Do I have a Hydro Site?
This is a complicated question. The answer depends on many things, such as;
permits, your neighbors concerns, environmental issues, enough vertical fall
enough volume of water, pipe loss and electrical transmission problems, and of
course cost. Hydro is probably the least
expensive way of producing power. It can
be built for, as low as, $2,000 if user installed. Most folks are not that lucky, figure on
spending somewhat more. The biggest
mistake you can make is letting cost govern engineering decisions at this
stage. Let’s look at what is possible
from the site and then see what the cost is and then scale it back if you don't
need that much power or can't afford that much expense. After all, hydro doesn't necessarily have to
provide all the power you need. Most
systems usually include some solar and a back-up generator.
Definition of terms and units of
measure
Head: is the vertical component or elevation change between the
intake and the hydro-generator measured in feet or pounds per square inch (PSI)
of pressure at the nozzle in the hydro.
For those of you on the metric system, you will have to make your own
conversions. 1 PSI = 2.31 feet of head. 1 foot of head = .433 PSI
Flow: is the quantity of water flowing through the nozzles in the
hydro. Leaks don’t count. Most residential sized systems are measured
in gallons per minute (GPM). Larger
systems are measured in CFS (cubic feet per second). 450 GPM. = I CFS
Static Head: Head measurement at 0 flow rate
Dynamic Head: the "net"
head under actual working conditions.
This # is always less than static head and is a result of friction
losses in the penstock.
Volts: is a unit of electrical force
Amps: is a unit of electrical current or volume
Ohms: is a unit of electrical impedance. Ohms law states that 12 volts through 4 ohms
impedance will allow 3 amps of current to flow.
It will be necessary to understand voltage drop in a run of wire and
Ohms law is fundamental.
KWH & AH:
By convention: amps, volts, and watts are instantaneous measurements of
electrical energy. Over time, we
commonly use: watt hours, kilowatt hours, and amp hours. Since the voltage on your home system is of
one voltage and relatively constant it serves no purpose to use the first two
terms, at least on the DC side of your electrical system. Amp hours is easier to understand and keep
track of, for example, if the hydro is
producing 5 amps for 24 hours you have produced (5 X 24) Amp hours into
the battery to be used by an inverter, DC or appliances.