On Sat, 22 May 2010 23:40:15 -0700, Winston
wrote the following:

On 5/22/2010 11:37 AM, Eregon wrote:
wrote in
news


I favor "green" energy sources too, BUT-- Anyone here wanna
calculate the square footage of solar panels needed to strike and
maintain a 110 Amp, 30 Volt welding arc for an average workday?
Say, stick welding 30 to 45 lbs of 1/8" 11018? I bet those panels
would be pretty darn big to support just one welder.

With a couple of matteries and a charger system, they would not need
to be very big.

i

The time ratio gets pretty ugly very quickly. A standard 120 portable
MIG welder draws around 2400 watts. A moderate solar panel (36"
square) puts out 45 watts in direct sunlight (and aimed at the sun)
http://www.harborfreight.com/45-watt...kit-90599.html
So you would need an hour of charging to weld for 1 minute.


Or at least 60 such units.

Not only would that be expen$ive but would really clutter up the place -
and youstill wouldn't be able to work after sundown or on cloudy days.
G

IIRC, wind turbines yield higher bang for the buck
as do photovoltaics, on average.

Here y'go, $1.25 per peak watt:
http://www.magnet4less.com/product_i...roducts_id=760

A 4.5 hour wind storm gets you an hour of welding per
turbine (at midnight, too.)

Yabbut, having to wait for a storm is a wank of a style.

Fuel cells might be in our future, and our box could power several
neighbors' homes, too. Instead of propane, the truck comes once every
few months with hydrogen. Google's doing it on a much grander scale
with its Bloom Boxes. http://fwd4.me/Pcr

--
Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when
they do it from religious conviction. - Blaise Pascal