 

[barefoothaven]

Washing machine generator?

Yes. Out of smart drive washing machines.

 

[sumi]

Yes. Out of smart drive washing machines.

Please tell me more?

 

[barefoothaven]

The smart drive generators can be used for wind turbines as well.

I don't know much about the technical side.