Comments on: Bicycle Power – How many Watts can you produce? http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/ Energy and Water Conservation, Clean Energy Implementation Fri, 30 Jul 2010 18:41:43 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Chris http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-9916 Chris Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:40:46 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-9916 Vern, It sounds like you are just discussing a simple gearbox. If you increase the gear ratio, your speed increases but your torque decreases. This is essentially what your chain rings do on your bicycle. Vern,
It sounds like you are just discussing a simple gearbox. If you increase the gear ratio, your speed increases but your torque decreases. This is essentially what your chain rings do on your bicycle.

]]> By: vern http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-9915 vern Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:35:11 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-9915 you need allot of force or torque to move a bike especially up a hill, if less force or torque is needed to turn a generator you could have much different ratios between what your peddling and whats turning the crank what would be the math involved in calculating how much energy you would produce if a 10 degree rotation of your feet would = a 360 degree rotation of the generator? you need allot of force or torque to move a bike especially up a hill, if less force or torque is needed to turn a generator you could have much different ratios between what your peddling and whats turning the crank what would be the math involved in calculating how much energy you would produce if a 10 degree rotation of your feet would = a 360 degree rotation of the generator?

]]> By: Todd http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-7864 Todd Tue, 08 Jun 2010 06:55:21 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-7864 I agree, more gyms should go this route and actually take money off of your next month's bill as you produce power. I don't want to make inmates canned power plants though. I agree, more gyms should go this route and actually take money off of your next month’s bill as you produce power. I don’t want to make inmates canned power plants though.

]]> By: Joule Man http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-7863 Joule Man Tue, 08 Jun 2010 06:15:46 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-7863 A normal human being consumes about 100 Joules of energy every second ( 100 Watts of power = 100 Joules / second ) at rest. Over the course of 25 years of existence, that's about 79,000 Megajoules of energy ( 100 * 3600 seconds * 24 hours * 365.25 days * 25 years ). Enough energy to power 38 Hoover Dams for one second ( Hoover Dam produces 2080 Megajoules every second ) Now there's 6 billion people on the Earth. Suppose they're all in shape, well-fed and young (in their twenties) Just at rest, that's 600 Gigajoules of energy every second. Those 6 billion people use 21 600 Gigajoules of energy every second. Like said previously, humans as an energy source is useless! A normal human being consumes about 100 Joules of energy every second ( 100 Watts of power = 100 Joules / second ) at rest. Over the course of 25 years of existence, that’s about 79,000 Megajoules of energy ( 100 * 3600 seconds * 24 hours * 365.25 days * 25 years ). Enough energy to power 38 Hoover Dams for one second ( Hoover Dam produces 2080 Megajoules every second )

Now there’s 6 billion people on the Earth. Suppose they’re all in shape, well-fed and young (in their twenties) Just at rest, that’s 600 Gigajoules of energy every second. Those 6 billion people use 21 600 Gigajoules of energy every second. Like said previously, humans as an energy source is useless!

]]> By: knightman http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-6478 knightman Mon, 19 Apr 2010 07:56:34 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-6478 I just found this little item. Danish Hotel Lets You Pedal For A Free Meal... full article.. http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/2010/04/danish_hotel_lets_you_pedal_for_a_free_meal.html Students Tap Into Pedal Power.. full article.. http://www.theindychannel.com/news/23173311/detail.html Pedal power is not going to solve the energy problem any time soon but it can't hurt to try. I just found this little item.

Danish Hotel Lets You Pedal For A Free Meal…

full article..

http://www.ubergizmo.com/15/archives/2010/04/danish_hotel_lets_you_pedal_for_a_free_meal.html

Students Tap Into Pedal Power..

full article..

http://www.theindychannel.com/news/23173311/detail.html

Pedal power is not going to solve the energy problem any time soon but it can’t hurt to try.

]]> By: knightman http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-6475 knightman Mon, 19 Apr 2010 06:58:46 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-6475 Gyms and spinner clubs generating electrical power is not a bad idea and is being tried. Bang goes the theory did this little test. a large group of cyclists powering a home. worth a watch http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C93cL_zDVIM It takes more power/energy to build a primary cell structure battery than it generates in its lifetime, rechargables cells should give a better return for energy input. I have never been able to find good information on the costs assosiated with battery production, it would be interesting to know some real numbers. One thought about cycling generators and other workout equipment generating electrical power would be to have the inmates of jails and prisons. spend a manditory number of hours generating power as part of their regular daily routine. Gyms and spinner clubs generating electrical power is not a bad idea and is being tried.

Bang goes the theory did this little test. a large group of cyclists powering a home. worth a watch

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C93cL_zDVIM

It takes more power/energy to build a primary cell structure battery than it generates in its lifetime, rechargables cells should give a better return for energy input.
I have never been able to find good information on the costs assosiated with battery production, it would be interesting to know some real numbers.

One thought about cycling generators and other workout equipment generating electrical power would be to have the inmates of jails and prisons.
spend a manditory number of hours generating power as part of their regular daily routine.

]]> By: jharry3 http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-5351 jharry3 Wed, 17 Mar 2010 18:56:00 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-5351 The reason we are not riding around on electric powered scooters and bicycles is because they are illegal for use on the street in the USA. Change that law and a $250 Razor electric scooter that can go 15mph for an hour could get you to work. You could recharge it in your office during the day and ride back home. This would cost pennies of power. But the same government officials who promote energy savings would balk at letting electric scooters be legal on the road. The reason we are not riding around on electric powered scooters and bicycles is because they are illegal for use on the street in the USA.

Change that law and a $250 Razor electric scooter that can go 15mph for an hour could get you to work.
You could recharge it in your office during the day and ride back home.
This would cost pennies of power.
But the same government officials who promote energy savings would balk at letting electric scooters be legal on the road.

]]> By: How exercise can keep the lights on « Energy, Technology, & Policy http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-4086 How exercise can keep the lights on « Energy, Technology, & Policy Mon, 15 Feb 2010 01:09:34 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-4086 [...] Lance Armstrong could power an entire building. And well, none of us are Lance Armstrong. Sure, mapawatt says Lance can produce 400 to 500 watts while climbing up the French mountains, but he only [...] [...] Lance Armstrong could power an entire building. And well, none of us are Lance Armstrong. Sure, mapawatt says Lance can produce 400 to 500 watts while climbing up the French mountains, but he only [...]

]]> By: BCC http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-2829 BCC Tue, 15 Dec 2009 02:45:38 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-2829 Yeah, that's bad math re: Lance. Riding the TdF takes ~80 hours, not all at full output. So call it 300W x 80 hours = 24,000 W-h = 24 kWh. That will supply my house for about a day. There have been ~100 TdFs, and each one has ~150 finishers, and that gets you a total of 360,000 kWh of output. As CA uses about 360,000 GWh in a year (http://www.energyalmanac.ca.gov/electricity/total_system_power.html), and 1 GWh = 1,000,000 kWh, we find that all riders from all Tour de France performances could power CA for about 30 seconds (ballpark). The take-home is that our energy consumption drastically exceeds the human scale. Yeah, that’s bad math re: Lance. Riding the TdF takes ~80 hours, not all at full output. So call it 300W x 80 hours = 24,000 W-h = 24 kWh. That will supply my house for about a day. There have been ~100 TdFs, and each one has ~150 finishers, and that gets you a total of 360,000 kWh of output. As CA uses about 360,000 GWh in a year (http://www.energyalmanac.ca.gov/electricity/total_system_power.html), and 1 GWh = 1,000,000 kWh, we find that all riders from all Tour de France performances could power CA for about 30 seconds (ballpark).

The take-home is that our energy consumption drastically exceeds the human scale.

]]> By: johnny http://blog.mapawatt.com/2009/07/19/bicycle-power-watts/comment-page-1/#comment-1694 johnny Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:01:56 +0000 http://blog.mapawatt.com/?p=1160#comment-1694 NO NAKED MEN PLEASE NO NAKED MEN PLEASE

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