Building Hydroelectric Water Wheel from Scratch for Powering an Off Grid Cabin

*UPDATE VIDEO* Check out the update video that Diego made on his personal channel on how the water wheel is doing one year after this repair here: • Living Off Grid for 46...
On this episode of the Adventure Agents, Agent Strong Man & neighbor Al (a.k.a. Agent DB), rebuild a water wheel from scratch to generate hydroelectric power!
They replace the old wheel with a new one, and generate 12 volts of electricity using an old Chevy alternator. This will help supplement Al's solar power whenever there's enough water in his creek/pond (mostly during the winter/spring months). He can now use solar AND water to charge his bank of batteries, which supply him with completely off-the-grid electricity.
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UPDATE VIDEO NOW LIVE SHOWING WHEEL 1 YEAR LATER CLICK HERE kzbin.info/www/bejne/p5DIqXWkhq6BfNU

[@mvhn2816]

Yt

[@user-hh6ex9md4w]

Thank you for sharing the update link! It's always great to see long-term results. By the way, have you considered the Segway Portable PowerStation Cube Series for your off-grid cabin? It's a reliable power solution with features like massive capacity, fast recharging, and comprehensive protections. It could be a valuable addition to your hydroelectric setup!

[@albutterfield712]

Thanks for waiting everyone - I'm old & don't work too fast

[@dorendapuntual1683]

You're not yet too old al. Maybe you are 82 or 83.., but you look young😆 Juliet Labuan.., my friend is very happy and proud of you.

[@albutterfield712]

Thanks Dorenda, 81 actually. I hope Julieta is well & happy

[@jenday1231]

You bring such joy to my son’s life. You’re worth the wait! You do things in your time. We will always appreciate it!

[@michaelmorrison4201]

No problem, I watched the video at 2× and you worked pretty fast! Pretty awesome how you did all this off grid! How much can you power off this setup? If you needed more power can you add another alternator or more batteries? I'm amazed at how well it all works

[@ArthurOrdinary]

You are very talented..may God bless you

[@migaudible6239]

Love the old timer, with the natural hand tools, a man much like myself, old fashioned, traditional.

[@j.b.8767]

This video was awesome, for a lot of reasons, and here's one: it highlights the value and importance of community, creating it, and maintaining it! I am a power plant operator, qualified on combined cycles, conventionals and the ones I was primarily assigned to, those were super-criticals....much larger units, obviously, but this one is awe inspiring, because it is homemade, and now, the outcome of the community there, homegrown, and close to the heart. Thank you for sharing! I loved it!

[@lindamitchell3332]

It it’s thrill to watch the two of you working together. The man Al is amazing how great he gets around and gets things done. I’m impressed of the lifestyle he has lived. I can only imagine his home was quite a show place back when it was build. The scenery from his living room is beautiful. Thank you for sharing the video it was a pleasure to watch. The whole place is beautiful.

[@col.johnson9938]

Never apologise for being old Al, were are unlucky enough to live out the ones we love, but your knowledge and insight are inspiration to the younger generations. And thank you for recording and helping Al. As a young lad, I loved listening to the stories of my grandparents generation. They had seen so much change, from going to horse and buggy to automobiles, flying, and going to space. Stuff thought of as science fiction. Historians will lie to you because history is written by the victors. People’s stories will give you true insight to the past. Be well Al, live strong, love deep, laugh much.

[@sloppydog5427]

Fascinating! I wish I had a creek close enough that I could do this myself! One thing, and you might know already, but if you have a block of wood backing the steel when you drill it, you will have almost no burring

[@Awghan]

You guys are amazing and the way you are showing respect to Mr. Allen is something all the new Gen needs to learn from. It is very important to hang around good folks to help them and learn from them. God bless!!

[@biffmalibu3733]

That custom axle seal to keep water out of the spool was pure genius.

[@AlbiesProductsOnline]

The bearing are cooked replacements are needed before the alternator seizes up and destroys itself

[@jeffreyhill3960]

A few guards might keep some fingers where they belong. Nice system.

[@steviecbf]

metal rod through plastic sleeve genius ???????? .

[@jewishhella2481]

​@@steviecbf😂

[@ethics3]

Wonderful . Congrats to all . I love seeing this kind of ingenuity and helpfulness . What an amazing place he has there.

[@zoeysshow]

what an amazing project to work on!!! great job!!! thank you for sharing this experience! it looks so beautiful there ❤️😊

[@smith8281]

Very cool place. We enjoyed hanging out with Al yesterday and having margaritas on the porch

[@cathrynmartin4395]

I have visited Ohio's Clifton Falls several times and there is an old mill (converted to a restaurant) that uses a similar type of wheel, but of course, it was used to grind grain instead of generate electricity. This was amazing to watch - no kit, no industrial style made item: just some guys replacing and remaking parts to create a water wheel that produces electricity. It's ingenuity at its best!

[@JMS_Outdoors]

That’s amazing! I love watching these off grid set ups. I aspire to create an off grid cabin one day. Thanks for the information and ideas!

[@davidallen7851]

Great work guys! Thank you for letting us be a part of this amazing project, and thank you AL for sharing your wisdom and personal stories you do your family proud!

[@O-RingsUK]

The addition of side panels, to keep as much of the water in the paddle, would increase the efficiency.

[@lucasljs1545]

Beautiful community you guys have there. Good blessings for all of you.

[@hawaiijiujitsu]

Aloha from Hawai’i! Al’s memorial is awesome and your folks help is just so wonderful! That’s the Aloha we need to see more of around us, especially for our children to witness us as dads helping our kupuna, the elders before us, everyday. Right on guys! .

[@thecajunkids7054]

So this collaboration video has been our favorite video I think y’all have made ! Watching Agent strongman really show off his skills was cool and Al is super talented obviously i underestimated his knowledge and ingenuity !! The surprise visit from agent Tex and the crew was so nice to see , hope you guys are winding down some and getting back to a somewhat normal life ! We all need it and nobody faults you although we all miss you !!! Hang tough, God bless and never for get The Key !! LOVE !!

[@dalewalford2630]

Found this on YT shorts and just had to watch the full video. Great work and totally wholesome. I'd like to see more of Al's house. Looks really cool. Thanks for sharing. 👍👏💪

[@royc3569]

That's awesome, put a spring loaded idler gear on the chain ! Love this !

[@albutterfield712]

I tried that with the last wheel & it wasn't worth having

[@NarusarRex]

Nice project Worth waiting 👍 I'm kinda lowkey jealous of him to live in such a place!! And so sorry for ur loss and Hopefully Agent Tex keeps getting better always makes me worry hearing about ur struggling Agent Tex you are the MAN!!!

[@ryanmasek4557]

What happened to Agent Tex

[@skyjim777]

Your land is gorgeous! I live in Alabama and we have lots of hills up north and the most beautiful beaches down South. I prefer the mountains and the solitude. You have a true paradise. I love it!

[@mlungisidlamini9864]

The old man is very smart, thanks for sharing your experiences with the rest of us.

[@christopping5876]

Wonderful use of old cable drums, impressive!!!

[@taffythegreat1986]

What a fantastic project. I envy you for having the location to create your own electricity 👍👍

[@zoeysshow]

I just got to finish the episode. amazing. it brought me to tears. both in sympathy and joy. sympathy because it's never easy losing someone or going through hard times. and joy because you guys are right, we are all still here and the fact y'all had an amazing project come together in the end beautifully! that always fills me with joy to see that. thank you again for sharing, this was a beautiful video!!! all the best!!!

[@heathermichelle9310]

So good to see everyone's smiling faces again ❤️

[@robertwagner2079]

As soon as I saw the smaller wheel I knew complications would come up. You dealt with them just fine by extending the sluice. Great job and video I loved it.

[@zaflowgalactic]

I feel like I learned a lot, this man is chalk full of ingenious techniques, and mechanical know how. Very inspired to make my own.

[@Fardiinn]

Thank you guys for this episode really been waiting far a while

[@JesusTorres-qr1gz]

Very well organized job, the voltage output is the right speed to maintain the system without unnecessary wear and tear, ,at my 71 years of age, would of been a great pleasure to be there with you guys, with my background and your permission I could of done some improvements to minimize the wear and maintenance, like a shroud on the chain to avoid water on it, congratulations to all of you guys, most kind of you for sharing it with us, blessings to you and your love ones, from the endless summer paradise Puerto Rico Jesus Torres.

[@SegoMan]

Nickle plated chain can be had for a few $$ more

[@albutterfield712]

Chain is covered now

[@JesusTorres-qr1gz]

Congratulations gentleman, has been a pleasure watching your video, blessings to you and your love ones, from the endless summer paradise Puerto Rico Jesus Torres.

[@philiphemmings3739]

I'd love to live there, and is love to me that old man in person, a massive thank you for shearing with us, your knowledge my man, so greatful to you!! ")

[@AdventureAgents]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@staggerinstanton56]

Such a simple yet brilliant idea.

[@ryanwarren6165]

I love y’all keep up the good work and be safe love y’all

[@morosso1968]

such an amazing content. watching it gives that good, positive energy. i'm sorry for your loss Al,,, i just hope your water wheel brings you good memories and happiness. you are so blessed to live in such beautiful place.

[@nestorpuntual9674]

Congrats Al, nice video.

[@VoodooDewey69]

Beautiful little slice of Paradise.

[@user-hh6ex9md4w]

Wow, this Segway Portable PowerStation Cube Series sounds like an amazing device! With its massive capacity, fast recharging, and waterproof technology, it seems perfect for outdoor enthusiasts like us. Plus, the ability to stack additional batteries and the Smart APP control feature make it even more convenient. Great recommendation!

[@Gainn]

Fantastic bit of intuitive engineering. A lid on the sluice to 'jet' the water to where you want it might help keep things more controllable.

[@shaunhall960]

There is so much you can do if you put your mind to it. I'm planning on using hydro and solar for my off-grid home.

[@pitttbull187]

Great job..... The peace in just living as we was meant to do.... Thank you for this video brothers

[@user-qj8zv8ym8u]

Amazing and comprehensive. Thank you for sharing. Very grateful 🙏 for this video. God bless you all

[@livingcountry8453]

Amazing video!!! Love you guys

[@JK-zl7vv]

Very very inspiring, a fabulous way to repurpose items for an amazing use of nature, congrats on your successful homesteading ambitions 🤠🙏💖💖⭐⭐⭐

[@izayaorihara7059]

Looks like a blessed place to live, hope to be in a place similar in the future.

[@armyofkidsfarmlife]

Ive always wanted to make a water wheel! Awesome!

[@sammanhk]

I really enjoy learning about hydroelectric power, wind power, or solar power generation.

[@patfinn8859]

Great work.

[@johnvitz310]

Good for you young man,,,,,people don’t understand that work can be fun

[@portnuefflyer]

I've had a Pelton wheel (900 watts, grid tied) in operation for the last 16 years, but lately have been planning to augment it with a water wheel, using the same stream. One advantage will be my power shack is only 50' from where the wheel would be. I have a crane, and 55' long 12" steel pipe that used to be my wind turbine tower, the plan is to set the crane up by a culvert that goes under my road (which conveniently channels all the creek water into a 30" dia. pipe), pick the supply pipe up and set one end about 2' from the where the culvert exits under the road. Then re-rig the down hill (I'm on a mountain side) end of the pipe, and slowly pick it up, while the uphill end (which will have a slotted gate to control the flow) rests in the creek bottom (all rocks) until water stops flowing out the end, then lower it again until I determine the mas flow versus the max height. Should be about 4 to 6 feet. If needed, I can extend the pipe to get more head, with the last bit being a flume to spread it out a bit. Then I'll measure the GPM, and using some old steel farm implement wheels I have in various diameters, cobble up a wheel. So, I'm scouring YT for wheel ideas! The same Outback VFXR battery based grid tied 3500 watt inverter I use on my 900 watt Pelton plus another 1000 watts of PV will be fed whatever I power I get, at 24 VDC, which the Outback instantly sends onto the grid. I will use a PM motor as a generator, and hope to keep the needed RPM's as low as possible, so less up gearing needed. Your setup could benefit from a chain tensioner, like bikes use, a spring auto keeps the correct tension with min drag and power loss. I never did see how many AMPS it's putting out?

[@patrickconway5542]

great job on water wheel ,just toooo much bull of appreciation😉

[@reb4898]

I love the ingenuity that made this happen…

[@KurdishMoonVlogs]

Thank you very much for making this video. I would love make a hydroelectric wheel like that someday 😊 this video is very educational.

[@PierReVesper]

Al is very handy... good job

[@Whitewavewoman]

Best episode yet!

[@laceymarcucci8990]

Love the reggae beat! :) so happy to be back and see u guys again! We took a really really long break from you tube . So we catching up on the stuff we missed. 💛💛💛

[@lawrencewillard6370]

Good to watch, Thanks. See Kris Harbour in England, Marty T in New Zealand, doing this differently, and getting it working like You. 👍 .

[@WireWeHere]

A few idler sprockets or cheap replacement cam belt wheels would remove most of the stiction making startup difficult and reduce the friction at speed from becoming parasitic losses. The chain tension and tracking could require less hands on tweaks plus allow more of the energy to get to work turning the alternator although some of the volume may be lost while some noises may even be sacrificed.

[@hanzotv3]

The wood tensioner is brilliant... 🥳🥳🥳

[@wync2203]

simple yet very efficient! I want that kind of off grid power source, just living with nature.. wow

[@objektivone3209]

I knew from the beginning that I would like this video. And I did.

[@maxxonetwo3]

Real nice video. Good help and finally nice people. Thank you.

[@bablutu]

Love such projects, thank you for sharing

[@saqibsaeed4957]

That is super work man!! Kudos!!

[@mrharry8466]

Love it, I would love to build that set up. Great guy. You could probanly get so much more power from that setup with only a few things. Probably all he needs though. All the best to you all. Your dam right, to be aware and grateful of life and health.....we all take it for granted and wollow in self pity as such. Pick yourself up, shake yourself off and do what your loved ones would want for you to do. It's hard but vastly rewarding in the long run.

[@hobbyvisiofi]

Kyllä oli mielenkiintoinen video. Kiitos, T: Oskari

[@MrSmuggler28]

I really enjoyed this! what an inspiration. and the location, what a picture-perfect place! thanks!

[@legionjames1822]

Agent dB has SKILLS

[@nunznaga6215]

Awesome place for vacation❤️

[@ttinogadol]

amazing project! Enjoy

[@hopebell8164]

Thank you so much for sharing your Chanel!

[@vionettetorres6155]

Great great episode!

[@zapman60]

So inspiring!

[@stephenburke7778]

awesome work guys

[@cookingwithcolin9094]

wow!

[@CyberSQUID9000]

What a brilliant , honest and enjoyable video !

[@veronicathecow]

Love it, thanks for sharing

[@XRZANNA]

Love you guys

[@Loagz_Beatz]

This was very inspiring for me. Thank you.

[@Redfisherman007]

Like your new wheel. You can eliminate some friction by using Teflon where the chain is rubbing the wood. I had a car where a Teflon guide track was used for the timing chain. Love your setup !

[@kaitlynp6193]

Hey thank you so much for all you do my wife and I struggle to find good quality principle oriented material that we can show to our two sons

[@EvermoreAcres]

This is AMAZING!

[@vitadelicatus]

Great video. This won't rotten in 100 years.

[@carlosdavila4164]

este es el mejor tutorial que e visto me sirvió mucho muchas gracias por este maravilloso trabajo saludos desde Colombia

[@choiceblade]

This was so cool!

[@santoshbansode697]

Really inspired and love this video and all of you,,,,, thanks for making this video,,,,,,, again thanks with ❤️ all of you,,,,,,,

[@chazlabreck]

Really ingenious using old wire reals.. smart... love this idea.. should extend the water way a bit..i think its getting back pressure if it started to spin backward.. make it more efficient at least.

[@wafisyed4151]

Great video!

[@OpenSourceLowTech]

Nice work. As others have said capping the sides of the buckets will make a lot of difference in terms of water loss, and possibly also extending them and or angling the water down so it doesn't just fly out and over. Replacing the car alternator with something like a hoverboard wheel or even a mounted motorbike alternator will also help, as they're permanent magnet so don't need to be external excited, and do a lot better volts per rpm, so can probably get rid of that second stage gear up belt. An actual tensioner sprocket rather than 2x4 would also add a bit of efficiency, but the wheel should be putting out enough torque to overcome the extra friction, so probably not as much of a priority.

[@portnuefflyer]

Yeah that wood tensioner would create a lot of un-needed friction, plus be a maintenance item, it's easy enough to rig up a chain tensioner

[@kingrafa3938]

Great, great job!

[@user-su2kj5yr5h]

Well done

[@chippy33able]

Thsnks a lot Al , great effort all. Thanks eh

[@user-pj7hu6zy3v]

You are living in paradise...❤ Love you all...❤

[@JohnSmith-vz2gu]

This is Paradise😊

[@realsirex]

Great work men! R i p to Als nephew.

[@abdullahbukhari7528]

Good & very Informative about watermills

[@Ninachu2023]

I love your videos . Keep going

[@china-trip]

My best friend, Wonderful video dear. I enjoyed watching. Hope to see you soon...

[@lokograyfox2426]

We want more videos with AL