1. #1
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    Need a hand with Tekki/Technic Solar energy!

    I'm stumped, how does Solar energy work in tekkit?

    I remember using it a while ago, I think I had a bunch of arrays hooked up to a transformer, then a batbox and then my machines, tried it just now and it's not working, and I'm not sure where I'm going wrong, so if someone could explain how the heck I connect the MV Solar Arrays up to power my machines I'd be forever grateful. Using coal just makes me feel like a dick.

    Also, as a side note, what energy source do you like to use within tekkit? Up until now I've been generating myself some EMC and using the "free" charcoal to power my generators, but the hassle of having to keep it topped up is annoying, considering I only have the 1 condenser and I have to swap out the Dark Matter I'm creating for Charcoal so i can't just pump it straight into the generators.

    And I've never bothered with oil, seems like a lot of hassle as well.

  2. #2
    LOAD"*",8,1 Fuzzzie's Avatar
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    If you're using MV Solar Arrays you can feed those directly into an MFE or MFSU.

    A Battbox can only accept LV current so chances are if you wired it up properly it would explode.

    An MFE or an MFSU has 6 sides. The 5 sides with nothing on them serve as input sides. A 6th side will have three dots. That's the output. You'll need to connect the proper cable to the output to carry the MV or HV current. (Remember MFE's are MV and MFSU's are HV).

    From there, you need to decide what devices you're going to attach. For regular machines like macerators, electric furnace, compressor etc all use Low voltage. You'll need to put a LV transformer in betweeen the MFE and the machines you want connected. The exception being is if you craft transformer upgrades for the machines. Put them in the 4 slots on the right side of the interface. For cables I recommend going right to glass fibre cables. They're expensive, but have a very low energy loss to them and can be strung the longest.

    Note that if you're using advanced machines like the induction furnace or rotary macerator they can accept MV current without the need to have a LV transformer. Also note that these machines will need a redstone signal to keep them all running at full speed.

    As for fuel. I use solar power for the most part. It's hassle free and there's no risk of things going wrong. After a while I usually build a small nuclear reactor to keep things topped off. This is especially important if you want to even think about generating UU Matter.

    AFAIK, you cant run IC2 machines off Buildcraft Oil or fuel. There is an engine in forestry that you can fuel with Biogas that supplies EU, but distilling Biogas is a lot more work than playing with oil, so if you dont want to do that already, I cant imagine using biogas.

    The only ways I know how to generate IC2 Power are:

    Solar Panels (Including Compact Solars LV, MV, HV arrays)
    Nuclear Power (can get expensive and dangerous)
    Wind Power (although it's terrible)
    Water Power (Not bad, but cant run very much with it. Mostly for early game. I would skip and go right from coal to solar)
    Geothermal (Good option, I've only messed with it once so I can't comment much. Supplies a good amount of power if you can keep it fed with lava cans).
    Generator (using coal or wood. Pretty much a giant waste of resources. Only should be used very early on).

    If you have any more questions, please ask.

  3. #3
    Herald of the Titans Theodon's Avatar
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    ....SOLAR POWERED?!

    I really must update minecraft! Am I to understand this is a mod and not just part of the standard game package?
    It's always been Wankershim!
    My Brand!

  4. #4
    LOAD"*",8,1 Fuzzzie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Theodon View Post
    ....SOLAR POWERED?!

    I really must update minecraft! Am I to understand this is a mod and not just part of the standard game package?
    He's referring to using Tekkit which contains many, many mods including Industrialcraft 2 which we are discussing.

  5. #5
    Lava is the best source of energy,in tekkit

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Desparatus View Post
    I'm stumped, how does Solar energy work in tekkit?

    I remember using it a while ago, I think I had a bunch of arrays hooked up to a transformer, then a batbox and then my machines, tried it just now and it's not working, and I'm not sure where I'm going wrong, so if someone could explain how the heck I connect the MV Solar Arrays up to power my machines I'd be forever grateful. Using coal just makes me feel like a dick.

    Also, as a side note, what energy source do you like to use within tekkit? Up until now I've been generating myself some EMC and using the "free" charcoal to power my generators, but the hassle of having to keep it topped up is annoying, considering I only have the 1 condenser and I have to swap out the Dark Matter I'm creating for Charcoal so i can't just pump it straight into the generators.

    And I've never bothered with oil, seems like a lot of hassle as well.
    Bear in mind, Solar Panels must be completely unobstructed from the top of the panel to the sky. It's not enough for it simply to be "outside." Anything on top of it, even ten or twenty spaces above it, and it will get no juice. You can check the panel for a "sun" icon to see if energy is coming in. Also, it has to be daytime and cannot be raining. That's why a BatBox/MFE/MFSU is an absolute must. Collect all the energy you can in the daytime so that it will last you through the night and through rainstorms. Trust me, a whole day of rain followed by nighttime can ruin all your plans if you haven't stored energy up.

    As to your second question, Geothermal is my go-to. With teleport pipes and world anchors, you have a near infinite source of power with relatively little effort. Search around, find a couple of volcanoes, and you're good to go. I know some people just use the Nether, but I've heard there can be some issues with that so I don't bother. I'm too much of a pussy for nuclear power, and solar is an absolute pain in the ass without Crafting Table II/III, plus with the previously noted inconsistencies, results just vary too much.
    Last edited by Nekosom; 2012-08-28 at 10:40 PM.

  7. #7
    It feels very cheesy, but if you use a single energy condenser hooked with relays and collectors, pumping lava cells into an array of geothermal generators, its virtually infinite amounts of energy that dont require you to do anything to maintain it.

  8. #8
    Fuzzzie: There's a thing called an energy link that translates EU into Buildcraft energy and visa versa... It's how I power my quarries via solar power.

  9. #9
    LOAD"*",8,1 Fuzzzie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Madgod View Post
    Fuzzzie: There's a thing called an energy link that translates EU into Buildcraft energy and visa versa... It's how I power my quarries via solar power.
    I've always just used electrical engines from Forestry if I wanted to do that. Probably works the same way. They're pretty good since they can be upgraded and won't overheat.

    http://forestry.sengir.net/wiki/inde...ines.EngineTin

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fuzzzie View Post
    I've always just used electrical engines from Forestry if I wanted to do that. Probably works the same way. They're pretty good since they can be upgraded and won't overheat.

    http://forestry.sengir.net/wiki/inde...ines.EngineTin
    If you are running with the newest tekkit Forestry isent in Tekkit anymore so energy link + solar panels is awesome.

  11. #11
    LOAD"*",8,1 Fuzzzie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Vayjir View Post
    If you are running with the newest tekkit Forestry isent in Tekkit anymore so energy link + solar panels is awesome.
    I don't use Tekkit at all. I install my own mods.

  12. #12
    Fuzzie explained solar energy well enough (unless you plan to use the blulectric panels for some reason), but about geothermal:

    You can make a volcanite amulet, charge it to max, place it in a deployer, and have a pump(s) above where the lava would be deployed. This means you get a tank of lava for approx. 250 emc last time I checked, which is dirt cheap if you have energy condenser flowers. Stick a maxxed klein star omega in each deployer with the volcanite amulet and they will run for weeks/months irl time without needing a refill. As mentioned geothermal power is extremely high, and you can attach dozens of generators using this method. You can also use the deployer/amulet to create lava for more of these "lava generators"

    Space wise, HV solar arrays and 6-core nuclear reactors will win out, but HV are a complete pain in the ass to build without complex automated machines doing it for you, and nuclear reactors in most forms have issues with decaying or overheating.

  13. #13
    LOAD"*",8,1 Fuzzzie's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Raiju View Post
    Space wise, HV solar arrays and 6-core nuclear reactors will win out, but HV are a complete pain in the ass to build without complex automated machines doing it for you, and nuclear reactors in most forms have issues with decaying or overheating.
    HV solar arrays are tough to build, but I cant imagine needing more than 2 or 3 for most applications. Unless you're using IC2 teleporters a lot.

    Having an auto crafting system make the basic panels. usually takes a lot of the work out of it. the rest is just sticking 8 together to make an array.

  14. #14
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fuzzzie View Post
    I don't use Tekkit at all. I install my own mods.
    But the OP definitely does use Tekkit, so the comment about electric motors is not helpful.

  15. #15
    LOAD"*",8,1 Fuzzzie's Avatar
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    The OP is also over two months old. I think we've moved on. There is also a patch for forestry so I don't think it's that big of an issue.

  16. #16
    Go to the nether and pump lava into thermal generators, which are then used to charge lapotron crystals which you can bring back to power your stuff. It's by far the lowest overhead. Just drop world anchors in the nether to keep it pumping.

    Or use the power to do mass fab...

  17. #17
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    Quote Originally Posted by Hexilux View Post
    Go to the nether and pump lava into thermal generators, which are then used to charge lapotron crystals which you can bring back to power your stuff. It's by far the lowest overhead. Just drop world anchors in the nether to keep it pumping.

    Or use the power to do mass fab...
    Yep. You can even set up a couple of retrievers and ender chests to bring them back and load then into your TG automatically.

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