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Once you have planning permission you can go ahead and order your turbine.
The Foundation Kit which consists of the base plate and assorted bolts
together with comprehensive instruction manual will arrive shortly after your order is accepted.
Unless you are a builder or very experienced DIYer I would recommend getting professional
help at this stage.
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The main foundation hole is bigger than it looks.
This hole is 2.5m square and 1m deep.
A JCB with helpful driver can dig both turbine and winch footings together with
the cable trench and, in our case garage footings, in half a day.
This should be cheaper than hiring a mini-digger for a weekend.
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The cable trench is not as deep and it seemed easier to have it meet the main hole
at a corner. Our cable run was nearly 50m.
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This is a view down the garden showing the spoil from the trench leading away from the
garage footings.
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Another point in favour of a JCB is its ability to easily shift the waste and create
a bit of landscaping into the bargain.
Moving over 10 cubic metres of waste isn't a wheelbarrow job.
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There was a delay of a few weeks due to heavy rain leaving the ground rather waterlogged,
but once the surface water had gone I could start preparing for concrete.
At the garage end wood shuttering was used to barricade off the footings
from the trench and a section of gutter down pipe used to allow for cable laying
after the base was cast.
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At the other end of the trench the turbine base plate was suspended from two joists,
the 1m long threaded bolts fitted, earthing rod installed, reinforcing mesh cut to
size and fixed into place and finally a length of tube positioned through the middle
of the base plate.
It's a difficult, heavy, dirty job and we were lucky to get it right first time.
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And so to concreting. We are fortunate to have a family run ready-mix company not half a
mile away, so, with rain forecast, we started with the garage footings and the 1m
cube for the winch anchor pin. Then on to the turbine base.
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A full lorry load took us just over the half way mark.
A second load brought us half way up the base plate.
Thankfully the base plate hadn't moved while the concrete was poured.
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Job done.
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The concrete needs to be left for at least two weeks to cure thoroughly. That gives
you time to lay the cable.
I decided to thread the cable through drainage pipe, which will become part of a land
drainage system. I also ran a blue 1" water pipe as well for possible future use.
Back filling the trench by hand is a slow job.
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D-day: The truck arrives with your turbine pre-assembled, ready for
positioning onto the baseplate.
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There was some doubt about whether a JCB could lift the turbine over the hedge.
But when the team saw the heavier machine arrive, it was decided that
it was up to the task.
The truck driver supervises the lift, making sure that the turbine is lifted from
exactly the right place so it is perfectly balanced whilst being moved.
The assembled turbine and tower are inched up, clear of the truck.
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Then manouvered into position on the foundation and the hinge pin inserted fixing the
tower to base plate.
The digger is no longer needed as the turbine will be winched upright after final assembly.
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At the base the cables are connected while at the sharp end the blades are bolted on to the hub.
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It took a couple of hours to get the blades fitted
and to winch the turbine upright.
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Meanwhile at the other end of the garden the turbine control gear has been installed.
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Its taken a long time from first enquiry to completion, but we now have a fully
operational wind turbine.
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Next.
Back to Home Page.
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