Has anyone ever made one of these and if so how did it work? Any pitfalls?


I have an old treadmill that has a good motor and it’s begging me to hack it up and make a wind generator out of it. Never made one of these, but I don’t see it as too hard of a project.

Sounds like fun! A few thoughts:

You need to use a DC motor, since they have permanent magnets. AC motors won't work. Something with bearings would be best; bushings fail pretty quickly on windmills.

You should also put a diode between the motor and battery. Otherwise, when the wind stops, your windmill will turn into a fan.

It's my understanding that most treadmill motors are DC motors. A number of homepower websites suggest using them.

-Blast

Aha! Thanks, Blast. I'll keep my "scrounge radar" scanning for one of those.

Another DC motor I've considered is an 18V cordless drill. Comes equipped with heavy duty ball/thrust bearings.

I want to build a floating run-of-river generator and try it on our local river.

Yep. I've seen plans on the internet on how to convert a cordless drill into a small, hand-cranked generator.

I'm always keeping my eyes out for discarded/cheap treadmills for there motors. treadmill generator

-Blast

From my readings the best wind generators are the home made kind you make using two wide disks. One with seperate coil wrappings and one with a circle of super strong magnets.

Certain types of car alternator work too but you need to drive them off a pulley or chain to get their speed up to workable levels.

I have no real need for a wind generator, but it sounds like a fun thing to play with making.