A New Era in Home-Owner Hydro

Article Tools

Image Gallery

Print

E-mail

Comments

RSS

Remember, water regulations are designed to protect you as well as the resource. It's worth jumping through a few hoops to guarantee your water rights.

With this is in mind, the best approach is to find out what the law is, then decide how to proceed. In most cases, it's easy to comply. Begin by calling your state energy office or water resources department.

So much for humanity's laws. How about Nature's?

In contrast to huge dams whose reservoirs invariably wreak immense havoc, home-owner hydrosystems impound no water and have few environmental impacts. Nonetheless, taking too much water out of a stream, even if its only for a few hundred yards, can raise its temperature enough to kill fish and other aquatic life. Diverting the entire flow is a hanging offense-or should be. In California, during dry years, Don Harris will close his intake for months at a time. (He uses photovoltaics for backup power. PVs dovetail nicely with hydro: If it's not raining, the sun is usually shining.)

If you have any questions about the impact of your system on salmon, salamanders, or frogs, Harris suggests that you explore them with the biology department of the nearest university or the local fish and game department.

Remember, we all live downstream.

FOLLOW NATURE'S LAW
Diverting too much from a stream can easily kill fish and other life.

Do It Yourself?

In most cases, the answer is yes. Indeed, you may have to simply to keep costs within reason.

With the help of reference books from the library and guide sheets from turbine manufacturers, any reasonably adept and persistent person can design and install a hydro system. Be forewarned, though: It will cost more and take longer than you expect. Since there is a learning curve involved, expect some head-scratching. Here's a primer to get you started.

The most trouble-prone point of a hydro system is the intake. A poorly designed diversion structure is a constant migraine. If you want to get it right the first time, study the site in detail. Ask yourself. What happens in a drought? A flood? And remember that uncontrolled diversions, however brief, may cause mudslides and horrific erosion.

In many cases, a small rock or log dam is built to create a pool a few feet deep. This traps silt and provides a place for the intake pipe, usually located in a concrete or plywood box. Often it's easier and wiser to divert water away from the stream to a 55-gallon drum, stock tank, or tiny pond and begin the penstock there. In any case, the intake must be screened to prevent leaves and gravel from being sucked down the pipe. To avoid endless trips up the hill, design the screen to be self-cleaning.

RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print