PVC Pipe Used To Build Low-Cost Portable Windmill

PVC Pipe Used To Build Low-Cost Portable Windmill ENERGY Wind Power 28-6-25 "It can be moved from pasture to pasture, and it didn't cost much to build," says John Love, Oklahoma City, Okla., who used ordinary pvc pipe to build a low-cost, portable windmill. It can be operated from the back of a pickup or mounted on a trailer. "It's only in the prototype stage but I think it has promise. I built it to pump water. However, it could also be used to generate electricity," says Love. "A conventional windmill of this size sells for $10,000 to $15,000. And they can't be moved from place to place like mine." The 7-ft. dia. windmill mounts on a triangular-shaped frame made from 2-in. dia. pvc pipe. The pipe is filled with water, providing weight. A 3/4-in. pipe shaft runs from the windmill drive to a modified rear end off a pickup, which gears down the wheel's speed by a 4 to 1 ratio. A 20-ft. long tail with a homemade pump at one end extends at an angle down into the water. (By positioning the tail vertically, the windmill can also pump water from a well). The pump has an outside shell made of 3-in. dia. pvc pipe and contains an 8-in. stroke piston. Water is pumped up through a 1 1/2-in. dia. pvc pipe with a 1/2-in. dia pvc pipe inside it. Pipe fittings can be mounted anywhere on the frame and used to pump water to any location. "I've tested it for almost a year, using it to pump 8 gpm of water. The wheel is very lightweight, yet strong. I plan to use the windmill to irrigate below the dam on my place and to water livestock in another pasture. One advantage of using pvc pipe is that because of its very light weight there's no vibration even in strong winds, which would tear up a heavier windmill," says Love. "The only way the windmill pivots is if I turn the pickup or trailer into the wind. However, I don't think a windmill has to turn with the wind to operate effeciently. In our area about 85 percent of the wind comes either from the south or the north. And since my windmill works equally well either clockwise or counterclockwise, no vane apparatus is necessary. "What makes conventional windmills complicated, and expensive, is that they rotate into the wind. And if that gets you only 5 percent more productivity, the extra cost and weight isn't worth it." The blade hub is made out of 2 by 6's. Love cut the boards into half moons and laminated them together, then bored sixteen 1-in. holes around the perimeter and bolted the blades onto 3/4-in. pvc shafts inserted into the holes. The windmill can be easily disassembled. "By using a pipe wrench on the shaft I can unscrew the blade like you unscrew a light bulb." Love says after several months of operation he found cracks in the couplings on the 2-in. pvc stand, apparently due to high winds. So he's using 3-in. pvc to make a new stand and will build it to fit a trailer. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, John C. Love, 2929 Acropolis Drive, Oklahoma City, Okla. 73120 (ph 405 751-5099).

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