I can see how that'd be misinterpreted; perhaps I should have made myself clearer. I'm saying that a lot of the projects that come through Kickstarter suck, but sometimes you get something awesome, like Sterling engines, CreaVures, or giant bronze statues of RoboCop.
There's an Utena convention in Seattle. This would be my thing of my day, but I can't go to it and Otakon, and we've already booked our hotel and flights for that.
There's an Utena convention in Seattle. This would be my thing of my day, but I can't go to it and Otakon, and we've already booked our hotel and flights for that.
My mistake. I was doing research for an Utena thing I might do, and there was a link to something called "Rosecon." Turns out it's just a party for the "In the Rose Garden" forum. Here's the link if you still want to go.
Quite frequently, Kickstarter sucks. Sometimes, though, Kickstarter projects do something really, really awesome. Take, for instance, the Volo One Sterling Engine, which aims to have a $250 Sterling Engine kit ready by May. The difference between the small (but nearly as expensive) desktop models and the Volo One is that the Volo aims to be a sustainable electricity solution for a small dwelling. In conjuction with a wood-burning stove (or, better yet, a biomass gassifier), you have a sustainable power and heat solution for an entire building for about $800. That's a win if I've ever seen one.
Woah, that is incredible. I could be off the grid! It would pay for itself in just a few months, too, considering how much I spend on electricity each month.
This is a pretty cool thing. Apparently they're opening a high school focussing on software engineering in NYC. If this works out, I could see a lot of schools finally including actual programming into their curriculums.
Quite frequently, Kickstarter sucks. Sometimes, though, Kickstarter projects do something really, really awesome. Take, for instance, the Volo One Sterling Engine, which aims to have a $250 Sterling Engine kit ready by May. The difference between the small (but nearly as expensive) desktop models and the Volo One is that the Volo aims to be a sustainable electricity solution for a small dwelling. In conjuction with a wood-burning stove (or, better yet, a biomass gassifier), you have a sustainable power and heat solution for an entire building for about $800. That's a win if I've ever seen one.
Woah, that is incredible. I could be off the grid! It would pay for itself in just a few months, too, considering how much I spend on electricity each month.
I'll have to do some further reading on this.
Yeah, the advantage is that commercial MCHP (micro combined heat and power) systems produce only 1/10th the energy (they use engines rated at 10kW/hr), whereas this can put out 100kW/hr. You could run your whole house off of that, and the fact that the engine is sold as a single component gives you a lot to work with. This whole project really interests me since my uncle asked for my help designing some renewable energy for his home and adjacent studio in the Wisconsin Kettle Morraine, and I'm thinking of building a small lab/hackerspace and smokehouse out there with his blessing.
I've been thinking of a MCHP based on this which would consist of a tall air-fed Furnace built of refractory firebrick. About a foot up from the hatch (and thus, the firepit) would be a matrix of copper pipe which passes through the furnace before emptying into a tank as a simple hot water heater. Another foot up would be an opening for the cylinder of the Volo. A small PC would use an Arduino to coordinate the system (add fuel, manage blower speeds for optimum burn temp, manage the relays and battery banks for the generator). That way, you could get hot water, heating, and power all from a single unit.
EDIT: A better (and cheaper) idea is to buy a boiler and fire both that and the engine off of the same furnace.
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I start on Tuesday.
I'll have to do some further reading on this.
I've been thinking of a MCHP based on this which would consist of a tall air-fed Furnace built of refractory firebrick. About a foot up from the hatch (and thus, the firepit) would be a matrix of copper pipe which passes through the furnace before emptying into a tank as a simple hot water heater. Another foot up would be an opening for the cylinder of the Volo. A small PC would use an Arduino to coordinate the system (add fuel, manage blower speeds for optimum burn temp, manage the relays and battery banks for the generator). That way, you could get hot water, heating, and power all from a single unit.
EDIT: A better (and cheaper) idea is to buy a boiler and fire both that and the engine off of the same furnace.