Powering Machines
Most Nerospace machines need power (shown as FE). They do not make power themselves. If a machine's power bar stays at 0%, nothing is feeding it.
The short version
- Build a generator.
- Put it right next to the machine (touching any side).
- Put fuel in the generator.
That's it. Generators push power into every machine they touch on their own. You do not need a cable for machines that touch the generator.
Generators
| Generator | Fuel | Power | How long one item lasts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Combustion Generator | Coal, charcoal, coal block, blaze rod, Rocket Fuel Canister | 20 FE/tick | Coal: 80 s · Coal block: 13 min · Blaze rod: 2 min · Canister: 3 min 20 s |
| Passive Generator | Raw Nerosium, Nerosium Ingot or Nerosium Dust | 8 FE/tick | 20 minutes |
| Solar Panel | Sunlight (nothing to feed) | Tier 1: 20 · Tier 2: 100 · Tier 3: 400 FE/tick in full sun | Forever |
- The Combustion and Passive generators need Nerosteel Ingots to craft. Nerosteel Ore is found deep in the Overworld (below about y 16) — see Nerosteel Ore.
- Solar panels need Xertz Quartz, which you get later on Greenxertz.
- On airless worlds (the station and planets) solar panels make double power and work even under a roof.
How much power do machines use?
| Machine | Uses | Good starter setup |
|---|---|---|
| Nerosium Grinder | 20 FE/tick while grinding | 1 Combustion Generator (full speed) or 1 Passive Generator (about 40% speed) |
| Oxygen Generator | 80 FE/tick while making oxygen | 4 Combustion Generators, or solar |
| Fuel Refinery | 40 FE/tick while refining | 2 Combustion Generators |
| Quarry Controller | 40 FE per block mined | 1–2 generators |
| Terraformer | 12–48 FE per column | Several generators or Tier 2/3 solar |
A machine that gets less power than it uses still works — it just runs slower, in bursts.
Moving power further away
- Universal Pipe — carries power, fluids, gas and items. Connect a generator to machines that are not touching it.
- Battery (from Neroland Core) — stores power so your machines keep running when the generator runs out of fuel or the sun goes down.
- Configurator — right-click a machine face to choose what that side does (power in, items in, items out, off).
Common problems
- Power is 0% — no generator is touching the machine or connected by pipe. Or the generator has no fuel.
- Generator has fuel but machine is still 0% — check the side with the Configurator; a face set to off will not take power.
- Generator stops burning — its own storage is full. That is normal: it waits until something uses the power.