Guy-less tilt-up towers for Air turbines [RE-wrenches]

[jeff.oldham at realgoods.com]

John, for my own Air 403, I used an abandoned 4" X 6' (tall) pipe left over
from a tracker pole. It is 4' in the ground w/concrete. I then got a piece
of 1-1/2" x 21' black iron pipe and simply through bolted it 4" below the
top of the 4" pipe with a 1/2" bolt. I then lashed it to the bottom of the
pole with a series of 4 stacked SS "hose clamps". The 1-1/2" runs along the
outside of the 4", bolted at the top and clamped at the bottom. This puts
the Air at about 23'. I can raise/lower the unit by myself with the bolt as
a pivot. Plus I already had a j-box at the pole bottom from the retired
array.

SW tells me that much lighter pipe works just fine such as Cyclone fence
pipe (I use this stuff for anemometer poles, 'cuz its real cheap and light)
and I believe it comes in slightly longer lengths (23'?). Now I'm thinking,
what about 2" black iron with a piece of 1-1/2" "Cyclone" pipe in it and go
up 40ish feet?! I'll no longer be able to raise by hand though. I'll let you
all know if I slice a notch through my house...

-jeff

> 	From the Solar, Wind & Hydro Powered office of:
> 	Jeff Oldham
> 	Gaiam- Real Goods & Jade Mountain
> 	Design & Consulting Group
> 	11755 Mid. Mtn. Rd.
> 	Potter Valley, CA 95469  USA
> 
> 	Ph: 303.222.3814
> 	Fax: 707.743.1820
> 
> 	www.solardevelopment.com
> 
> 	"When you turn to face the Sun all shadows fall behind you"
> 	- Old African Proverb
> 


-----Original Message-----
From: John Raynes [mailto:john at raynes.com]
Sent: Thursday, May 02, 2002 4:11 PM
To: RE-wrenches at topica.com
Subject: Guy-less tilt-up towers for Air turbines [RE-wrenches]


Hello Wrenches,

I have a question for the group that's been bugging me.  I come across a 
lot of potential small wind customers who will not buy if it involves guyed 
towers.  Usually they're in communities without lots of land, plus there 
are the questions about how they look, people tripping over wires, etc.  I 
know of the guy-less lattice towers for the larger machines, but those are 
overkill (height, weight, and cost-wise) when considering an Air403 or 
Air-X.  We've searched high and low for some design that's in the 25-50' 
range, readily adaptable to the Air turbines, but we're stumped.  SW 
doesn't feel that this is an issue they need to address.

It seems as if the only solutions are
	1) the roof mount kit (enough's already been said about that),
	2) "just sink a pole, man", or
	3) "deal with guy wires and stop whining"

I reluctantly steer toward #2, but there are still two major 
problems.  First, there's the question of access, and I always tell folks 
to plan on servicing with some regularity.  Without tilt-up, that's often 
not practical once you get above 20-25' or so.  Second, it's not an 
engineered solution, and I'm concerned about liability.  I'm not a 
mechanical designer, so I'm hesitant to bank on my judgement when it comes 
to tall tower structures, without going for overkill, probably way more 
expensive than is needed.

Anybody aware of cost-effective solutions for guy-less Air tilt-up 
towers?   I don't mind if there's 5-10' of spread at the bottom for 
bracing, nor do I mind if there's pipe welding needed to reduce down from 
fatter poles at the base.  I'm just looking for a design that's been tested 
by someone who's given it the proper thought.  I'll buy plans, kits,
whatever.

Thanks,
John Raynes
RE Solar
Sandy, UT

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