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Forum Index : Windmills : alternator or generator?

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mick97

Newbie

Joined: 09/11/2008
Location: United States
Posts: 3

Posted: 12:52pm 09 Nov 2008

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Hi,
My name is Scott,and i just joined the forum.
Im interested in building a wind generator windmill.

I had astarting question.
Do I use analternator?Not a generator correct?
Anyadvise on what type of car i can get thisout of,or does it matter?
As long asit is a alternator?

Just getting started here,so have a fewQs.. ha.

I couldn't find asection on this to learn from.Is there apost somewheres to study?
Thanks a million,
Scotty

scott

KiwiJohn
Guru

Joined: 01/12/2005
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 691

Posted: 05:34pm 09 Nov 2008

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Hi Scott and welcome.

You could use an alternator from a car but few, if any, of the forum members do that. To be effective the alternator needs to spin at very high RPM compared to the speed of the wind turbine which of course requires you to use one or two stages of gearing. Gearing is both awkward to build and introduces losses so most home wind turbine builders prefer to use direct drive.

Several forum members use washing machine motors of the kind that are really huge steppers and although plentiful in NZ and Australia may not be so easy to find in the US. The brands are Fisher and Paykel, LG and now (I believe) GM. You can use a small stepper motor for experimenting which will light a few LEDs.

Another popular thing to use is a low voltage permanent magnet DC motor, old treadmill motors seem to be popular.

If you find a DC motor or big stepper you can make a simple test by joining all wires together and if this makes the motor hard to turn by hand you have a likely candidate.

There are a few sites that describe making alternators from wood, resin, wire, magnets etc and I understand some of these designs are quite efficient. I dont know if any forum members use one of these.

John

mick97

Newbie

Joined: 09/11/2008
Location: United States
Posts: 3

Posted: 08:49pm 09 Nov 2008

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Thanks John,

Sounds like a lot of work..lol

I do believe my mom hasan old treadmill.
Will have to check on that one.

Finding awasher brand name will be hard i would think,but can call some appliance stores on that one,for old machines.

Any other advise would be grand.
Scotty

scott

Gizmo

Admin Group

Joined: 05/06/2004
Location: Australia
Posts: 5118

Posted: 08:36am 10 Nov 2008

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Hi Scotty.

I agree with John, see if you can find a treadmill motor, they are perfect for your first windmill. I was at my local tip ( dump, recycling center ) last week and there were several electric treadmills for only a few dollars each, I was tempted to check them out for a good motor but ran out of time. Looks for treamills where the belt is broken, it usually means the motor was ok and it was thrown out because the belt let go.

Glenn

The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now.
JAQ

mick97

Newbie

Joined: 09/11/2008
Location: United States
Posts: 3

Posted: 12:49pm 10 Nov 2008

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Hey,
Thanks Glenn,

That would be a good place to start then by the sound of it.
Good tip on the broken belt.I would of never thought of that..teehee

Scotty

scott

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