Missouri wind and Scamming??

Xringer · 01-19-12, 01:25 PM

This guy doesn't have a very good location to harvest the wind,
but seems to have trouble getting any amperage, even using fossil fuel..

Missouri wind turbines - YouTube

NeilBlanchard · 01-19-12, 03:53 PM

The trouble is the trees, I would hazard to guess...

vmike · 01-20-12, 10:27 AM

Charging current is a function of load. If his battery bank is fully charged, the resistance will be high, the current draw low. His volt meter does drop to the battery voltage. I'd probably slap a carbon pile load tester on the alternator before I pronounce it a failure. Of course I have load tester because I play with this stuff, but a ten foot coiled 12 gauge or larger steel wire in a five gallon bucket of water will give a good test load as well. Basically a multimeter is a little light to determine his problem.

On the wind spinners, 20' above the trees works a lot better than 20' below.

mike

Xringer · 01-20-12, 10:57 AM

Is 25.1V a fully charged bank? Seems a little low to me.
Maybe my 48v bank is being over-charged? Right now, it's at 59.2 (/2=29.6).
So my 12V batteries are reading 14.8v each right now..
Maybe I need to tweak my charge controller.?.

We are having a bit of sun today, so I'll be using some solar (on this PC)
and maybe get that voltage down a bit..

Anyways, it seems like his 24v bank should have drawn more amperage..
But, maybe it's the type of cells he's using..?.

vmike · 01-20-12, 11:40 AM

I based my comment on both of the volt meters reading nearly the same. That's why I suggested loading the alternator. My 24 volt PV charged bank reads 28 volts because that's where the charge controller shuts it off. The 12 volt PV charged bank in the other building charges to 13.68 volts. I'm just guessing here that his controller is set low, although maybe the battery charger in his inverter is low and the battery never has had a full charge.

It's always difficult to troubleshoot remotely, the variables are always out of reach/sight.

mike

nexsuperne · 02-15-12, 11:38 AM

That seems a little high. 13.8v for a 12 volt battery is normal float voltage, 14.5v is maximum cyclic voltage. 10.5v would be dead as a dodo...

Xringer · 02-15-12, 01:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nexsuperne

That seems a little high. 13.8v for a 12 volt battery is normal float voltage, 14.5v is maximum cyclic voltage. 10.5v would be dead as a dodo...

Check out page 13.. Dip sw settings..
http://www.morningstarcorp.com/en/su...nual.04.EN.pdf
And battery types on page 28..

Ryland · 02-16-12, 09:26 AM

Listen to the gas engine that is turning the generator, it's not under load when he flips the switch, I suspect that he has more then his old charge controller burned out, those switches he is using are often rated at 15 amps, the 20 and 30 amp versions are out there but harder to find but he really should have a DC disconnect breaker instead of a toggle switch, so given that I would guess that it's his own poor design that is causing this not to work.
A string of light bulbs right on the generator would be a better test without mailing it back.

But how he starts out the video showing his wind "turbines" that are on a 40 foot pipe surrounded by 120 foot trees... he might as well have them inside his basement next to an open window and ask why they don't work, 50 feet above ANYTHING within 500 feet is the standard rule, main reason for that is that the higher you go the greater the wind speed and that when you are to low not only is there less energy but the difference between the energy in the air at the top of the rotor and the bottom tip of the rotor can be enough that it will destroy wind turbines, not so much an issue with these little toy turbines that put out a few watts, but as you get bigger you can have twice the energy hitting the top tip of the blade compared to what hits the bottom tip, that is, if you are to low and close to ground clutter.

01-20-12, 10:27 AM	#3
vmike Lurking Renovator Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Stillwater, OK Posts: 26 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts	Charging current is a function of load. If his battery bank is fully charged, the resistance will be high, the current draw low. His volt meter does drop to the battery voltage. I'd probably slap a carbon pile load tester on the alternator before I pronounce it a failure. Of course I have load tester because I play with this stuff, but a ten foot coiled 12 gauge or larger steel wire in a five gallon bucket of water will give a good test load as well. Basically a multimeter is a little light to determine his problem. On the wind spinners, 20' above the trees works a lot better than 20' below. mike __________________ I tried to contain myself, but I escaped.

01-20-12, 10:57 AM	#4
Xringer Lex Parsimoniae Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Woburn, MA Posts: 4,918 Thanks: 114 Thanked 250 Times in 230 Posts	Is 25.1V a fully charged bank? Seems a little low to me. Maybe my 48v bank is being over-charged? Right now, it's at 59.2 (/2=29.6). So my 12V batteries are reading 14.8v each right now.. Maybe I need to tweak my charge controller.?. We are having a bit of sun today, so I'll be using some solar (on this PC) and maybe get that voltage down a bit.. Anyways, it seems like his 24v bank should have drawn more amperage.. But, maybe it's the type of cells he's using..?. __________________ My hobby is installing & trying to repair mini-splits EPA 608 Type 1 Technician Certification ~ 5 lbs or less..

01-20-12, 11:40 AM	#5
vmike Lurking Renovator Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Stillwater, OK Posts: 26 Thanks: 0 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts	I based my comment on both of the volt meters reading nearly the same. That's why I suggested loading the alternator. My 24 volt PV charged bank reads 28 volts because that's where the charge controller shuts it off. The 12 volt PV charged bank in the other building charges to 13.68 volts. I'm just guessing here that his controller is set low, although maybe the battery charger in his inverter is low and the battery never has had a full charge. It's always difficult to troubleshoot remotely, the variables are always out of reach/sight. mike __________________ I tried to contain myself, but I escaped.

01-19-12, 03:53 PM	#2
NeilBlanchard Journeyman EcoRenovator Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Maynard, MA Eaarth Posts: 383 Thanks: 78 Thanked 39 Times in 32 Posts	The trouble is the trees, I would hazard to guess...

02-15-12, 11:38 AM	#6
nexsuperne Helper EcoRenovator Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: 30 miles east of London, UK Posts: 88 Thanks: 12 Thanked 19 Times in 18 Posts	That seems a little high. 13.8v for a 12 volt battery is normal float voltage, 14.5v is maximum cyclic voltage. 10.5v would be dead as a dodo...

02-16-12, 09:26 AM	#8
Ryland Master EcoRenovator Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Western Wisconsin. Posts: 913 Thanks: 127 Thanked 82 Times in 71 Posts	Listen to the gas engine that is turning the generator, it's not under load when he flips the switch, I suspect that he has more then his old charge controller burned out, those switches he is using are often rated at 15 amps, the 20 and 30 amp versions are out there but harder to find but he really should have a DC disconnect breaker instead of a toggle switch, so given that I would guess that it's his own poor design that is causing this not to work. A string of light bulbs right on the generator would be a better test without mailing it back. But how he starts out the video showing his wind "turbines" that are on a 40 foot pipe surrounded by 120 foot trees... he might as well have them inside his basement next to an open window and ask why they don't work, 50 feet above ANYTHING within 500 feet is the standard rule, main reason for that is that the higher you go the greater the wind speed and that when you are to low not only is there less energy but the difference between the energy in the air at the top of the rotor and the bottom tip of the rotor can be enough that it will destroy wind turbines, not so much an issue with these little toy turbines that put out a few watts, but as you get bigger you can have twice the energy hitting the top tip of the blade compared to what hits the bottom tip, that is, if you are to low and close to ground clutter.