Quick Answer
The Hay Generator is the power source in Find The Needle. You unlock it with the Electrical licence in the tech tree, feed it hay, and it makes electricity that Power Poles carry to your rakes, robotic arms, scanners and other machines.
Because it burns hay, a generator must stay fed. The easiest way is a splitter off your main conveyor, so the generator refills itself while the rest of the hay keeps moving to the sell stand.
How to Unlock the Hay Generator
Sell hay by hand first and save $100 to open the build menu. Then buy the Electrical licence in the tech tree, which unlocks the Hay Generator and the Power Poles next to it.
Build it before your first powered machine. A conveyor to the sell stand does not need much to start, but rakes and robotic arms do nothing without electricity.
Where to Place It
Put the generator right next to the main belt, ideally near the middle of your build. From there, run Power Poles outward to each machine so the wiring does not block later belts.
- Place the generator beside the main belt, not out at the pile edge.
- Add an alternating splitter that sends part of the hay into the generator.
- Run Power Poles from the generator to each rake, arm and scanner.
- Leave space for a second generator next to the first one.
Keeping It Fed
A generator that runs out of hay stops making power. Feeding it by hand works early on, but a splitter from the belt removes that chore. When the generator is full, the remaining hay simply continues to the sell stand, so no hay is wasted.
Fixing Low Power
When demand is higher than supply, every machine runs below full speed at the same time. Demo V8 added a power warning that tells you when this happens. The fix is to build extra generators or level up the ones you have before adding more collectors.
A good rule is to check power every time you place a new machine. If the hay counter barely moves after a purchase, the grid is often the bottleneck.
What to Build Next
Once power is stable, add piston rakes and robotic arms at the pile, then scanners inline before the sell stand. Our automation setup guide and factory layout page show how the generator fits into a full line.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get the hay generator?
Buy the Electrical licence in the tech tree. It unlocks the Hay Generator and Power Poles.
Why are my machines slow?
Usually power is short. Add or level up hay generators and keep them fed from the main belt.
Does the generator waste hay?
It burns the hay it takes in. With a splitter, extra hay keeps going to the sell stand once the generator is full.
Sources
Every fact on this page was cross-checked against at least two of these sources. Values that could not be confirmed are left out.