Helium (Hnt) Mining

[Sam @ Dearne 10]

Hi,

Are there any Helium HNT miners out there with Long-Fi hotspots set up. I can only see 4 in Sheffield and we seem to be way behind other cities and areas in the UK for density.

[Waldo 96]

Nope, never heard of it, but...

 

Sheffield doesn't look too good, especially if you compare with Manchester:

https://explorer.helium.com/coverage#9.33/53.4601/-1.8687

 

Would be interested (just curious really) to hear your experiences mining it. What sort of hardware you're using, is it financially viable etc.

[Sam @ Dearne 10]

Only just got my miner, they are like rocking horse doo dah, not really set it all up yet. You have to use a specific miner from companies like Nebra or Bobcat. They are about $300 - $400 . It should be well worth it in the long term. 

 

[Waldo 96]

Best of luck with it Sam. Hope the mining turns out to be profitable; and more than covers expense of the equipment and electricity etc. 

[Sam @ Dearne 10]

Thanks pal. the cost of electricity is minimal, they only run off 5W, unlike Bitcoin miners which need a small hydro dam to power them. The miners themselves are £300, so not a major outlay. Looking forward to the challenge

 

[chipfork 10]

Hi Sam, I looked a little while back and was weighing up the Nebra indoor hotspot. Unfortunately it went out of stock pretty quickly and I missed one of the restock notifications. I see that they're going for silly money on eBay and often that's just for someone's pre-order. I'll try and react quickly to the next restock message although shipping takes some time.

 

Which hotspot did you go for?

Edited June 30, 2021 by chipfork

[andyofborg 11]

if you are mining helium, how do you stop it escaping?

[Sam @ Dearne 10]

On 30/06/2021 at 20:43, chipfork said:

Hi Sam, I looked a little while back and was weighing up the Nebra indoor hotspot. Unfortunately it went out of stock pretty quickly and I missed one of the restock notifications. I see that they're going for silly money on eBay and often that's just for someone's pre-order. I'll try and react quickly to the next restock message although shipping takes some time.

 

Which hotspot did you go for?

I've ordered 2 Nebra units, one has arrived and the other is due shortly. I have also ordered 40 Bobcat miners as they are the only ones available at the moment. 12-20 weeks delivery. I have also seen the ones for sale on ebay, personally I see more value in using them for the purpose they were designed for. The quick buck attitude is not for me.

4 hours ago, andyofborg said:

if you are mining helium, how do you stop it escaping?

Hold your breath

[Waldo 96]

7 minutes ago, Sam @ Dearne said:

I have also ordered 40 Bobcat miners as they are the only ones available at the moment. 12-20 weeks delivery. I have also seen the ones for sale on ebay, personally I see more value in using them for the purpose they were designed for. The quick buck attitude is not for me.

 

Jumping in at the deep end then!

 

Did you calculate / estimate how much HNT each miner is likely to earn per month? I'm wondering if it will relate to network utilisation; so the more the network is used, the more reward you get? Also, the fact that Sheffield seems to be sparsely represented on the network, will that make the venture more or less profitable for Sheffield miners?

[chipfork 10]

18 hours ago, Sam @ Dearne said:

I've ordered 2 Nebra units, one has arrived and the other is due shortly. I have also ordered 40 Bobcat miners as they are the only ones available at the moment. 12-20 weeks delivery. I have also seen the ones for sale on ebay, personally I see more value in using them for the purpose they were designed for. The quick buck attitude is not for me.

Hold your breath

How do the Bobcat miners compare to the Nebra? I had a quick look, again a while back, and all I seem to remember is that they come with a more powerful antenna, ship from China and only accept crypto for payment.

 

That might be my way forward instead of waiting for Nebra to open up new batch orders. I would probably be looking at a 4dbi antenna which the Bobcat has (?) as we're in quite an elevated position which I believe offers greater benefit.

[Sam @ Dearne 10]

On 01/07/2021 at 23:23, Waldo said:

Jumping in at the deep end then!

 

Did you calculate / estimate how much HNT each miner is likely to earn per month? I'm wondering if it will relate to network utilisation; so the more the network is used, the more reward you get? Also, the fact that Sheffield seems to be sparsely represented on the network, will that make the venture more or less profitable for Sheffield miners?

I'm budgeting on each miner earning in the region of 50 HNT a month. I have a detailed plan on where I am placing them to gain the most rewards. Its the placement that is key from what I understand. The best thing about a clean map is that at the moment I can dictate the location of each hotspot. If they are too close together then rewards are reduced. You see in some cities there are hotspots on the same street, their rewards are not great

 

23 hours ago, chipfork said:

How do the Bobcat miners compare to the Nebra? I had a quick look, again a while back, and all I seem to remember is that they come with a more powerful antenna, ship from China and only accept crypto for payment.

 

That might be my way forward instead of waiting for Nebra to open up new batch orders. I would probably be looking at a 4dbi antenna which the Bobcat has (?) as we're in quite an elevated position which I believe offers greater benefit.

I haven't got a Bobcat one yet to compare it to my Nebra, but yes the antenna is slightly more powerful on the Bobcat. I have also purchased a 5dbi antenna for my house, so hopefully I will be able to reach a bit further. I have been in the crypto world for several years so payment via USDC was not a problem. All miners seem to be made in China even the Nebra ones, They ship worldwide. Should get my full allocation by October hopefully.

 

Nebra are experiencing many problems at the moment as they don't seem to be handling the volume of sales very well, Bobcat seem more organised. Yeah the Bobcats stock antenna is more powerful. What I have read is that a more powerful antenna is not always the best way to go, depends on your topography and buildings etc....

 

 

Elevated positions are best. 

[Waldo 96]

6 hours ago, Sam @ Dearne said:

I'm budgeting on each miner earning in the region of 50 HNT a month. I have a detailed plan on where I am placing them to gain the most rewards. Its the placement that is key from what I understand. The best thing about a clean map is that at the moment I can dictate the location of each hotspot. If they are too close together then rewards are reduced. You see in some cities there are hotspots on the same street, their rewards are not great.

https://coinmarketcap.com/currencies/helium/

 

Given current value of HNT (around £9.50) all sounds very lucrative! What are you thoughts on placement of the 40 miners? I'm guessing, renting space (for the miner to be plugged in and running) in people's houses or in businesses?

 

Sorry if I come across a bit nosey, just curious about the technology in general. What kind of things (devices etc) would use the network currently, or likely to use it in future?