40d:Water wheel

Water wheel

b-M-w
═ ═ ═ X X X
Construction
Materials	Jobs
3 Wood	Architecture Carpenter
Power
Needs 10 power. Generates 100 power. Net gain of 90 power.

A water wheel is a machine component that provides power via water flow. To build a water wheel, select build menu and choose Machine components. It requires 3 wood and generates 100 power, which can be used for operating a pump or mill. Use axles and gears to access the power produced by a water wheel.

Construction

To place a water wheel you need 3 adjacent tiles (N-S or E-W axis, no diagonals) of which the middle one needs to be next to a construction (typically a gear assembly or axle built on a floor tile).

Power will be generated once a channel tile under the water wheel is filled with water at a depth of four or greater. You can transport the power wherever it is needed via horizontal and vertical axles and gear assemblies. It is possible to support a waterwheel by building its center next to a preexisting waterwheel's center.

In order for the water wheel to generate power, there needs to be a water flow in one of the three tiles beneath it.

Brook

Intuitively one would place a water wheel in a river, but they can also be powered if placed over brook tiles, but only if you first dig through the surface of the brook. Build a channel three tiles long, right on the brook. The water wheel will sit above this channel.

Designs

Basic watermill design

#	+	+	+	+	~	+
#	+	+	+	+	~	+
#	O	+	+	+	W	+
#	*	=	=	=	W	+
#	+	+	+	+	W	+
#	+	+	+	+	~	+
#	+	+	+	+	~	+

Dual watermill design

#	+	+	+	+	~	~
#	+	+	+	+	~	~
#	O	+	+	+	W	W
#	*	=	=	=	W	W
#	+	+	+	+	W	W
#	+	+	+	+	~	~
#	+	+	+	+	~	~

This is by no means the limit of water power from one location, depending on the width of your river/brook/channel you can stack many waterwheels side-by-side (really big assembles will need to be artificial as there's a limit to how wide the game created water flows get). Just remember to make sure there's a support structure in place before you place the next wheel.

Perpetual motion

Due to the low power draw of a screw pump, a self-powering assembly can be made with a water wheel that still leaves plenty of excess power for other uses. This is an exploit, and possibly a bug.

A simple design is available at this forum post.

*REMEMBER TO BUILD THE HORIZONTAL AXLE OR GEAR ASSEMBLY BEFORE THE WATER WHEEL*

Perpetual Motion Design #1 - Top Floor

█	`	█	╔	═	╗	█
█	█	╔	╝	+	╚	╗
.	█	║	▼	+	+	║
█	█	╠	=	╗	+	║
█	█	║	X	║	+	║
█	╔	╩	=	╝	+	║
╔	╝	+	+	+	+	║
║	+	X	X	_	╔	╝
║	W	=	║	╔	╝	█
║	W	=	*	║	█	`
║	W	╔	═	╝	█	█
╚	═	╝	█	█	%	█
█	█	█	█	█	█	█

Perpetual Motion Design #1 - Bottom Floor

█	█	█	█	█	█	█
█	█	╔	=	╗	█	%
█	█	║	▲	║	█	█
`	█	╠	=	╣	█	█
█	█	║	X	║	█	.
█	█	║	+	║	█	█
╔	=	╝	+	╚	╗	█
║	+	+	+	+	║	█
║	+	╔	╗	+	║	█
║	+	║	║	+	║	█
║	+	╚	╝	+	║	█
║	+	+	+	+	║	█
╚	═	=	=	=	╝	█

Perpetual Motion Design #2

█	╔	=	╗	█	█	█
╔	╝	▲	╚	=	=	╗
║	+	+	+	+	+	║
║	+	_	_	_	+	║
║	+	_	+	_	+	║
║	+	W	+	X	+	║
║	+	W	=	X	+	║
║	+	W	+	_	+	║
║	+	_	+	_	+	║
║	+	_	_	_	+	║
║	+	+	+	+	+	║
╚	═	=	=	=	=	╝

Key
Wall: ║ ═ ╠ ╝ ╚ ╔ ╗ ╣ ╩
Floor: +
Water Wheel: W
Gear Assembly: *
Axle E/W: ═
Axle N/S: ║
Pump from west: XX
Pump from south: XX
Channel: _ or if background color is white
Closed water source opening: X