http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog open source / hardware renewable energy projects Sat, 22 Oct 2011 22:42:09 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I've put this together quickly as something that will hopefully be useful for occupybristoluk (twitter web) It's based on the mobile phone wind charger I've been working on recently, with an added frame for a bike and a 24v scooter motor. http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2011/10/bicycle-phone-charger/ Gas and electricity monitoring with a battery powered, wireless monitor, uploading to pachube via a nanode! Read more about it here: http://openrenewables.org.uk/wiki/index.php/Gas_and_electricity_monitor http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2011/07/gas-and-electricity-monitor/ I was asked by the Calthorpe project to come up with a project that combined hands on building and science with renewable energy, into something useful and interesting to visitors. We finally decided on a wind powered mobile phone charger; the wind charges a battery and then this power is available ... http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2011/06/wind-powered-mobile-phone-charger-for-the-calthorpe-project/ The bike cinema kept getting broken because it was being used for a purpose that it wasn't designed for. After talking with Chris and Gustavo we came up with a set of upgrades that would ensure the bike cinema keeps working! battery isolate switch for storage, toughen the insides to make sure ... http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2010/09/hcf-bike-cinema-updated/ The solar irrigation system has now been installed and calibrated. The water is running in the poly tunnel - rain water pumped with solar energy! http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2010/02/solar-irrigation-system-installed-and-calibrated/ I was just reading about river simple's hydrogen car - a really excellent concept. Not only is it a breakthrough in technology (50% efficient at recovering energy lost through braking), it's a breakthrough in car ownership. Their motto is 'sustainable mobility', and this is achieved by leasing the cars rather than ... http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2010/01/river-simples-open-source-hydrogen-car/ Check out the latest update to the wiki: a DIY solar rainbow maker! For £10 you can get everything you need to build a cool solar powered rainbow maker. It works by collecting energy from the sun and using it to turn around a lead glass crystal. When you the ... http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2010/01/diy-solar-rainbow-maker/ I'm excited, pleased and proud to announce that I've been awarded money from UnLtd! The money will go to pay for the development of the modular bike charge controller and the open charge controller project, which will make it easier for us DIY green hackers to create renewable energy systems. http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2009/12/unltd-funding/ I've been trying to make sense of all the different options for measuring current in a circuit. I've started a page on the wiki here. http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2009/12/current-sensing/ I did a full test of the solar irrigation project yesterday. Everything worked well apart from the voltage sensing. This was easily fixed with a different sized resistor. Now we're just waiting for the plumbing to be fixed and we can install! http://openrenewables.org.uk/blog/2009/12/full-system-test-of-solar-irrigation-project/