Judging by the weather here this morning, I'd be better off with a water-powered turbine than solar panels...
(It is raining.)
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@neil overcast. Will be changeable, rain expected this evening. We may achieve solar to thermal energy conversion during the afternoon.
Good morning :)
@GoingDownWithSundial It looks like rain all day here, with added thunder and lightning!
Have a lovely day :)
@neil very, very frightening!
You too lovely day :)
This has taken me down a lovely little rabbit hole. Wondered if such a thing exists in this modern world - thinking about the old houses you sometimes come across in the woods that have the big wheels on the side generating power from the river (can't remember their name and also they're probably not generating power, but turning a wheel to grind wheat for bread? I know pitifully little about house wheels and am looking into now). Then found this incredibly cool portable water turbine - £770 to power a home!
It's also super interesting - https://www.autoevolution.com/news/idenergie-s-river-turbine-supplies-your-off-grid-lifestyle-with-endless-electricity-189841.html
@TheBreadmonkey @neil I'm currently volunteering at the Mills Archive (https://millsarchive.org), which has records of thousands of mills in the UK. They've mostly been about flour mills, but cover other kinds of traditional mill, like paper mills. Recently, they've also started collecting records about power generation (wind and water power).
Might be worth a look.
@TheBreadmonkey @neil my wife works in an office that’s an old mill. It originates from the 12 century but it’s obviously been renovated/rebuilt several times. However it still has a functioning wheel that the company uses to generate electricity to power the office. It also has a glass floor so you can see it in action.
@mttkng @TheBreadmonkey @neil When she returns to work every Monday does she make mill puns? "Back to the daily grind" etc.?
Checkout the "Technology" section in this article. It describes
'Cragside as the "first (house) in the world to be lit by electricity derived from water power".'
Just in case anyone's interested and hasn't already heard of him, I was recommended Martijn Doolaards youtube channel a little while ago, which is fascinating. I particularly enjoyed his sustainable self-contained power solutions.
It's an effective design. 😁
Just from looking at how it's placed, it could operate in tidal flows as well, so would suit inshore waters. 😁
Nice. :D
@TheBreadmonkey @neil I remember seeing a modern castle, really a stately home, but it had one and was one fo the first powered houses in the UK. Iirc it was low voltage dc for lights. Was rather cool.
There's a fair few around though from the outside probably can't tell if it's power or a mill (sawmills were also common, recall seeing a restored one as a demo too)
That's basically one years average UK household electricity bill
@TheBreadmonkey @neil you need to happen to live in a place with a decent head of water, but the best thing about it would be that the supply is consistent, and higher in winter. If you also have solar panels and a decent amount of battery storage, you can be totally off-grid.
@TheBreadmonkey Ooh, exciting! Thank you!
@neil Newbury Hydro?
@neil reminds me of someone testing how much power you can get off the rain on the roof in a YouTube video. Basically not much at all.
Good morning :)
