had an idea

[droid_ca]

ok I understand how these work with a temperature difference Seebeck effect effect no is the difference caused by the fan spinning and cooling the external fins what makes the thermocouple generate the electricity...just curious is there a way to maybe piggy back the circuit and have it generate small amounts of electricity as well...I know there are the pots out there that can do this they usually have an USB plug on them now if you were to get this extra electricity how would you hook it up so you can charge your battery would it have to go through a charge controler???

[droid_ca]

Sure it's right here
http://www.leevalley.com/en/gifts/page. ... 3209,50246
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pl ... E-ShZELO5Q

[droid_ca]

Home made one
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFOa99UP ... re=related

candle powered one
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvBeCCjb ... re=related

here is one with led lights
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbwaL6Pq ... h_response

[droid_ca]

I'm still wondering if this could make electricity ...What do you think? Would it be like a trickle charge for our batteries?

[mezmo]

Hey droid,

This is from a video on the right side of the last youtube link
you posted:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eHqlsvG ... re=related

This is the link for the electronics needed from the above youtube video:

http://www.tegpower.com/

It sounds like that answers your question or can help you get there.

Cheers,
Norm/mezmo


http://www.tegpower.com/

[droid_ca]

your bettor off with a amtek motor and some good old wind and some pvc pipe blades.

my buddy has one of these and they don't turn fast enough to do didlty and the heat won't make the blades move

its a motor doing that a tiney electric motor and you won't get enough out of a tiney electric motor to crap.

its the desingne that gernerates the juice when the heat heats the unit up.

I also tried a bickle generator on a model airplane prop when driviing down the road or a good old stly bike generator that powers a 6 volt head light on a bike.

would not turn fast enough to do didley.


slow

Slow I think you misunderstood what this is ment for I'm trying to gdt free power from a wood stove, but thanks for the tip on the wind generator , but I'll stick with the TEG generator

Hey droid,

This is from a video on the right side of the last youtube link
you posted:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eHqlsvG ... re=related

This is the link for the electronics needed from the above youtube video:

http://www.tegpower.com/

It sounds like that answers your question or can help you get there.

Cheers,
Norm/mezmo

http://www.tegpower.com/

Exactly thanks Norm that looks like it might just work I wonder if I could put it on my radiant barrier on the back of the wood stove so that I may incorporate more then one 50 watt TEG setup would be nice to light a fire and fully charge my batteries while I sleep as well as stay warm...Now a little more research

[Vindi_andy]

Looking at their products they already do a battery charger

Only $289.99

[Bogo]

If the output of the thermoelectric generator is in the right range, then a solar charge controller should be able to charge a battery from it.

[Shadow Catcher]

I think a lot of this comes under the heading of 'no free lunch'. I have for the most part given up the idea of an absorption chiller AC unit, the level of complication and expense... I understand the difficulty that droid has in generating electricity, remote location lack of sun due to location, but the better solution in my seldom humble opinion would be to recharge batteries from the TV, battery choice that will absorb/tolerate a high charge rate, using jumper/welding cable to get the full benefit of the TV alternator.

[droid_ca]

I think a lot of this comes under the heading of 'no free lunch'. I have for the most part given up the idea of an absorption chiller AC unit, the level of complication and expense... I understand the difficulty that droid has in generating electricity, remote location lack of sun due to location, but the better solution in my seldom humble opinion would be to recharge batteries from the TV, battery choice that will absorb/tolerate a high charge rate, using jumper/welding cable to get the full benefit of the TV alternator.

Thank you Shadow Catcher that is one of the options that I am planning on doing as well just there are times when you just don't want to fire up a generator or a tow vehicle...I guess it's a bit -O-Tinkerer in me that just wants to try something a little different

[Shadow Catcher]

I do appreciate thinking outside the box, adaptive reuse, witness the absorption chiller idea.
I was surprised at how well our solar panel worked last summer in situations where it should not and I am attributing this to the high voltage panel and MPPT controller. Two of the camp sites were in very deep shade, Big Basin Redwoods was all old growth redwood and our camp site got no direct sunlight and Diamond O was tall pine with very little sun. We used the lights and radio with XM receiver, water pump, water heater (DSI) and one night watched a DVD (no TV reception). The battery is a 150AH and we did not get below 70% SOC and it was made up the next day. The refrigerator some times was in the back of the car so running on the TV battery.

[eamarquardt]

ok I understand how these work with a temperature difference Seebeck effect effect no is the difference caused by the fan spinning and cooling the external fins what makes the thermocouple generate the electricity...just curious is there a way to maybe piggy back the circuit and have it generate small amounts of electricity as well...I know there are the pots out there that can do this they usually have an USB plug on them now if you were to get this extra electricity how would you hook it up so you can charge your battery would it have to go through a charge controler???

You answered your own question: "generate small amounts of electricity as well". You may need several of em in series to get the voltage you need to charge even a low voltage battery. They require high temperatures to work so you have to have a wood fire or gas burner going. You'd be far better off with solar panels.

But, if you buy enough of them and build a big enough fire anything is possible but it won't be cost effective.

Cheers,

Gus

[droid_ca]

I have been debating a bigger model of a TEG device as it is the night time when I'd want to charge up my batteries I'd like to have a solar panel for day time as well and I feel a wind generator would be too much of a pain in the .... to set up and take down all the time...I'd also like to get into doing some long distance traveling camping and would like to not worry about setting up and taking down...having dogs would be enough work
Thanks for all the input gives me some good ideas

[Bogo]

On these TEGs... If you are in the habit of always making a camp fire I can see the possibility of using one. The 15W charge rate of the one linked to is peanuts. To be usable I'd like to see 100W plus. Also, I'm not the type to sit around in camp all day. I hike around, etc. so I wouldn't be in camp much to tend the fire the TEG was sucking energy from.

[GuitarPhotog]

And regardless of location, how ecologically sound is building a wood fire to generate electricity?

<Chas>