Just received a set of blades from windynation and I'm very happy with them. I've been selling the airx blades from thermodyne for years now and havn't been very happy with them. Here in alaska it isn't un common to get 100 mph gusts in the winter time which destroys the black nylon blades from thermodyne. The aluminum blades from windynation seem to be much better at taking abuse. Also these are great for the use of automotive style PMA's because the rpms can go up to 3000 rpms in gusty winds. So far Im very happy with them and have already put my orders in for many more sets to sell to my customers. THANKS WINDY NATION!!! I currently have this turbine on a 20' 1.5" schedule 80 pipe cemented into the ground. The convection wind we get here is great the turbine starts spinning around 10am and doesn't stop till the sun goes down about 10pm here. Tons of power. The carbon fiber black blades only spun the generator a few times a day which disappointed me so when I came across these blades I thought well how much better can they really be? Now I'm frantically ordering stacks of these blades for all my turbines If you have thermodyne, airx, or other nylon carbon fiber based blades throw that junk away and put a set of these blades up you won't regret it.
Nice write-up Clarence. I'm interested in your 20' mounting technique. In your posted pic I don't see any guy wires supporting your 1.5" schedule pipe. Do you have any additional support for them in place? My 2 windmills are only 15' off the ground, of which the lower 4' is a 4x4x6 post sunk 2' in the ground with cement footing. They didn't last long in 30 mph winds without any guy wire support. I imagine they'd survive even less amount of time in Alaskan winds of 100mph gusts. Can you please elaborate a little more? Maybe I can learn a different approach that will enable me to raise them another 15' to make better use of the higher wind streams. Thanks! P.S. I totally agree with you about the Hyperspin blades. I just ordered a 2nd set to upgrade my 1st windmill. These blades put the others to shame!
I received my blades today. Slowly and steadily I'm getting it all together. My question is: Should I treat the new blades (from Windy Nation) with anything for UV, oxidization etc.? Should I do anything to the edges? e.g. round off or sharpen leading/trailing edges.
No kind of treatment is necessary to avoid UV damaged. Aluminum is not effected by UV damaged on the "human time scale". Do not shape the edges of the blades. It will give you little to no gain and will ultimately make your rotor unbalanced!!! You can gently sand the blades with some 600 grit sand paper. Clean them with rubbing alcohol or acetone (nail polish remover). Then spray paint them with clear coat. This is only necessary if you live in a marine environment and you do not want your blades to have a "chalky" look after a few years. The outer surface of the blades will oxidize and this is what makes that appearance. But this is only an aesthetic issue. Aluminum is very rust resistant ..... the hulls of some ocean boats are made of aluminum after all.
[quote="... You can gently sand the blades with some 600 grit sand paper. Clean them with rubbing alcohol or acetone (nail polish remover). Then spray paint them with clear coat. This is only necessary if you live in a marine environment and you do not want your blades to have a "chalky" look after a few years. The outer surface of the blades will oxidize and this is what makes that appearance. But this is only an aesthetic issue. Aluminum is very rust resistant ..... the hulls of some ocean boats are made of aluminum after all.[/quote] What clear coat would you recommend? - Thanks.
Depends what you have access to. A two part polyurethane would be best but most people do not have that type of equipment. A spray paint can of outdoor rated clear polyurethane that is designed to bind to metal will work just fine.
Thank you, sir. I have some experience with 2-part polys and I doubt it's worth the setup and effort for 5 small pieces of aluminum. I'll seek a quality 1-part product. Have a great day!
