To update this thread a bit, the dry season all but dried up the spring fed creek. I walked up the creek bed on the neighbors side and found they had boxed in the spring with a concrete structure. A 4" outflow pipe was set in the concrete wall about 20" up from the main water level. They have, in effect, created back pressure on that spring and cut down the flow.
Finally we got into the wet season and another walk to that spring showed the water has finally found a way to flow out of the creek bank a bit, right next to that box. ALSO,
The neighbors have lost the farm, due to non payment. In the next day or so, I am headed to that box with my 8# sledge hammer, and do some modding.
I had been cleaning the cow poop and brush, weeds, leaves, etc., out of the creek, and could see that small dam I had built a couple years ago from 100 feet away. Wife and I walked down the hill to the creek bed, and,
a couple of 45+ feet tall trees broke off and fell into-across that creek, right where I was planning to have the trough run to flow the water to the Vortex Turbine.
Now, I have to pack the chainsaw over 100' down the hill, then back up, and cut all that stuff and clear it to where it won't wash in from the flash floods.
It has been raining quite a bit, and, last night, rained a hard rain most of the night. Now, there is approximately 60 GPM running down the creek. Also, I think I might buy a heavy PVC-ABS ? water tank. They come in 24" 36" 48" 60" diameters and the top is formed to a much smaller diameter. I can cut the bottom off and use that as an open top grow bed for the green house, turn that tank upside down, and, cut a small section of the wall away, and open it up to fit the trough and create that vortex. Building that spiral rotor will not be a big problem, either. I can cut circles out of sheet steel, and make 1 cut from the center hole, out, and then force the cut edges apart, to make that spiral "Archimedes" auger type rotor, AND, as I spread the cut discs apart, they will "CUP" so, they will slightly catch the water as it swirls down. Make progressively smaller discs and weld them together on the rotor shaft.
Have magnets being shipped down in a couple of weeks, and, have been reading up on rewinding burnt motors I have to make PM generators. Now, I will be about 250' from the
8KW Electric car battery I just bought and need to ship down. That's 4KW for the house, to start out and 4KW for my electric bicycle-motorcycle I have been working on.
Also have my Lenz2 3' diameter X 6' tall VAWT wind turbine nearly built. Need to get a couple bearings and a center shaft and get that mounted up, then dig into the ground and set the frame to hold that turbine, RIGHT NEAR the neighbors house they are stripping before they leave the farm in the next few days, and before the Bank catches them doing this.
Things are looking up, down here in the jungle.
Harold
