NEWBIE Needs direction and assistance building a wind generator!

[Northern-Lights]

Hello all!

I'm new here, and this is my 1st post.

I am actually an electronics tech, but it has been many years since I have worked in my field, and I have forgotten ALOT since back in the day when I was even designing my own circuits, making my own PCB's, and "inventing" new things...LOL.

What I'm wanting to do is to create my own wind generator, nothing huge, just to generate some watts to charge the few Deep Cycle Marine cells that I have, which are currently connected to an el-cheapo Chinese solar regulator, and only two 15 watt solar cells to charge them.

I'm hoping that I can build a cheap and dirty wind generator to add a bit more charge to the system, and eventually, when I get more serious (and have more MONEY) I'll actually expand on the system, and make something worthwhiloe, that actually WILL save me a bit of money on the monthly power bill.

Until then, I just want to start off small, get a firm grip on what I'm doing, and build it up as I can.

I have a  fairly good idea how things work, but have forgotten many things, so I'm hoping someone here can set me on the right path and get me building something that is not too complex, and will just generate some power.

I actually have a very small permanent magnet motor, it's a Baldor 90VDC 1725RPM .04TE HP .25AMP permanent magnet brush motor, that when I simply connect an LED and a current limiting resistor to the power supply leads to the motor, and spin it with my fingers, the LED glows brightly, so I know it will generate a fair amount of current, and I'm hoping I can for not utilize this small motor for a generator, even though it is really small, just until I can afford to buy a proper motor to make some real current with.

I know the "proper" way to do things is to start off with the "right" things first, but in the way I'm going to attach the motor to a bearing and shaft driven prop, i can easily just replace the motor later with a better one.

what I want to know is "how" to connect it to the charge controller? Do I need to put a diode in line with the output of the motor? If so, where?

I notice that the LED only lights up if I turn the motor in one direction, indicating that the polarity will change depending on which way the shaft turns, so which way "should" it turn, clockwise, or counter-clockwise??

Do I need to worry about the motor spinning too fast and burning something out, or is that not a concern?

I've just never used a motor to generate electricity before, so I am wondering what the basic circuit is to connect it to the charge controller, and to ensure it not only is protected properly, but also to ensure that I don't either damage the motor or that charge controller, or whatever else I don't even know that I don't even know!

I'm sure that there is something written "somewhere" in this forum, I "did" look first before asking, so please forgive me if I'm asking the same redundant question that everyone keeps asking over and over!
Thanks!
Chris

[neptune]

I assume that the motor terminals are marked poitive and negative . Connect it to a battery and note which way it turns . Arrange if possible for it to turn in that direction when wind driven . I f you want to charge a battery you need a diode in line , and also an amp meter .  In order to charge , the generator voltage needs to exceed the battery voltage . Connect the positive motor terminal via the diode to the battery positive . connect the motor negative to the battery negative .Break the circuit at any point and connect the amp meter accross the gap . Hope this helps .

[Northern-Lights]

I assume that the motor terminals are marked poitive and negative . Connect it to a battery and note which way it turns . Arrange if possible for it to turn in that direction when wind driven . I f you want to charge a battery you need a diode in line , and also an amp meter .  In order to charge , the generator voltage needs to exceed the battery voltage . Connect the positive motor terminal via the diode to the battery positive . connect the motor negative to the battery negative .Break the circuit at any point and connect the amp meter accross the gap . Hope this helps .

Thanks for your reply.

Can you be a bit more "specific about what I need to do please?

The diode, what kind of diode should I use, what voltage and current rating? Also, I have a few multimeter laying around, if I connect one inline to monitor current, "why" am I doing that? What am I looking for?

Which lead should the diode be on, the positive, or negative, or both??
Is there a specific current I'm supposed to be watching for, meaning to ensure it does not fall below "X" number, or rise above a certain number also?

I thought I needed a charge controller to be between the batteries and the wind generator (which I have), do I still need a meter inline if I have the charge controller?

Thanks!
Chris

[neptune]

The diode needs to be cabable of carrying the max charge current which is dependent on wind speed , state of battery and max output of generator .With home built system , you will need to experiment a bit . Fit the diode [ start with a 5 amp diode ] in the positive lead . To check that the diode is connected right way round , connect your generator to a lamp or led with diode in positive lead . If it is right way round , the lamp will light when generator is spun . In a low power system , a charge controller is not important  . I have no experience of these , but it may be that if you use a charge controller you don't need a diode . You would use an ampmeter or multimeter to monitor the charge current to see if it works , and how well . The purpose of a charge cotroller is to prevent overcharge of the batteries .I would guess that at this stage that will be the least of your problems . The purpose of the diode is so that if the wind stops , your batteries can not discharge by "motoring" the generator .

[Northern-Lights]

Thanks Neptune for that info, it's all basic stuff, stuff that I SHOULD know myself, being involved with electronics for so long. The truth is, I'm disabled due to a brain injury, and my memory is severely effected, so it's very difficult for me to remember certain things. Oddly, I could calculate the wavelength of a helical wound antenna at any given frequency, but I can't seem to add 2+2...LOL

I get the diode things, about ensuring battery drain does not occur, but I was wondering if it needed to be on BOTH leads, or just one lead, and if there was a certain "standard" about which direction the turbine spun in. Obviously, which ever direction that it spins dictates the polarity of the voltage generated, and I would connect the proper leads accordingly based on that polarity, but what I also was wondering was what if the prop spun tremendously fast, and ALOT of current was generated?

Is there a chance that the motor would over heat or anything, or that "too much" current could be created for this system?

I like a charge controller, because it STOPS the amount of current from entering the batteris if the batteries are full, thus preventing over charging. I actually DO have those other two 15 watt solar panels currently connected to the batteries via that charge controller, and just wanted to add this wind power to that power input.

I'm really just wondering what measures need to be taken to ensure that this system is built properly, and won't be a fire hazard, and want to ensure nothing blows up, over heats, or otherwise destroys itself if the wind gets to be too much, as it is REALLY windy here in Nova Scotia Canada right now!

Also, eventually, I'll be pulling this tiny motor, and replacing it with a larger unit eventually, and wanted to have a system already set up to accommodate that when the time comes.

I didn't want to confuse things by asking too many questions at once, as my questions don't "all" seem to get answered that way, but additionally, I was wondering which is the better way to go, once I get serious about this later, should I wind my own generator type device using high powered magnets, or, should I purchase a permanent DC motor on ebay or something?

Which will yield the best power, a motor, or a home would generator with magnets? Which is the best route to go?

Chris