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Charging AA & AAA for Amish community

Natty

Natty

New Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2023
Messages
23
Location
Michigan

Hi,

I am a Newbie on this board. I have watched many of the vids on Youtube. I hope to go off grid someday.

Anyways, I have been making friends with the Swartzentruber Amish ?in Michigan. (I am a healthcare worker). They are supper strict on technology. But there are always exceptions. They Don’t use propane at all, but DO use flashlights.

80 people are in this group and they go through buckets of disposable AA & AAA batteries.

They have allowed me to make some videos. I uploaded 1 of the vids to YouTube only for the purpose of THIS THREAD. I am not a youtuber at all.

So here is the reason for the post. They are using disposable batteries for their flashlights, but have agreed to let me install a system that will harvest power from the belt and pulley system to charge AA & AAA batteries. I know that a gas generator would do the same thing, but they are not allowed. (nor is solar)

They have a full machine shop and can easily fabricate any mounts/pulleys . And this system will be going in the machine shop at first. If it works, they plan to put it in a woodworking shop.

I am thinking of using a car alternator (so they can replace it easily). The Amishman says he can take care of the step up to 3,000 rpm (existing shaft is spinning at 750 Rpm). I am in charge of everything that comes after the alternator and into the AA batteries.

They will pay for the equipment (but hardware donations are welcome (if it is ok to say that)I am doing the labor/ordering for free. I want to help them stay independent, and also reduce the number of disposable batteries they use (5 gallon buckets full)

Machine shop- It only runs for short times. Like no more than 30 minutes, so I am guessing that intermediate battery storage is necessary.

Woodworking Shop- This one runs for hours at a time, so direct charging could work.

I am guessing the ability to charge 12+ batteries at a time is the goal. They need something easy to understand, and easy to replace.

Any advice/videos are welcome. Or if anyone is in the northern Michigan area, and wants to help me install, I can guarantee a day (and meals) you will not soon forget. These are salt of the earth people.

Thank You!!
 
Natty said:

Hi,

I am a Newbie on this board. I have watched many of the vids on Youtube. I hope to go off grid someday.

Anyways, I have been making friends with the Swartzentruber Amish ?in Michigan. (I am a healthcare worker). They are supper strict on technology. But there are always exceptions. They Don’t use propane at all, but DO use flashlights.

80 people are in this group and they go through buckets of disposable AA & AAA batteries.

They have allowed me to make some videos. I uploaded 1 of the vids to YouTube only for the purpose of THIS THREAD. I am not a youtuber at all.

So here is the reason for the post. They are using disposable batteries for their flashlights, but have agreed to let me install a system that will harvest power from the belt and pulley system to charge AA & AAA batteries. I know that a gas generator would do the same thing, but they are not allowed. (nor is solar)

They have a full machine shop and can easily fabricate any mounts/pulleys . And this system will be going in the machine shop at first. If it works, they plan to put it in a woodworking shop.

I am thinking of using a car alternator (so they can replace it easily). The Amishman says he can take care of the step up to 3,000 rpm (existing shaft is spinning at 750 Rpm). I am in charge of everything that comes after the alternator and into the AA batteries.

They will pay for the equipment (but hardware donations are welcome (if it is ok to say that)I am doing the labor/ordering for free. I want to help them stay independent, and also reduce the number of disposable batteries they use (5 gallon buckets full)

Machine shop- It only runs for short times. Like no more than 30 minutes, so I am guessing that intermediate battery storage is necessary.

Woodworking Shop- This one runs for hours at a time, so direct charging could work.

I am guessing the ability to charge 12+ batteries at a time is the goal. They need something easy to understand, and easy to replace.

Any advice/videos are welcome. Or if anyone is in the northern Michigan area, and wants to help me install, I can guarantee a day (and meals) you will not soon forget. These are salt of the earth people.

Thank You!!
Click to expand...
What power plant are they using to run the shaft?
 
Bobert said:
What power plant are they using to run the shaft?
Click to expand...
I just watched the video and that answered my question. In order to use an alternator you will also need to use a 12v battery that might not be allowed by the bishop. You might be able to use a generator from an antique car and be able to charge the batteries directly that way.
 
The alternator needs 12V to power the field coil. Or you could use some sort of permanent magnet generator. Generators from old cars don't have magnets but they do have what's called 'residual magnetism'. This is magnetism that is held by the generator but diminishes with non-use over time. After a few months, sometimes there is not enough residual magnetism to work so you need a battery to get it working again.
 
What kind of Amish are they (Old order or New)?
From this article, it seems that some Amish do use solar...
www.amishbaskets.com

Do the Amish Use Electricity (A Cultural Guide)

Do the Amish use electricity? It’s certainly a hot topic. Discover the complex love-and-hate relationship between the Amish and technology.
www.amishbaskets.com www.amishbaskets.com

Can't help much, but it's an interesting topic...
 
Bobert said:
I just watched the video and that answered my question. In order to use an alternator you will also need to use a 12v battery that might not be allowed by the bishop. You might be able to use a generator from an antique car and be able to charge the batteries directly that way.
Click to expand...
Thank you fo the reply.

I am thinking of an alternator because they are plentiful.

Since it will only be run for short times, I am thinking it would have charge a 12V battery as an intermediate battery. And then have the AA & AAA charger draw from the 12v battery.

The bishop is only concerned with the system having a plug. Like a 120v wall plug outlet. He just does not want anyone to be able to plug in something like a cell phone. As long as there is not a plug outlet, should be good to go
 
meetyg said:
What kind of Amish are they (Old order or New)?
From this article, it seems that some Amish do use solar...
www.amishbaskets.com

Do the Amish Use Electricity (A Cultural Guide)

Do the Amish use electricity? It’s certainly a hot topic. Discover the complex love-and-hate relationship between the Amish and technology.
www.amishbaskets.com www.amishbaskets.com

Can't help much, but it's an interesting topic...
Click to expand...
They are old order Swartzentruber Amish. Each district has its own rules for technology and society. For example, there is a group that is 5 miles south of this group that will take people that have been shunned from another group. This group does not.

And both of these groups broke away from the parent group over the use and growing of tobacco.

There are even Amish that drive cars. But the Amish I know do not consider them Amish.

I contribute some pictures and videos to the Amish America website. Eric has been very helpful in navigating this sub culture.
 
Interesting... We work with several groups of Amish and Mennonites. Some use full solar systems and power up their homes where others, like you say here, use only lifepo batteries. I've tried to go down the rabbit hole in find the differing rules by community. It's really all pretty interesting. Good luck with your project!
 
Texas-Mark said:
IMO that is overkill for recharging AA and AAA batteries. There are some bulk chargers that might take 5V or 12V as the input. Could just find a crank type generator that could be adapted.


Note: link above was just a quick search.
Click to expand...
Yes I agree an alternator is overkill, but they are very much into independence. And things wear out. I will die someday also...etc.

So I want them to have components that are easy to replace themselves. They can easily source alternators from wrecking yards. And that motor powers an entire machine shop. Plenty of power to sacrifice

 
BenFromSignatureSolar said:
Interesting... We work with several groups of Amish and Mennonites. Some use full solar systems and power up their homes where others, like you say here, use only lifepo batteries. I've tried to go down the rabbit hole in find the differing rules by community. It's really all pretty interesting. Good luck with your projec
Click to expand...

Thank you. I am hoping to get the point were I can have some ideas of hardware to put between the car alternator and the AA batteries
 
SolarRich said:
The alternator needs 12V to power the field coil. Or you could use some sort of permanent magnet generator. Generators from old cars don't have magnets but they do have what's called 'residual magnetism'. This is magnetism that is held by the generator but diminishes with non-use over time. After a few months, sometimes there is not enough residual magnetism to work so you need a battery to get it working agai
Click to expand...
I am sorry I an not really up on the technology. My solution of using an alternator might be ignorant.

Are you saying that an alternator from car (that is 7-10 years old) will not work?

In Michigan the cars don't last long because of the salt.
 
Natty said:
I am sorry I an not really up on the technology. My solution of using an alternator might be ignorant.

Are you saying that an alternator from car (that is 7-10 years old) will not work?
Click to expand...

Alternators need an excitation voltage to work. Hence the need for a 12V battery. But if the 12V battery is allowed, it does simplify things.
 
Texas-Mark said:
As noted, you will need a 12 V battery for the alternator. Since you would have 12V available (charged from the alternator), pretty much any charger that can run off of 12V will work.

Click to expand...
Thank you Texas-mark

(I am from Sherman BTW)

So you are thinking something like this-

shaft > car alternator > 12v battery (like a car battery??) > CITYORK 12 Slot LCD Smart Rechargeable Battery

Any fuses along the way? I really don't want to burn down the machine shop. There is oil everywhere they are not exactly into Health and Safety

​

 
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