Do smart trainers work correctly with electric power generators?

Z.Dave

I had no electricity at home last night so I ran my petrol to electric power generator which powers my fridges, TV, geyser and other home appliances then went to do some training on my Tacx Genius Smart Trainer which is connected to my Zwift account. I did a SST workout but Zwift reported that I was not generating sufficient power (couldn't get it above 160 watts and was aiming for 226w) and my cadence was low (around 40) although I have a good cadence around 90 - 100 naturally.

This was all very disconcerting as I was exhausted after the 80 min effort which was 50% below my target workout. I wonder if the smart trainer works correctly with the electric power generator?

Thanks for the advice.

imposter2.0

You'd have to check the reliable output of your generator and compare it to the power requirement of your trainer..

N0bodyOfTheGoat

If using ERG mode on a smart two-way trainer, each gear will only work correctly within a certain Watt range and cadence range, dependent upon the turbo model you are using.

For example, my Direto can do approx 80-480W in 34/18 gear, providing cadence is in the 70-95rpm ballpark. The other day, I did the new Zwift ramp test and my cadence dropped to near 50rpm, which resulted in ERG mode not going higher than ~350W, when it was supposed to be getting me to produce 380W+.

Matthewfalle

all the generator does is supply power to run things. it won't affect readings.if you think about it, if it did affect settings all your other appliances would work random.

you had a bad session/your settings are out/a.n.other.

dannbodge

Get a Tacx Neo then you don't need power as it can run itself.

slowbike

Matthewfalle wrote:

all the generator does is supply power to run things. it won't affect readings.if you think about it, if it did affect settings all your other appliances would work random.

you had a bad session/your settings are out/a.n.other.

Not all power generators are the same.

Sinewave or modified sine wave can make a difference - shouldn't - but can.
As can the overall output of the generator - if it's struggling then Volts start to drop - again, can have an affect on some appliances.
Quite why it would have that effect on a Turbo I'm not sure... but if you know your cadence was >40 and it's reporting 40rpm then it's not right.

Easy way to test is to try it on mains power, then swap to generator power (with the usual things plugged in) if it plays up, remove higher power devices and see if that helps. If none of that helps - leave the normal appliances on generator and plug the turbo into the mains - if it's still playing up then it's possible the generator is noisy and needs insulating.
If it's playing up under generator power generally then it's probably down to the output of the generator - either don't turbo under generator or see if you can get a device to smooth the power....

cougie

Hang on. Did you pedal at a cadence of 40 or the normal 80 plus ?

If it's just recording half your cadence then your power would be halved too ?

Matthewfalle

Slowbike wrote:

Matthewfalle wrote:

all the generator does is supply power to run things. it won't affect readings.if you think about it, if it did affect settings all your other appliances would work random.

you had a bad session/your settings are out/a.n.other.

Not all power generators are the same.

Sinewave or modified sine wave can make a difference - shouldn't - but can.
As can the overall output of the generator - if it's struggling then Volts start to drop - again, can have an affect on some appliances.
Quite why it would have that effect on a Turbo I'm not sure... but if you know your cadence was >40 and it's reporting 40rpm then it's not right.

Easy way to test is to try it on mains power, then swap to generator power (with the usual things plugged in) if it plays up, remove higher power devices and see if that helps. If none of that helps - leave the normal appliances on generator and plug the turbo into the mains - if it's still playing up then it's possible the generator is noisy and needs insulating.
If it's playing up under generator power generally then it's probably down to the output of the generator - either don't turbo under generator or see if you can get a device to smooth the power....

the generator has nothing to do with it otherwise his ice creams would melt every time he touched any other thing he has plugged into it.

slowbike

Matthewfalle wrote:

the generator has nothing to do with it otherwise his ice creams would melt every time he touched any other thing he has plugged into it.

Go back to whatever else you were doing - clearly you have no understanding of power generation - whereas, I, as a user both on and off land - away from fixed power sources, I do ...