AND WHY NOT - - Some Simple Ideas I have NOT tested yet.   You know, I have NEVER seen any type of windmill along the Texas coast where the wind is almost ALWAYS constant.  Why is this inexhaustible source of FREE ENERGY not being used? At a constant wind speed of 20 knots or better, it would not take much to run a house. At least FREE AC!   The currents at the coast are almost always in motion. How about A TIDE TURBINE? Why not use an underwater turbine or "water mill" to capture this FREE ENERGY? By routing the water, the turbine should turn constantly with great force. This should be placed close to shore but far enough out to stay underwater even at low tide. (4 or 5 feet underwater.) An Alternator or generator should be connected to the axle of the turbine and should be above water level. A vertical paddlewheel could do the same and half of the wheel could remain out of water. At one time slow moving steams supplied much of our power, the ocean can be used in the same manner.   This is a harmonic balancer and a One Way flywheel in the same device.  Ideally this device would be a plastic ring, half filled with a liquid, with small fins mounted to it's inside. As the rotor spins, this tube will force the water to move in one direction with little drag. If you try to stop the rotor, the resistance will be great. An added bonus: As the rotor spins up, the liquid in the ring forces the rotor to be balanced. The fin angle inside the tube determines forward drag. Would this make a magnetic motor "jump the gap?"   Take a 10 foot galvanized pipe and a 10 foot copper tube. The copper tube should fit inside the galvanized pipe and have a clearance of 1/8 inch all around. Solder a wire to both pipes. Seal where the wires are soldered. Submerse these pipes in the ocean so the waves will move inside the pipes. As long as nothing clogs the 1/8 " space [e.g. sand, dirt, fish or corrosion] this little battery should last for years. (Use a 1 foot test model.)   If any of these work then we HAVE FREE ENERGY right NOW....