Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

youtube.com

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

91–100 of 171 posts

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#91

Post by trenchpilgrim »

QuadrupleA wrote: post #82
xarope wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Someone write a novel please. Not sure who will be more appropriate: Stross (more fun?), Stephenson (more of a slog through the first 600 pages, then an abrupt 180 and frenetic action in the last 100 with newly introduced, yet game-changing characters?).

Cory Doctorow perhaps? At first glance I thought the OP was quoting him.

This was literally a plot element in "Big Brother" - the protagonists use modded xboxes to create a mesh network to avoid government surveillance.

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#92

Post by ddalex »

xarope wrote: post #78
crmd wrote: post #28

After all networked smartphones and computers were placed under control of the regime, resistance hackers relied on microcontrollers harvested from ordinary household devices like smart lamps and vape pens to slowly rebuild the covert but resilient mesh internetwork that became known as FreeNet.

Someone write a novel please. Not sure who will be more appropriate: Stross (more fun?), Stephenson (more of a slog through the first 600 pages, then an abrupt 180 and frenetic action in the last 100 with newly introduced, yet game-changing characters?).

I really love Stephenson's world building and detailed research, but I get the feeling he himself gets bored with the book at a certain point :)

So I vote Stross

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#93

Post by froh »

hrimfaxi wrote: post #62
Fwirt wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

See my other reply, when people count energy costs they fail to take into account the existing sunk cost of producing said resources, and the energy from having to build out new infrastructure to create these “more efficient” datacenters. It’s like when people replace their fridge with a “more efficient” one and wipe out any energy savings with the cost of the new fridge. The difference in energy use will not pay for…

The only energy cost that matters is to the operator. Old hardware costs more to run so why would I run it? That there was energy used to produce the device and the replacement is literally not a factor in the calculation.

no.

you have to go for TCO to justify upgrades. energy alone most of the time doesn't justify replacing old hardware.

factor in space (=rent), age related increase in failure rate (=servicing), computer power needs (=opportunity costs) then together with the energy needs you find good points in time to justify an upgrade.

energy is the least relevant of those.

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#94

Post by jbl0ndie »

oulipo2 wrote: post #27
viraptor wrote: post #3

Just curious: if you wanted to do something like that, but prevent a... thermal event, how would you protect an experimental battery realistically? Build a brick enclosure? A fire safe?

Shameless plug: we're building a repairable e-bike battery where you can use your own cells at https://infinite-battery.com We worked on a very sturdy casing, with some specific features to release pressure and limit the fire event propagating cell to cell, you can check it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0NXXfCA2CY

I'm confused why your value proposition is that you can replace individual cells but your website also says it's recommended to replace all cells at once. Isn't that the same as the current situation where we have to buy a new battery assembly rather than replace the failed cells?

> When an E-bike battery fails, 90% of the time, its just 1 or 2 cells that are dead inside or a single electronic component. But since traditional batteries are spot welded and glued, there is no chance to replace the faulty part and you need to replace the complete battery.The infinite battery is different. It uses a technology that makes it easy and safe to replace any parts, including lithium-ion cells. It doesn't require any specific tools nor knowledge. It takes less than 10 minutes.

> For safety and durability, it is recommended to change all cells at once.

https://infinite-battery.com/products/infinite-battery?_pos=...

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#95

Post by simgt »

Fwirt wrote: post #26

The amount of e-waste in general is truly nauseating. My employer just cleaned 30 years of “junk” out of our in house IT “tech shop” and the number of working but obsolete computers that went out (many simply because they couldn’t support Windows 11) is sickening to me. The amount of carbon generated from the mining activities, steel production, etc. that went into producing “obsolete” computers has to absolutely dwa…

At least you can argue that computers got better and more efficient, but disposable vapes? I don't understand how they're still legal.

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#96

Post by [deleted] »

pcdoodle wrote: post #71
hrimfaxi wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The only energy cost that matters is to the operator. Old hardware costs more to run so why would I run it? That there was energy used to produce the device and the replacement is literally not a factor in the calculation.

[flagged]

[deleted]

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#97

Post by [deleted] »

froh wrote: post #93
hrimfaxi wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The only energy cost that matters is to the operator. Old hardware costs more to run so why would I run it? That there was energy used to produce the device and the replacement is literally not a factor in the calculation.

no. you have to go for TCO to justify upgrades. energy alone most of the time doesn't justify replacing old hardware. factor in space (=rent), age related increase in failure rate (=servicing), computer power needs (=opportunity costs) then together with the energy needs you find good points in time to justify an upgrade. energy is the least relevant of those.

[deleted]

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#98

Post by mk89 »

Fwirt wrote: post #26

The amount of e-waste in general is truly nauseating. My employer just cleaned 30 years of “junk” out of our in house IT “tech shop” and the number of working but obsolete computers that went out (many simply because they couldn’t support Windows 11) is sickening to me. The amount of carbon generated from the mining activities, steel production, etc. that went into producing “obsolete” computers has to absolutely dwa…

This you can apply to almost everything we have been doing in the last 50 years I guess.

We're constantly being told to buy new because 1) more energy efficient, 2) better in terms of safety, 3) more environmental friendly, 4) it was built with unhealthy materials, 5) a single component is harder to replace later it with more modern xyz, if you don't replace the entire system the component is part of, 6) costs are increasing, so do it now!

You just need to understand which of the items above is essential for you, impossible to say no to.

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#99

Post by cl3misch »

oulipo2 wrote: post #27
viraptor wrote: post #3

Just curious: if you wanted to do something like that, but prevent a... thermal event, how would you protect an experimental battery realistically? Build a brick enclosure? A fire safe?

Shameless plug: we're building a repairable e-bike battery where you can use your own cells at https://infinite-battery.com We worked on a very sturdy casing, with some specific features to release pressure and limit the fire event propagating cell to cell, you can check it here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0NXXfCA2CY

I payed 1$ in July 2024 to reserve a launch-day discount. I never received any emails from Gouach after the receipt. You moved from Kickstarter to you own website.

Are you actually shipping to costumers?

I was super excited back then about your product and company, but the rebrandings and lack of communication made me wary.

Re: Building a 2.5kWh battery from disposable vapes to power my workshop [video]

#100

Post by ornornor »

killingtime74 wrote: post #15
viraptor wrote: post #3

Just curious: if you wanted to do something like that, but prevent a... thermal event, how would you protect an experimental battery realistically? Build a brick enclosure? A fire safe?

Doesn't matter. If you try any of these techniques your insurer will still void your home insurance if your house catches fire.

Why?

Also, I’ve always had a rider in my contracts that said the insurer waives their right to not pay if I’m at fault. I don’t know why this rider even exists but I always get it since it was first offered to me years ago.

Post reply on HN