CHANGING GENERATOR MOTORS 2 Fisher and Paykel

[captainward]

Hi Gizmo. Must be nice to have such a great knowledge of wind turbines and such I can't thank you enough for your time and expertise. ....:O)

[gizmo]

Hi Gizmo. Must be nice to have such a great knowledge of wind turbines and such I can't thank you enough for your time and expertise. ....:O)

I think you've mistaken me for someone else 

[captainward]

YEP HATS YOU...)

[captainward]

HERE ARE SOME MORE REVISIONS OF THE TAIL ASSEMBLY. THE OLD ONE WAS TOO HEAVY SO I USED LIGHTER MATERIALS  1/16 STEEL INSTEAD OF 1/8 INCH STEEL SQUARE TUBE. MINUS 1 TAIL AS WELL. I ALSO ADDED A FOOT AND HALF TO THE TAIL BOOM...)

[gizmo]

Yep longer tail boom looks better.

You don't need to centre it with the back of the alternator. Instead of making the boom come back up behind the hub, just have it go straight out. You'll save a bit of weight, and it wont get in the way when you change the alternator hub.

Glenn

[fabricator]

I hope you are planning on furling with the tail, tilt back furling of the rotor is a very violent way to go, the entire rotor assembly is subjected to violent slamming.

[captainward]

HI GIZMO,FABRICATOR.  THE PICTURE IS DECEIVING AS THE GENERATOR GOES ON WITHOUT A HITCH.
I AM THINKING OF PUTTING A BRAKING MECHANISM ON THE SHAFT WE WILL SEE.
I HAVE BEEN WELDING ONLY A FEW MONTHS SO I TRY TO ADD SOME STYLE TO MY DESIGNS JUST FOR THE HELL OF IT. I AM GETTING REAL G@@D AT GRINDING.
I CAN'T SEEM TO FIND A THRUST BEARING THE SIZE OF THOSE PIPES?

[SparWeb]

Awww.
I liked the twin fins on the tail...

[captainward]

Hi Sparweb   Yes I liked them too but tooo heavy....  here is todays update.  that was one of my favorite ww2 planes along with the cessna twin tail twin motors ft back.

[fabricator]

Awww.
I liked the twin fins on the tail...

Der Gabelschawnz Teuful.

[captainward]

forked tail devil  you say?

[fabricator]

Yep, that's what the Germans called the Lockheed P-38 Lightening.

[captainward]

Well the rains finally subsided here in So. California plus a few days for us to dry out.
Now I  have some time to build my tower, this is the top part of the tower 3 ft high by 6 inches square.
The rest of the tower will be 12 inches square and 10 foot high.  :O)

[captainward]

So now I am waiting for the rectifier to show up from china to test the wiring job i did on the stator to see if I get 12 volts or more when I turn it, before I permanently mount it on the tower, I still need to build.  :O)

[birdhouse]

nice looking build! 

it's hard to tell from the pics, but it looks like you may have a pretty small blade to tower clearance. 

there are a lot of factors that go into potential blade to tower strikes, but blade flex is probably the largest.  when the machine sees very high winds, the blades will flex back toward the tower and can make contact.  this usually happens at high wind (high blade rpm) so the results can be pretty catastrophic. 

one way folks combat this is to tilt the entire machine back a little bit to create more clearance between the tower stub and blade tips.  i think i put somewhere between five and ten degrees of tilt into my machine.  i also used laminated fir with a layer of fiberglass over the blades, so they're pretty stiff. 

google the site for "tower strike" or "blade strike" and you should get some actual instances of this happening. 

adam

[captainward]

WOW Adam, that is some goooood information I'll keep a eye  on that idea before a blade strike happens thanks for the info.:O)   looks like I'll have to shim the front side.

[captainward]

Here is the first side of the 10 foot tower 12 inches wide.   :O)

[captainward]

photos.

[captainward]

Hi Birdhouse, I measured the clearance for the blades and I have 5 1/2 inches to the corner post of the small tower, I wonder if I should still tilt the blades up more as you suggested??

[birdhouse]

i think i depends on blade length and type of blade. 

all it would take to tilt back a bit would be to grind loose the weld between your upper tower stub (the small pipe) where it connects to the larger horizontal pipe (bearing holder???) and re weld it a few degrees back. 

although this technically will reduce performance a bit by not having the prop facing directly into the wind, the insurance is worth it.  the losses won't be noticeable if you're only tilting back a few degrees. 

adam

[birdhouse]

purely out of curiosity-

why are you spending all this time welding a 10' tower from square tube stock when a 20' chunk of 4" pipe can be had at a salvage steel yard for ~$50?? 

there is very little usable wind at 10' from the ground.  the turbulence will hinder things greatly! 

adam

[fabricator]

As that stands right now there wont be a lot of rigidity, you need to add diagonal braces from corner to corner in the squares.

[captainward]

FABRAGATOR. So my other tower for my vawt is still standing but has some guy wires on it .  :O)

Birdhouse, You know I just love to weld and the metal is cheeper for me then large diameter piping plus
I have put these turbines up on a deck that is high above a valley no problem with a steady breeze
the wind is funneled into the valley from the ocean and the traffic on the main road o a wind turbines dream. Besides I have all the 12 volts 25 -30 amps I need from my solar panels, I just enjoy playing with those wind turbines, that's why I have two. :O)

[Mary B]

some diagonal bracing would make your towers a LOT stiffer

[birdhouse]

Birdhouse, You know I just love to weld and the metal is cheeper for me then large diameter piping plus
I have put these turbines up on a deck that is high above a valley no problem with a steady breeze
the wind is funneled into the valley from the ocean and the traffic on the main road o a wind turbines dream

not to bust your steels, but, i just bought a 21' chunk of 6" pipe today from my surplus steel yard for $62.38.  it will be cut in three pieces for parking lot bollards. 

a 4" piece would be much cheaper.  secure four guys to it, and boom, you have a *decent* tower. 

if you think the wind behind your house on your deck is good, i think you are a bit misguided.  i very well understand this is a hobby for you, and i'm sure you have a lot of fun with it. 

the "real" wind is much higher where obstructions don't create turbulent air.  even my 70' tower is far short of what i really wish it was.  there are 40-50' pine trees within 150' of my tower that i'm sure reduce my turbines output to a significantly measurable degree. 

i also agree with others on the tower design.  there is no real reason to have horizontal members in your tower design.  they should all be angled to add shear strength in all directions.  just google image "antenna towers" and you'll get the idea. 

enough critique.  i'm sure you are having fun, and that's all that really matters...  unless you live off grid and need every electron....   

adam

[captainward]

Ok you have convinced me to put some steel angles in the squares for rigidity. here is today's build,
tomorrow I will install the diagonal supports.

[captainward]

Birdhouse,
     Since i have been trying different ideas regarding wind turbines I have found that each
location is different, each motor is different each set of blades are different, each set of bearings are different. I believe that the successful wind generator tower ect. will be the one who has done the most research and trial on location to find the best results.
I wish to thank all of you for your knowledge about the subject it makes my journey shorter.
73s for now  :O)

[joestue]

I drive south to Tacoma to get steel whenever I can't find enough scrap locally.
best deal I've got so far has been 50 cents a pound.
20 foot lengths of most hot rolled goes for 87 cents, scrap and cut off for 75 cents.

don't even think about buying Sched 40 steel pipe at the big box stores up here.

[captainward]

Joestue, I really like the Washington State, seattle area I been there many times in fact I was born there in Seattle. I enjoy going on the fairy boats to the many different islands some times staying for a day or so.
You are right about those home fix it stores macho dollars. I use several metal company's for my steel
for my lathe and mill projects plus this one. I live in San Diego ca.

[joestue]

ah, didn't realize Birdhouse is in portland.
let me know where you got that "21' chunk of 6" pipe today from my surplus steel yard for $62.38"
schedule 40 is 19 pounds a foot, sounds like 15 cents a pound?

Ward,
i'll get that nut in the mail soon, the metal is  90% cu 10% nickel btw.

[captainward]

Joestue,  Ok When you get the time no worries....:O)

[birdhouse]

let me know where you got that "21' chunk of 6" pipe today from my surplus steel yard for $62.38"

the steel yard out on columbia blvd.  they have their main yard, then they have there surplus yard across the side street.  it's kind of a pain, because you pick what you want, have them radio in for price, then have to drive back to the main yard, pay for it, then drive back to the surplus yard to load. 

the 6" 21' was surplus sprinkler pipe.  sch 10??  right around an 1/8" wall.  it's pretty rusty, but the price was right.  they had maybe 40 of them that size?? 

btw-  there prices fluctuate as market price fluctuates. 

i got my 4" 20'ers .156 wall for my tower there years ago.  i believe they were $50 a piece. 

adam

[captainward]

Well Adam sounds like you ave a good source for metal.
Here are the pictures for today with diagonal supports.  :O)