Do not get them wet!

BOXKARS
Shop deals on ebay
Advertise with us
Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum

Help Support Rat Rod Bikes Bicycle Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Status
Not open for further replies.
When NY shut down Indian Point Nuclear Plant for no real good reason,
folks were like, "Why did we just do that?" And it weakened the entire
power grid all the way into NYC because it's not like they replaced it with
another power source. I'm speaking ad lib only because it's late and my
memory doesn't always serve me well. Rumors abound at that time about
Cuomo and his ties to Soros, since they're neighbors and all up in the
Mt. Kisco/ Chappaqua area of Putnam County. The Clintons live there too.
Coincidence maybe. Funny how we're being jammed with Green energy
stuff but the moment am offshore wind farm and/or tidal energy plant
was proposed off the coast in the Hamptons it was met with extremely
fierce opposition by the extremely wealthy NIMBYs. See above Ulu's post
on the rich $$$ doing as they please. There is a wind farm off the coast of
Block Island, RI which can be seen from Montauk Point, which I find most
fascinating whenever I see it on a clear day. You go Rhode Island! :grin:
 
A couple of things occurred to me when I read that.

The first one is that Westinghouse, in 1900, was in great opposition to any system where he wasn’t able to sell power by the kilowatt hour.

The second was the prediction, when I was a child in 1960, that atomic energy would produce electricity so cheap we wouldn’t need meters.

So what happens when the unstoppable force meets the immovable object?

Look about you. The answer is chaos.
 
Hertz to Sell 20,000 EVs in Shift Back to Gas-Powered Cars
Jan 11 (Reuters) - Hertz Global Holdings will sell about 20,000 electric vehicles (EVs) from its U.S. fleet, the rental firm said on Thursday, citing higher expenses related to collision and damage, and opt for gas-powered vehicles

.https://finance.yahoo.com/news/1-hertz-sell-20-000-124046911.html

Ørsted cancels two offshore wind projects along New Jersey coast
The projects had become financially unworkable due to supply chain problems and increased interest rates, the company said.
https://www.utilitydive.com/news/or...fshore-project-development-new-jersey/698464/
Developers cancel major wind agreement off Long Island, citing economic headwinds
Developers behind a proposed offshore wind farm 20 miles from Long Beach on Long Island said Wednesday they were terminating the agreement due to economic headwinds, including inflation, higher interest rates and supply chain disruptions.
https://gothamist.com/news/develope...ect-off-long-island-citing-economic-headwinds
 
Last edited:
d682fd1fdaef459c392f64f1e88b9c4e.jpg
 
Not that I read the Times but there is an article relevant to the discussion.
I just can't seem to forward the link. Here's yesterday's title and author(s) for credit:

Times​

How to Build a Wind Farm Off the Coast of New York​

Text by Patrick McGeehan
Visuals by Joe Buglewicz Jan. 11, 2024

It's more of a photo collage with simple terminology, more like a picture article from the NY Post
if you ask me. The one nugget that I gleaned was the $2B price tag to build South Fork Wind Farm. Ultimately it's always we the consumers that foot that bill with exorbitant interest. Only time will tell
if all of this will be a wonderful boondoggle or the next greatest thing that saves the world? We can
only hope that they get it right the first time. They won't. But we can watch and hope. 🤞 I love these
big wind mills for some reason. Maybe it's the sleek design or the basics of harnessing the power
of the wind. Both. I think we're going to look back at these early designs and say "Wow, that's kinda
ugly compared to the $900B wind farm we built across the Rockies to replace the aging Hoover Dam."
:soapbox:
 
They really need an energy boost out there with all of the rolling blackouts. They were urged not to charge their electric cars for A time on the west coast. Something has to give. Maybe wind will be part of the answer.
 
Last edited:
Da Gas Man said:
NY shut down Indian Point Nuclear Plant for no real good reason,
folks were like, "Why did we just do that?"
Click to expand...
Because the government pays trillions in subsides to the fossil fuel industry

"the agreement that shuttered Indian Point came when natural gas was cheap. Entergy cited competition from natural gas in the energy market as the prime mover behind its decision to close a plant that had generated electricity for Westchester County and New York City for six decades."
The 2021 shutdown of the Indian Point nuclear power plant led to near-total dependence on fossil fuels to produce electricity ..."

"https://www.imf.org/en/Blogs/Articles/2023/08/24/fossil-fuel-subsidies-surged-to-record-7-trillion"

It's almost as if all that fossil fuel lobbying worked. Imagine the disinformation they could achieve against electric vehicles
 
To be very clear, I'm not pro nuclear. Just anti fossil fuels. I don't believe that either our current nuclear technology, or burning dinosaurs bones are the future.
I live a kilometre or two from a gigantic hydroelectric dam, it kinda messed up the area a bit, but people have been developing this area for hundreds of years, so it wasn't really pristine to begin with. Also, I'm a Dutchman. I liked windmills before they were electrified too. I love the look of the big towers and spinning fans in the countryside, there's a few of them in my area. Farmers are making some good money too, installing solar panels on barns and in fields, getting government money to build them, and selling electricity to the power companies
 
Last edited:
You can’t usually judge by what the government funds. That is about waffling policies vs science & policy always wins.

(Sometimes to where the policy legally becomes the science. Legal fictions are our reality. LOL )

The government subsidizes the solar biz too. A LOT here in CA. They are jinxing the local oil biz to fund solar.

BUT, Retiring worn out windmills is becoming a growing industry here.

They wear out much faster than expected due to bird and debris strikes causing a buildup of destructive vibration. Some of the companies which built them are going out of business, leaving no warranties.

Windmills were all built under government subsidy here, and Never were economically viable in the long run, unless electricity prices rose to unbelievable measures. They were not allowed to. Govt regulated prices are the rule.

The public pays to disassemble these windmills for scrap after about 20-30 years. The fiberglass blades they burn in a co-generation facility that makes electricity from garbage. They burn well being petro-based plastic.

Our local hydroelectric powerhouse was built in the 1930s and is still generating.
 
I’m trying hard not to slander any person, race, gender, or political party.

IMHO It’s ok to have a failed experiment in science or governance, as long as the cost is paid in data and experience.

Experimentation rules. It’s what gets me out of bed in the morning. But you must learn from it.

If we keep making windmills I would expect them to be better engineered in the future. We can build efficient vortex tower generators. All the heavy stuff moving stays flat on the ground, with a vaned tower above.

They would look like a bunch of big chess pieces sitting on a hill. They are not romantic looking like a Dutch windmill.

For that main reason (I think) the idea was discarded. They work and they would last, but cost a bit more too. It’s not a new design, but it’s a better idea.

I remembered this because I was outside in the dark playing with designs for a homemade vortex hobo stove.

Like the vortex tower, the secret is in the swirl.

E021F0A8-6FAC-4EC3-BB18-41ED9D7BCF4D.jpeg


This is a failed experiment. The vortex works great, but there’s not enough air yet. Hot as hades but it smokes. When it cools off, it will get more holes.
B9FEB41F-9C00-45C3-A560-D9228BDDD375.jpeg
 
Captain Awesome said:
Hard time staying away from politics with a topic like this
Click to expand...
I agree!

We do not drive much, thanks to the Dutch bicycle path and great infrastructure we can do a lot by bicycle. We drive a simple petrol car for about a few thousand kilometres a year.
The thing I find most difficult is the lobby-ing and interests of/by governments/corporations so that 'green' choices are clouded for the masses. While I do believe people mean well.

Ulu said:
I’m trying hard not to slander any person, race, gender, or political party.

IMHO It’s ok to have a failed experiment in science or governance, as long as the cost is paid in data and experience.

Experimentation rules. It’s what gets me out of bed in the morning. But you must learn from it.

If we keep making windmills I would expect them to be better engineered in the future. We can build efficient vortex tower generators. All the heavy stuff moving stays flat on the ground, with a vaned tower above.

They would look like a bunch of big chess pieces sitting on a hill. They are not romantic looking like a Dutch windmill.

For that main reason (I think) the idea was discarded. They work and they would last, but cost a bit more too. It’s not a new design, but it’s a better idea.

I remembered this because I was outside in the dark playing with designs for a homemade vortex hobo stove.

Like the vortex tower, the secret is in the swirl.

View attachment 256783

This is a failed experiment. The vortex works great, but there’s not enough air yet. Hot as hades but it smokes. When it cools off, it will get more holes.View attachment 256784
Click to expand...

That is a cool experiment!
 
Like all heat engines, efficiency is related to the temp of the hot side vs cold side.

If it runs at very low delta T’s then it won’t make much power for its mass. These types are characterized by low torque at speed and no starting torque, requiring a push of the flywheel.

It won’t take much torque to start it, nor will it ever produce such. They wear out fast from a flurry of mechanism.

Now, I Always thought a car might be propelled by heat collected from the tarmac, and radiated to the sky by fans on the roof.

Summer temps in the desert of 100F are often accompanied by city street temps of 150F. That’s a delta T you could love, if you could collect the heat.
 
BartRidesEternal said:
I agree!

We do not drive much, thanks to the Dutch bicycle path and great infrastructure we can do a lot….
Click to expand...

Ours is ok in Clovis, but not great. I need to get out for more pix.

BartRidesEternal said:
That is a cool experiment!
Click to expand...
I added this little dome to the previous version. It made a little blowtorch from all the chimney effect, but spoiled the lovely swirls of fire.
64F61152-BB98-48C5-82F3-F6B22FBBD617.jpeg


I have only slightly achieved the coveted blue flames…
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest posts

Back
Top