Smart Batteries

[Oni Noob]

Since we have Smart batteries now, how do you setup power tower(Ferlizer make/ NG generator). A screenshot would be nice TIA

[Kasuha]

I don't have anything special around fertilizer makers, they are set to process anything I send to them. At the very least I don't have hot polluted water piling up.

For NG generators, I have a set of 8 smart batteries, set to 45-55, 40-60, 35-65, 30-70, 25-75, 20-80, 15-85, and 10-90, and 8 groups of NG generators (some groups have one generator, some have two - I have 12 of them total) hooked to one battery each. So if there's large power draw, the batteries activate gradually more and more generators. So far I haven't had them active all at once yet.

[Mutineer]

Actually, I confused, how smart batteries work?

I use old method with old batteries. Just each generator set on the level of batteries, 75 -60 - 40- 20- 10. That 5 coal generators, my base actually use only 3 max so far, + there hydrogen generator working as fast as it has hydrogen.

[Oozinator]

26 minutes ago, Mutineer said:

Actually, I confused, how smart batteries work?

 

Build one, you need no other batterys and connect the SB with your Gen, adjust load balance done ^^

[Kasuha]

31 minutes ago, Mutineer said:

Actually, I confused, how smart batteries work?

You set up two numbers, X and Y. The automation output activates when the battery is below X% charge, and deactivates when it is above Y% charge. Perfect.

[Mutineer]

14 minutes ago, Kasuha said:

You set up two numbers, X and Y. The automation output activates when the battery is below X% charge, and deactivates when it is above Y% charge. Perfect.

Can I use the same way I use old batteries? I assume they are more efficient?

[Neotuck]

 

[BlueLance]

36 minutes ago, Mutineer said:

Can I use the same way I use old batteries? I assume they are more efficient?

they store less power, but lose less power over time, they also stop u using resources producing power when you have full batteries

[Supraluminal]

1 hour ago, Kasuha said:

I don't have anything special around fertilizer makers, they are set to process anything I send to them. At the very least I don't have hot polluted water piling up.

For NG generators, I have a set of 8 smart batteries, set to 45-55, 40-60, 35-65, 30-70, 25-75, 20-80, 15-85, and 10-90, and 8 groups of NG generators (some groups have one generator, some have two - I have 12 of them total) hooked to one battery each. So if there's large power draw, the batteries activate gradually more and more generators. So far I haven't had them active all at once yet.

Is there any particular reason to activate your NG generators in groups like that? I don't see any harm in just turning the whole generator bank on/off with a single battery. Obviously there's a use for prioritizing different fuels, but you're talking about just NG here.

[old_fantom]

25 minutes ago, Supraluminal said:

Is there any particular reason to activate your NG generators in groups like that? I don't see any harm in just turning the whole generator bank on/off with a single battery. Obviously there's a use for prioritizing different fuels, but you're talking about just NG here.

It is more efficient to turn on the power you need.  I run three NG nearly constantly.  But I also have HG on a timer so they can stack up hydrogen in a pipe half the day then run constantly instead of being on and off all the time.  During those periods my NG are down to 1.  I only have 8 fertilizer makers running and two tapped NG geysers and I usually have an excess of NG of about 10 KG in my holding room for NG.  

[Kasuha]

34 minutes ago, Supraluminal said:

Is there any particular reason to activate your NG generators in groups like that? I don't see any harm in just turning the whole generator bank on/off with a single battery. Obviously there's a use for prioritizing different fuels, but you're talking about just NG here.

At current state where you can just switch them on and the next second you get the power, it's not important. I just like it better, there's less generator on/off switching and less noise when I look at the power plant. It may turn important if our generators get a spinup delay where they consume resources but don't produce power yet.

1 hour ago, Mutineer said:

Can I use the same way I use old batteries? I assume they are more efficient?

Old batteries don't have this setting. I guess you're referring to coal generator's setting? It works differently - when certain charge is reached, they stop asking for fuel. But they will still consume the fuel they're fed. The automation can switch them off instantly.

[BlueLance]

I also do something Similar to Kasuha in order of use;

1. Hydrogen Gens 80-100
2. Natural Gas Gens 60-80
3. Coal 40-60
4. Petroleum 20-40
5. Steam 10-20
6. Hamster Wheels 0-100 ALL HANDS ON DECK IF THIS GETS USED CUZ SOMETHINGS GOING WRONG

I only use two of the first three generators, 1 Petroleum, as many steam as my geysers let me, 0 hamster wheels. But thats what my 6 batteries are for.

[KittenIsAGeek]

2 hours ago, Mutineer said:

Can I use the same way I use old batteries? I assume they are more efficient?

They can be used the same way as the other batteries, but that would be a waste.  Previously, large sets of battery banks were used so that during high load draws, power would not be lost to the system.  While smart batteries CAN do this, that isn't their best use. In fact, large batteries are still better in that scenario.

Where smart batteries excel is in power control.  Think of them as a circuit load sensor that can be configured to turn power sources (or loads) automatically as the load changes.  The most obvious use is using a battery to turn a generator on when you need more power.  Another use would be to disconnect a load from a circuit (or disable a load) when power is low.  For example, disconnecting your cooling pool if power drops below a certain threshold so that your oxygen system can continue running unimpeded.

[Oni Noob]

6 hours ago, Neotuck said:

 

Yeah  I saw your post before I post this question. I got inspired by your setup 

[Oni Noob]

4 hours ago, BlueLance said:

I also do something Similar to Kasuha in order of use;

1. Hydrogen Gens 80-100
2. Natural Gas Gens 60-80
3. Coal 40-60
4. Petroleum 20-40
5. Steam 10-20
6. Hamster Wheels 0-100 ALL HANDS ON DECK IF THIS GETS USED CUZ SOMETHINGS GOING WRONG

I only use two of the first three generators, 1 Petroleum, as many steam as my geysers let me, 0 hamster wheels. But thats what my 6 batteries are for.

Why Steam is super low, is steam really that not sustainable?

[KittenIsAGeek]

10 minutes ago, Oni Noob said:

Why Steam is super low, is steam really that not sustainable?

Steam in its current state is not very good.  You have to use tricks to get the system running and it isn't easy to keep it running for any length of time.  The most I've gotten in continuous running is about 3 cycles, using 2 exploits and a volcano.

[Neotuck]

2 hours ago, Oni Noob said:

Yeah  I saw your post before I post this question. I got inspired by your setup 

I'm going to make a more compact setup next, just found a seed with both a slush geyser and a PW geyser.  I'm thinking of recording for Youtube

[Oni Noob]

3 hours ago, Neotuck said:

I'm going to make a more compact setup next, just found a seed with both a slush geyser and a PW geyser.  I'm thinking of recording for Youtube

Wow thats nice, let me know once its out already ill watch and copy it. More power bro

[BlueLance]

14 hours ago, Oni Noob said:

Why Steam is super low, is steam really that not sustainable?

Ehh it isnt to do with it not being sustainable, but the following

1. Vents usually do not give off a lot of mass, so they take a long time to prime.
2. Volcanoes are fabulous, but they do not have very large active periods. (Plus still trying to use the least amount of steam to generate energy as possible)
3. Steam generates a lot of power, so I would rather save it and petroleum for power hungry systems.

So ideally, I only use steam when its either absolutely needed,or if I have a big monster that wants food. If iw ere to use it as a primary source my vents/volcanoes would eventually buckle and then be too cold.

[0xFADE]

I have not needed more fidelity than 20/80. I have some generators constantly running so the ones on a smart battery are there to top off what the other ones cannot maintain.  When a smart battery is full a normal battery is usually not full yet so it works alright.  I should go 40/80 or 60/80. 

[BlueLance]

Thats my power set-up, Any steam generators I hook up are external, and petroleum gens go to the left of the natural gas ones.

I have a Heavi Conductive Wire that goes down the entire side of my base and I place transformers along that shaft as I need them.

Any geysers outside of my base are on their own power systems (NG Gens fuel their own pumps), Hydrogen Gens Fuel themselves. Water or any other resource is usually done with coal, but I have started a new resource delivery design so they may also just power off of excess gasses.

Steam is the only outlier as its power will be fed directly to my base.