admin answers:

An automobile alternator will generate about 700 watts if spinning at the proper speed. You may need a belt drive to get to that speed.

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admin answers:

A traditional windmill is the easiest to build – that is pretty flat blades mounted in a vertical circle with a tail piece to aim it into the wind. The shaped blades of a propellor type wind generator are much harder to make as are the mixer shaped blades of a vertical windmill.
The big problem of making a model of a standard windwill is getting the power out. The shaft the blade turns on must have a crank or gears that line up with the center of rotation of the head, so the blade axle must have a bearing on either side of the crank or gear head – in a small model, getting these bearings mounted, etc., gets more tricky than in a bigger device.
If pumping is done with a crank, there must be counterweights so the windmill is only lifting water and not the weight of the shaft. If gearing is used, the tail must be bigger to offset the torque from the load (otherwise the spinning of the blades will rotate the head around the gears.
The second reference in particular will give you good data.

admin answers:

I think you are looking for deep cycle batteries, the same kind that are used with solar collectors.

Try some of these sites…

Edit – to answer the question “Why not car batteries?” … The difference between a deep-cycle and car battery is that deep-cycle batteries contain solid lead and withstand “deep-cycling” (losing up to 80% charge) better than automotive batteries, which have a different construction. Car batteries are designed to give you more “starting” power and stay up above 50% charge. Deep-cycling a car battery can result in a quicker breakdown of the core, thus increasing cost in the long-run.

admin answers:

Call your electric company; the folk you would have had to call anyway to get connected & let them know that you would like a reverse meter so that they can measure how much energy that you are back feeding. There is specific wiring for this that has to be approved through your county anyway & it is a safety feature for people working on the lines after a storm so you don’t inadvertantly electrocute a lineman who is trying to restore power around you. They will no doubt have the answers that you need or can advise you on where to look for the insurance. The way that you do a million dollar insurance policy is called an UMBRELLA POLICY on the homeowner’s. That isn’t hard. It is a property insurance that goes above what the homeowner’s insurance carries. The UMBRELLA coverage is a catastrophic event coverage that is called secondary insurance. It isn’t even very expensive as it covers after everything else has been exhausted first. Go to yahoo & google Umbrella insurance & then if that doesn’t work, look at commercial insurance companies in your area. I know that CNA which is a HUGE insurance company, they write in Texas & may be able to write your friend the policy that he needs. I hope this helps. I used to do underwriting assistance for them & I helped insure folk in Texas in particular.