3.5 Windspot

[Peter Klaassen]

We have had another winter storm which got the better of the Windspot again. It was over speeding -5800W- showing on the monitor and it shook the tail off. I am hoping to get replacement parts from the original supplier even though the Sonkyo outfit has sunk. I have not yet determined the reason for the governor failure but I expect it is the bearings sticking again.
1408

1409

[Peter Klaassen]

1410

1411
I have included a picture of the blade feathering yoke and the slip rings. The slip rings have been a past problem and they are out of adjustment again. The arms are sticking so the springs don’t hold the brushes against the rings. Last time the turbine was down (12 months ago) the brass yoke was cracked but it seems ok now and the movement of the blades seems ok. The root bearings for the blades are loose though so they will need work. This has been a weakness in the Windspot also. The bearings wear only in a short section of the races. I think it needs needle bearings like a u-joint rather than tapered roller bearings.
If anyone has experience or advice with these turbines please let me know.
Pete

[Rob Beckers]

Peter, sorry to see your turbine down again!

Did that tail section just crack off right through the resin? Or what's the white stuff in the picture (no, not the snow, we got enough of that here too)? I'm just trying to understand how it is fastened. It looks like the break is just some platicy/resiny material, and I can't imagine that would be able to withstand very much.

-RoB-

[Ralph Day]

Have you involved your house insurance this time Peter? When our SWWP H80 was destroyed the insurance company replaced it with a BergeyXL1. We had all the renewable energy stuff carried on the house policy as an extra for 10 years before the incident.

Maybe they'd replace your turbine with a lower producing (longer lasting) Bergey.

Ralph

[Peter Klaassen]

Hi Rob and Ralph, the tail was made with a steel pipe welded to a flange and covered with polypropylene type plastic and spray foam filler. The break was at the weld. There is spray foam at the centre of the pipe.
I am not going the route of insurance for this Ralph and I did look up a Bergy. They don’t seem to offer the 1 kW version anymore. I was thinking the same- something more reliable would be nice. The type to turn out of the wind seems to be less prone to failure.

[Peter Klaassen]

While the Windspot is still up, I am looking down the road for something better. The updated version is from Ryse energy-an E-5 (thanks for the tip Cor)which has some improvements it appears. The Windspot has a shake to it so the lifespan is limited. Does anyone have experience with Ryse customer service?
Pete