Our Mini Hydro Plant
Hydro Head Works
First task was to remove blackberries that kept us a good 5 metres away from the water course when we arrived at Camp Ruffy. Lots of spraying, hard labour and burning generated success.
We cut a small channel some 2 metres long through a granite boulder to divert the water flow into a plastic pit which collects the water before routing it down 300 metres of 92mm poly pipe with a fall of 20 metres.
Hydro Pipe Works
The laying of the 92mm poly pipe was quite a challenge needing a half a dozen mates to man handle the three 100 metre rolls into place and fasten them to the granite (sometimes cliffs) ensuring a continual downhill slope.
Crossing the Creek
Luckily we only had to cross the creek once and the whole job was completed without any of us slipping into the water. Very lucky because it was quite cold when we did this installation.
The Granite Cliffs
Now this section was a bit of a challenge however sheer guts and determination saw us fasten this very difficult to manage poly pipe into place.
Hydro Conversion
Pictured is the turbine that generates our electricity and delivers around...
>> 11-14 amps with the largest jet
>> 8-11 amps with the medium jet
>> 4-7 amps with the smallest jet
The size of the jet that concentrates the water flow onto the turbine is determined by the volume of water in the stream at the time.
