Wind/diesel installation....

[frotter]

Hi all!
If no-one minds this will be a bit-by-bit photo record of my set-up here at Frot Acres. I would welcome any comments/questions/observations along the way - feel free!
I have a 6kw water-cooled genny (S/H about £900 from ebay), a Studer 8kw sine wave inverter (£3K and VERY heavy!), a Navitron 1kw 48volt turbine, some forklift batteries (800ah) and a shed!

Well, this lot will have to go... Yuk!




Collected the forklift battery from industrial estate nearby... 760kilos - wheezy van running on lowered suspension ahoy!  I paid £225 for 48volt 800ah set of cells with bolt on terminals. Mucky and heavy.



This is the 'Great Link' being put up. The armoured cable to the house, earth conductor and generator cooling water will go through here.




Here is the shed where all the business will live.... or Chernobyl, as i like to call it.  Ahem.



More next time.........!!

Frot.   

 
 

[stephen]

Looks like you will be giving Ken a run for his money.  We should have a competition to see who has the neatest most efficient set up.
You got the batteries at a very good price.

I assume you will be running the gen set on veg oil. Any photos of your filtering set up.
Where are you based in the country?

Good luck

[frotter]

Give UberKen a run for his money? Dont think so
I couldnt find a sensibly priced Lister for a start.......
Yep, chip fat is the plan. I've got a load of really gunky set lard for free. Got to try and sensibly keep it heated for starting. Havent worked out filtering set up yet. Work in progress....... Going to do the trial runs on heating oil till i get sorted, just so i know it will start. More pics later..........

 

[frotter]

My luvly lodger Peter (quite useful once he's awake... ) and our lazy method of unreeling the heavy armoured cable. They come in handy for all sorts of things them ancient Batricars!



Starting the trench from the turbine site. It'll have a nice view of the hills.....



There ye go - straight as a nine-bob note..!
We've put two 10sq/mm cables in just in case we ever upgrade to a second turbine or bigger single one. Glutton for punishment, see...




Next time - goggle in wonder as a speccy bloke does some wiring.....   

[Ivan]

to unroll the cable, I assume you both drive the battery cars at identical speeds, one either side of the trench, laying cable as you go......

[frotter]

Hehe - summink like that.... however in real life it all got a bit skew-whiff. 
More pics later.... try to control your excitement please.

 

[frotter]

Heres me watching in awe as my mate Speccy Bloke wrestles with the electric string... At this point the new cables are just poised on t'other side of the wall waiting to be stuffed through the red brick hole you can see.....




Smug git!



Hehe - told him not to touch the red one! That'll learn 'im.....




But once we'd fired up the defibrillator and given him a nice cup o tea - lookit the nice job he turned out!
I'm really lookin forward to clacking that big changeover switch onto Frotpower! Yay!   






Stay tuned for more alternative-energy based fun!

[arizmanor]

Forgive me for pointing this out, but does the Maroon Boxer van have the registration letters - BOJ  ?   

[frotter]

Er, yes. Yes it does...........

[frotter]

Meanwhile - inside Chernobyl, lookit them lurvly cells. There's a mega-fuse and evrythin. Drool.....



Armoured cable calls tersely for attention.... pff. plenty of time fer that.



I know it looks like i dont actually DO any of the work.. thats just cos its normally me taking the snaps. Honest. (bloomin 'eck - better trim them eyebrows, lol!)



This is the 'quick and dirty' 35mm exhaust.



And the 'tractor flap' at the top. Like this a lot. 




Thanks for your patience, turn the lights off on your way out will you?

XX

[merkland]

More, More!!

[Paulh_Boats]

fotter,

You've got some serious kick-ass batteries ... they should keep your mobile working well into the next century.

BTW: Have you got a grid locked invertor?

-paul

[frotter]

Yeah - i luv them forklift cells! They are like a strange animal - they gently growl and bubble ALL the time even when just stood open circuit.
I decided not to go grid-tie. Just want to be OFF the bleedin' grid mostly. On Big Switchover Day the only thing still connected to the grid will be the 9kw shower. Future project will probably be to replace it with mixer fed from thermal store....... We already have 30-tube panel for DHW so will probably hook that in one day..
More pics laters....

XX

[frotter]

Balancing them big whirly things - quite important apparently.



My ever helpful lodger Stoveboy (Peter), 'helping' again.



Blade all balanced (good as we could get it anyhow..). I stuck pieces of solder sticks to the blades where needed and severely taped it up with dashing red tape. We will hear more about this later... ahem. 
Please note Coughing Bob guarding the grease.



Meanwhile, back in Chernobyl. The magic pixies have been busy..... Air vent for the genny radiator. I may try to harvest some of this lost heat in the winter somehow.



And looky here! Very swishy... and not a 'competent person' in sight. Just mental old bodgers.   




Whew! - enough for today.

 

[stephen]

You are really are cracking on. I am very impressed.
you even have the energy to post pictures late at night.

Keep it up