A Lowveld Guide to Green Electricity
Micro-hydro turbine
We read a small article in the Farmer’s Weekly a few years ago that mentioned that the amount of coal burnt to create the electricity to heat water for the average bath (we are not talking about those huge Jacuzzi things) is about 50kg of coal per bath. Relaxing in the bath with the image of a huge pile of coal next to one was enough to make us want to give up hygiene altogether! And so we started looking at ways of reducing our consumption. With switching to cooking on gas, changing the light bulbs, tossing the television out (when we started to only enjoy the advertising we realised that the TV had to go..) and installing the solar geysers we have been able to cut our electricity consumption by half. But that was not enough for us and luckily our property is on a gentle slope, we have a dam and access to canal water so…
We have built a micro-hydro turbine station that is driven by water from our dam (the water goes straight back into the canal) and is grid tied to Eskom. When the canal is flowing we generate all the electricity that we can use and any extra gets fed back into the Eskom grid (they get it for free from us…). If you would like to see how it all works ask us and we will take you on an electrifying tour, contact Mark on 083 6763229. We are looking forward to the day that we can replace our Yaris with an electrical car, which will mean we are effectively filling up on canal water. The people who made our turbine and installed it are Clackson Power. A few years ago when we started looking into a turbine we searched the Internet, spoke to anyone who would listen to us and researched systems made in Canada, Laos, China….. And eventually through a micro hydro Internet group we were directed to the experts in South Africa, who happen to be based in Nelspruit….. Clackson Power 013 755 3838. With the current escalation in electricity prices we will pay off the investment in our system within a few years. When we look at the canal now we see money flowing past…
Turbine housing - made from green materials
The building that houses the turbine is built out of sandbags (citrus fruit bags filled with sand from the site). Theuns Naude is the local expert in this technique. Call him on 082 808 9684.
Source: Article by Tamor Mason
The above article shows how it is possible for individuals to be energy self-sufficient in an environmentally friendly way. Not everyone lives in circumstances where it’s practical to install a micro-hydro turbine station but there are many other ways of generating electricity on a small scale such as solar geysers, solar panels and wind turbines. Energy saving appliances and awareness of your electricity consumption will help to reduce your carbon footprint and your electricity bill. Naturally, water conservation should also receive attention if we want to live sustainably (see an earlier post about our water footprint). Rainwater tanks (filled by rooftop rainwater harvesting) and grey water recycling systems can go a long way to help you obtain water self sufficiency. Water Rhapsody conservation systems have numerous benefits, enabling green living to become a reality for you. Water and energy are linked; renewable, clean sources of energy such as hydro power are becoming essential in our fossil fuel-polluted world. Another ideal green energy source for sunny South Africa is solar energy. Solar panels and solar water heaters are becoming more efficient and less costly making these accessible to many.
Water Rhapsody has incorporated Yes Solar which enables us to supply high quality Eskom-approved Solsquare solar geysers. Solsquare solar geysers are made in Germany, are SABS-approved and carry a 10-year warrantee (unlike most other solar water heating systems that carry or 5-year warrantee or less). Contact us for a free solar geyser quote.
We also offer free, no obligation quotes on our Water Rhapsody conservation systems that include rainwater harvesting systems, rainwater tanks, grey water irrigation systems, greywater recycling systems and other water-saving devices. See our product demo, rainwater FAQ and greywater FAQ for more information. We are authorised JoJo Tank dealers for Mpumalanga and Limpopo and can supply and install the full range of JoJo water tanks and water tank stands as well as Atlas Plastics water tanks. Contact us for a free quote!
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