We spied an article on a green gym in the Seattle area that uses pedal power to run the gym's music system and a portable DVD player. With plans to extend the system to power the lights, he's got enough foot power to keep his small gym running. So we wondered, with a little bit of work and investment, could you power your gadgets and get a good workout at the same time? Could we do what he was doing in our own home?
We couldn't find any specifics on Adam's setup, but found this tutorial on how to build your own "human powered energy generator."
Instructables also features a step-by-step guide on how to build your own machine. We have yet to find an attractive solution, but the actually constructing doesn't seem to be difficult or costly. Finding a way to hide the battery and generator in your home may prove to be the biggest challenge. But if you're committed to saving electricity and getting a good workout, this is one interesting way to power your gadgets.
Front Image: Barbie Hull
Originally posted by Kelly on Unplggd.
© 2010 Apartment Therapy
I haven't seen anyone try to run much more then one appliance like a toaster or grain mill off pedal power but I suppose if you had a big family and a system to store the energy you could do more with it.
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I was wondering when this would catch on. We live in hurricane country and it would be nice to have something like this just to charge a lantern or cell phone.
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When I was an undergrad at Humboldt State University less than a decade ago we would power a music stage with about six bikes. The concert area at our main quad was easily powered with folks ready to hop on.
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