Pedal Power Bike Wars!
HOW MUCH ELECTRICITY CAN WE DIVERT FROM THE GRID BY USING INDIVIDUAL PEDAL CHARGERS CONNECTED TO BATTERY PACKS?
THE INSPIRATION
During our Net-Zero Living project we had a group that challenged themselves to try and convert a stationary bike into a USB charger. This served as the basis for our application to the Inside Education A+ for Energy grant program. We had a plan to convert multiple stationary bikes and divert electricity from the grid.
THE CHALLENGES
What seemed like a straightforward conversion, turned out to be more challenging than expected. The model of bikes our school owned was not conducive to making the transition as we had hoped. Even after connecting with a company that makes kits for such a purpose, it was confirmed that our original idea was not going to work.
THE SOLUTION
Refusing to give up, we managed to locate some pedal chargers from a company called K-TOR which would serve the same purpose and were able to order 10 devices to continue with the project.
ASSEMBLY AND DATA COLLECTION
The 10 chargers needed some assembly and modification - our grade 8 Environmental and Outdoor Education class assembled all of the chargers and we received help from Mr. Patterson's Construction class to add some wooden anchors and non-slip pads to stabilize the chargers and make them easier to use on the non-carpeted floors.
In order for our competition to work, we needed to gather data so we could determine how many kWh could be generated from the chargers and how much was required to charge cell phones.
LET THE COMPETITION BEGIN!
After gathering multiple charging cords and plugs, classes were given the opportunity to sign up for a week with the pedal chargers. They could charge phones, tablets, chromebooks and power packs. The power packs were the most common item we charged up and students were then able to sign out the packs to charge their phones with, thereby diverting electricity from the electrical grid. We were also able to translate the electrical power into an approximation of how much CO2 was able to be prevented from being released into the atmosphere.
Each class that participated received a certificate that outlined what their hard work had contributed to the project. We managed to involve students from grades 2 through grade 9!
Once we concluded the competition we tallied up all of the results and students were amazed at what they were able to do with, what felt like, a small change.
FINAL SUMMARY VIDEO
While this project had its fair share of challenges, in the end it was a rewarding project with easily trackable results! Watch our video for more footage and explainations!