Windmills

The sump

Windmills are typically used to pump water from a borehole up to 180m in depth.  Another application is putting the pump into a sleeve that sucks water from a dam or river and push it up to a reservoir.

The borehole pump can be installed not higher than 6m from the water source and can push the water up to 180m head up (vertical) and 24km in distance (horizontal).

Pumping from a river or a dam

Apart from the Turbex windmill pumping from a bole hole, it also pumps water very successfully from a river, a fountain or a dam.

This is done by installing the Turbex windmill on a nice suitable spot next to the river, fountain or dam.  As long as the level of the intake suction point of the pump does exceed about 6m in height from the water level in the river, fountain or dam, the Turbex can be installed quite a distance from the dam or river.  With the pump at the Turbex  connected via a thick walled plastic pipe to a suitable suction point in the river or dam, the pumping action works exceptionally well.

The pump is normally installed in the center of the tower in a Turbex sump type that allows the discharge head to function at the natural ground level, while the pump inlet also exit at that level.

Advantages of the Turbex rotary windmill

A Rotary Pump

Every Turbex windmill use a modern pump called a helical rotary pump that is driven by the wind. This pump rotates whilst the traditional wind pump operates with a reciprocating (up-and-down) motion. The helical rotary pumps are the leading bore hole pump type in South Africa today.

Advantages of Rotary Windmills Other wind powered systems find it difficult to match the Turbex’ performance under the same conditions.

A Turbex windmill will pump more water

The Turbex windmill pumps more water for smaller installations which dramatically reduces the pumping costs. Take a typical example. A Turbex Wind Turbine with a 4.6 diameter wheel, operating in a 20 km/h wind and installed on a borehole 30 m (100ft) deep, will deliver 30 000 liters of water per day. That is almost 11 000 000 litres per year!

Deeper water

Getting water at great depths was uneconomical in the past. The Tubex has now made it a feasible reality. The manufacturers of the rotary borehole pumps certify that these pumps can operate at depths of up to 200 – 240 m. Very few, if any, other wind driven units can reach these depths.

Pumps water for kilometres

You can install the Turbex windmill at the water source and pump it to wherever you need it. Even the smallest Turbex windmill will maintain a pumping rate of 1000 liters/h over a distance of 15 km in a typical wind speed of 20 km/h using a 40 mm pipeline.

Irrigation

If you have access to a dam, channel or river you can use the Turbex windmill for irrigation purposes. A Turbex Wind Turbine with a 5.5 diameter wheel, operating in a 20km/h wind pumping from a river or dam will deliver 12 000 liters/h. In strong winds this can go up to more than 40 000 l/h.

Reliability

The Turbex windmill is as reliable as it is effective.

The following features make these machines especially reliable:

• The Turbex windmill automatically feathers out of strong winds to prevent over speeding and can absorb gusts of wind without damage.
• The wheel is exceptionally strong and can withstand wind velocities of up to 80 km/h. The unique tower is designed for strength
• The machine tracks the wind’s changing direction.
• The Turbex windmill can withstand harsh weather conditions such as heat waves, storm winds, snow, rain, icing, and corrosion for many years.
• Long life bearings ensure low maintenance.

The following conclusions can be made about Turbex windmills

• Of all the types of water pumping systems available, the Turbex windmill is by far the cheapest per litre pumped over 15 years.
• The Turbex pumps more water than other alternative energy systems.
• The Turbex is even cheaper than pumping water with electricity. That is not taking in account the cost of laying a new power line.

• The diesel driven pumping system is so expensive that it can normally only be used for emergency situations

There are many different pumps and pumping systems which can pump water from a borehole. Every system has advantages and disadvantages. You can only make the right choice of product if you can compare the advantages and disadvantages of all that is available.

Storm wind protection of Turbex.

The windmill is designed to protect itself against over speeding of the rotor during storm wind conditions.  The tail of the machine will turn the rotor side ways in such storm wind conditions automatically.  It is always a good idea to put the machine on break when such storms are approaching.