Grid-Tied Bicycle system

DickyDck

Hey all, not sure if this is the right section but it looked proper. I am thinking about trying to build one of these for kicks, since I try to stay healthy and have a elliptical, a treadmill, and was thinking about a standing bike for my home gym, so I thought... why not try to do this? Could someone tell me what is going on here?

https://www.thegreenmicrogym.com/product/upcycle-ecocharger-diy-kit-250-grid-tied/

I see an inverter, that much is simple enough to figure out.
I see a male-to-male cord, seems like a bad idea but whatever
I see a rectifier, maybe a diode? Relay perhaps? 5 connections? what is this? (this is what I would really like some guidance on)
And of course the bike that serves as the generator, I'm not paying 1g for a bicycle and an alternator, can find these separately and probably more efficient, I can fabricate a stand for my 30 dollar walmart bike :-)

This seems to not have a battery in the setup which makes sense since this isn't designed to power a backup system, though potentially could?

I apologize in advance if this has been brought up before, my search criteria didn't come up with much.

mcgivor

Say you were able to produce 200W for 1 hour per day, in a month you would produce 6 kw, if the cost of grid power is $0.15, in a month  you would save $0.90, in a year  $10.80. The amount of time needed to break even  would be 101.85 years, not including taxes where applicable or additional food cost to provide the extra energy.  

BB.

The block is a 3 phase AC to DC rectifier (similar to what is used for a car alternator). The "generator" is some sort of 3 phase PM Motor (permanent magnet) or just a small alternator (rotating magnetic field/rotor, and a stationary 3 phase set of coils.

The GT inverter is one of the inexpensive imports. Something like this (this is a 500 Watt version):

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00Y0XJEYG

A Kill-a-Watt meter to show Watts and kWH generated.

If there is a "suicide cord" (cord with male plugs, both ends)--Yeah, you don't want that floating around the home.

That kit does not include the bicycle--Just the generation parts.

People have been known to salvage a motor from an old treadmill for the alternator/generator.

Probably less than $200 worth of parts (or even 1/2 that if you shop around).

As McGivor typed, not going to make/save any money. A typical human is going to be able to generate 100-200 Watts for an hour or so...

-Bill

DickyDck

I know I’m not going to generate anything real with this rig, but I spend a fair amount of time in my gym and figured this would add some extra purpose to that time and it is a weekend project that could be done relatively quick in boredom. Thanks for the info! Wonder if they make 48v alternators....