Hello,
Here is a brief outline of our system: Total length of pipe 4400 feet, total head 160 feet, nozzel size 31/64 inch, turbine pitch diameter 3.69 inch.
I am using a stainless steel turgo turbine purchased from Hartvigsen-Hydro. The turbine is connected to a 2 horse power, 3-phase induction motor. The motor was rated at 575 volts, 1725 RPM. I am currently running the motor in a parallel star configuration and use three 9 micro farad capacitors to get the motor producing power.
When generating power the motor turns at 3080 RPM which is a bit higher than I wanted but at the time I could not get a larger turbine.
The 3-phase power is sent 200 feet to our house where it is reduced in a 3-phase transformer and rectified for our 12 volt system. Control is provided by two C 40 controllers in diversion mode. DC current at the rectifiers is about 50 amps at 14.1 volts.
The waterline is also used in the summer for irrigation so if you do any power calculations for this setup you will find I am not using the maximum power available. We just upgraded last year to this system. The previous system used a Delco alternator with a plastic turgo turbine and ran for ten years. It produced about 40 amps at 13.8 volts.
One thing I didn't mention is our intake is only about 8 to 10 inches below the creek surface in the winter. If you have a deeper intake depth you may not encounter the ice crystal problem or it may not be as severe.
I will try to get some pictures together,
Warren