Renewable energies have over 40.7 million hits on the TikTok social networking site and most of the ideas are interesting and seem to have the potential to save money.
For this reason, however, an expert decided to investigate them.
Along with Comparethemarket.com, a professor of power engineering and sustainability exposed some of the hacks that don’t work and definitely won’t save you money.
The hacks range from solar windows to magnetic fields and seem to promise environmentally friendly ways to generate electricity in homes.
However, the expert, John Nimmo of Sheffield University, discovered one who used a fidget spinner and had some merit, but had to wonder if the benefits outweighed the time and effort involved.
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TikTok trends that work and don’t work
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TikTok energy hacks
A list of hacks that went viral on TikTok and the verdict on whether they generate free energy.
Solar window
The first hack claims to get renewable energy from a solar window and had 1.1 million views on the app.
The verdict, however: it would not generate any electricity.
An inventor named Carvey Maigue developed a solar window that generates renewable energy.
The window consists of particles of fruits and vegetables suspended in a resin substrate.
Nimmo believes it wouldn’t generate electricity, although he believes that if the right materials were used it could give off a faint fluorescent glow and only act as a decorative film.
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Magnetic fields
The hack had well over 400,000 views and claims to generate electricity using magnetic fields.
The Verdict: You’re going to need a bigger magnet, to say the least.
A “magic” light bulb is lit with a combination of magnets and nails.
Magnetic generators can both generate magnetic forces and deliver electricity, just as electric generators can generate electricity through hydrostatic forces, wind, and other forms of energy.
This hack seems to produce enough power to power a lightbulb, but Nimmo believes it’s not likely unless other circuit elements such as a coil are also connected.
A magnet alone cannot work.
Solar Battery Charger
The hack involves a solar panel charger that works with a cellphone and gets over 44,000 views.
The bottom line: theoretically possible, but not an easy-to-recreate DIY project.
Even though the hack doesn’t specify how many amps the solar charger can deliver, Nimmo suggests that it is (in theory) possible, but the time it takes to charge a device will vary based on its power.
Also, the cost of the project and the materials used are not mentioned in the video and this should be taken into account to determine how sustainable this really is.
Fidget spinner
A video of a fidget spinner being used to charge an iPhone garnered 7,509 views on the app.
The verdict: worth a try!
The fidget spinner and charging plate are used to charge your phone.
Nimmo points out that it is unsure how an induction charger might work with a metal spinner. However, it may be plausible depending on whether metal and coils respond.
Since most of these items are easy to find, it may be worthwhile to safely try this at home.
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