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Cd's as wind generator

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things

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hi, i have been looking around the internet for homemade wind turbines and have decided to build one my self but was wondering if i could use cd's as the generator using the magnet and coil thing. sorry i have no idea how this works but people say that one plate with coils of wire and another magnets rotating will generate power. i need some advice if this will work and what kind of power i could get. also how would i put this together eg; number of turns on coils, amount of coils,amount of magnets, where to put the magnets.

every bit of info will be appreciated

thanks
 
The term you are looking for is an alternator and going from what you've said you probably don't have enough experience to build one. You can use a stepper motor as an alternator or a DC motor as dynamo then you won't have to worry about building one.
 
Eh Things,
CD's wouldn't be any good for a small axial flux genny as the plates that hold the magnets need to be iron, checkout www.otherpower.com and take a look how to build a real axial flux wind genny. There's plenty of info and links on that site so make sure you do a heap of research as many people have flown in and made them and failed only to find out they didnt do any research.

Cheers Bryan
 
hi things,
If you want to experiment with a simple turbine, get a second hand bicycle dynamo and mount some blades on it.

If you want more power and a bigger turbine, go to your local car breakers yard and get an old car alternator and regulator,
You are talking big turbine blades!.

Lets know how it goes.
 
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the first wind turbine i bought was one of these.www.jointiff.com
but 5 volts 100ma average just isn't very useful for charging batteries or anything. so ive decided to try and make a bigger one.
 
I love the image on that page - birds flying through the turbine blades. Yes, I know the blades are small. I just got a chuckle from the imagery.
 
SPLAT!!! if it was real of coarse.:D
 
So that's what gnats looks like.
 
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How much trouble is it smooth and regulate the output of a permenant magnet motor used as a generator? I've wanted do something small scale like this for a while to run some 5 volt or less simple circuits. I have no idea how to make a simple charge controller for this, maybe 4-6 AA nicad or nimh batteries. When looking at wind generator stuff, it's usually at a much greater scale then what I have in mind, just lighting up some LEDs, like solar yard lights. Some AVR chips work under 2 volts, so kind of getting interested in looking into this again. Using AOL CDs for turbine blades could look cool during the day, with sunlight defracting off the surface.

The thing that really stumps me, is that the output of the generator wouldn't be constant, nor anyway to predict the max frequency (if it matters). We get some pretty strong winds in Florida, so figure any wind generator scheme I build, would eventully get destroyed.
 
Simply connect it via a blocking diode to some NiCd or NiMh batteries, ensure the batteries are of enough capacity to not get overcharged - that's really all you need for a simple design. For a higher power design you would need charging control, so that once the batteries are fully charged the output from the generator is dumped to a dummy load instead of the batteries.
 
Pretty sure I would need to detect a full charge, even on such a small scale. We usually get a light breeze, but can really come up fast in the afternoon and evening hours. Unlike the solar lights, these could be charging 24 hours a day. Guess the only way I'm going to learn, is to throw something together, and let it burn...
 
Depends on the size of the generator and the size of the batteries, if the average output of the generator is only 1/10th or less of the charging capacity of the batteries there shouldn't be a problem. If it's as high as 1/5th, then double the number of batteries! - and so on.

You can do this with a small generator, and small low cost batteries - you obviously can't afford to do it with a multi-kilowatt job! :D
 
Did some looking on the web for some simplist constructions (science fair type). Think using CDs for the rotor might not be the best option, but got an idea. Found savonius rotor, but on a much larger scale (55 gallon drums). Figure a couple of beer cans cut lengthwise glued to an aluminum arrow shaft would be good enough. The generator would be a small toy motor or stepper (wonder if it makes a difference if its unipolar or bipolar). Probably use the bipolar, since the driver really sux. Wish I would have bought one of those 'never needs sharpening' beer can cutting knives they use to advertise on TV.
 
silvarblade said:
is there any wind generator that can be completely made from house hold items??

Depends on what kinds of items are in your household, and what you are willing to destroy or modify. Also kind of depends on your expectations. If you expect to light up a couple of LEDs when the wind blows, a small stepper motor makes a good enough generator. The propeller off one of those cheap rubber band powered planes, and a vane to keep it pointed into the wind.

Of course my house is a cluttered mess, tools in most every room. Most flat surfaces contain a partial built project, or partially destructed source of parts (got what I needed, but still some good stuff there...)
 
HarveyH42 said:
Depends on what kinds of items are in your household, and what you are willing to destroy or modify. Also kind of depends on your expectations. If you expect to light up a couple of LEDs when the wind blows, a small stepper motor makes a good enough generator. The propeller off one of those cheap rubber band powered planes, and a vane to keep it pointed into the wind.

Of course my house is a cluttered mess, tools in most every room. Most flat surfaces contain a partial built project, or partially destructed source of parts (got what I needed, but still some good stuff there...)


i can buy motor and stuff but i only need to produce about 6 to 10 volts just as an experiment to see if we have enough wind here
 
I'd suggest searching the web, even this forum, and see how other people build theirs. There are a lot of designs and construction ideas on the web, from Science Fair, to comercial power generators. Just see what they look like, and see what you have or can make that is similar. The size is up to you. I'm sort of a beginner too, just started building earlier this year, but had thought about it many times.

For some larger blades, I've got this idea for using a staight-sided shampoo bottle, about 12 inches tall (still about half full...). When it gets empty, I'm going to measure the circumference, divide by 3, maybe 4 blades. Cut off the top, cut down the sides for the blades, and fold them out at slight angle. Might need to heat along the crease to keep them in the right place. I'll mount it direct to a small stepper motor. Hoping the flexiable blades will hold up a little better in stong winds, the my previous ones.

Also have some large 24" acrylic domes I want try on another savonius design, but it's going to take some time to construct, and still need to find some parts. Like a shaft and some bearings to fit, some way to couple the shaft to a motor. Pretty sure I have most everything, just need to do some looking.
 
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