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40d:Power
| This article is about an older version of DF. |
Power is used to drive devices that perform tasks normally done by dwarves, such as pumping water using a screw pump or milling certain types of food into flour at a millstone. Power is produced by windmills and water wheels.
Power requirements[edit]
- Axle: (1) per tile
- Gear assembly: (5)
- Large machine bits: (10)
- Screw pump: (10)
- Water wheel: (10) (When not generating power)
- Millstone: (10)
Power generation[edit]
- Water wheel: (100); flow required.
- Windmill: Variable; above ground only. Values of (0), (20), and (40) have been reported.
(Different power generators can be combined to produce near infinite power along a power network)
Power transfer[edit]
Power can be transferred between devices using gear assemblies and axles. Gear assemblies take up a single tile and connect power to any device within the six orthogonally adjacent tiles (north, south, east, west, above, below). Gear assemblies are best used for moving power through right-angles. For example, they can be built as bases for windmills to move power out sideways along an axle.
Because of the high power use of gears assemblies (5), axles are more appropriate and convenient to build when transferring power across horizontal or vertical distances. An axle uses (1) power for every tile of power transfer. An axle 5 tiles long will use (5) power. Axles can be directly attached to windmills, waterwheels and screw pumps in order to provide power.
Devices that use power are also capable of transferring it. Adjacent screw pumps will transfer power between themselves. The only way to prevent this is to leave a tile gap between devices, or move them diagonally from each other.
With enough water, power can be transferred through channels, screw pumps and water wheels, too. Just pump the Water to the power destination with the pump and gain power from the flow via water wheels there.
Power control[edit]
Connecting a power source such as a windmill directly to a screw pump will force the device to be in constant operation, causing a flood if connected to a river. To stop the screw pump either the power source or the pump must be dismantled. One can put floodgates in the way but this needs to be done before pumping begins.
A better alternative is to use a lever connected to a gear assembly. Levers can be used to move the gear assembly between a working state and deconstructed state. Note: any hanging devices being supported by the gear assembly will collapse to their base materials when it is disabled. To prevent this from happening, hook up the lever to a second gear assembly attached to the supporting one.