Small Hydro-Electric Turbines?

Question

There is a small river that flows under a building/business. Are there any small 'hydro-electric turbines' out there that can be used to generate electricity from this river? I don't mean a huge raging river, just an average sized one; therefore, not needing a Dam-sized turbine.

Thanks very much for answers!

Josh

Answer 1

They have been in use for many years. In the 1800's, there were many small ones in use. They lost out due to the cost effectiveness of larger units. Will work on any small stream or river, just will not produce a lot of power.

Answer 2

yes,

Turbines used for Micro-Hydel Plants are available.

Even portable turbines are available.

thnks

Answer 3

You could build yourself a device using Archimede's s***w design.  You can add a drive shaft and apply it to drive gear.  For a test, you could get yourself a small generator at a flea market.  Detach the combustion engine from the generator and apply power from you drive shaft directly to the generator to generate power.  If you toy around with this you'll get a could idea if it's worth investing money in a more sophisticated system.  I'm into electric power/green options for power and transportation.  It's my passion and I've created a website (www.GoElectricNow.com) for people to find out more information about alternative means for power in our everyday lives.  You can find more information on this subject by going to my site (www.goelectricnow.com) and enter hydro-electric turbines.  I hope you find my comments to be helpful.

Answer 4

That depends on two factors, the volume of water that is flowing and the head of water. The head of water is the amount by which the water level changes over distance, i.e. if the river level is 2 foot higher where it first comes under the building compared to where it leaves it.

You will always get more power with a decent head of water (even with a comparatively small volume) and so if you have a small river and practically no head of water you are going to need a larger volume to get any meaningful power.

You can download a booklet on water power at the source below.