In-Pipe Hydro-Power ... Portland, OR

[Nolan Kienitz]

Happenings up in Katen's territory ...

In-Pipe Hydro-Power ... Portland, OR

[Jim Katen]

Thanks, that's the first I've heard of it.

[John Kogel]

This dynamo will power 150 homes. What about the other million? []

No doubt it's good, but they need to be working on large scale projects, using tidal power, for example.

[Jim Katen]

This dynamo will power 150 homes. What about the other million? []

No doubt it's good, but they need to be working on large scale projects, using tidal power, for example.

You've got to make it affordable. Right now tidal power is significantly more expensive that hydro, coal, & gas, which form the bulk of our current power profile. My prediction is that tidal & wave power won't gain a significant foothold until the cost of coal & gas go way up.

[Rob Amaral]

http://www.berkshireweb.com/sports/comp/bearswamp.html

One of my clients works at this project out in Western MA... your post brought it to mind..

[Chad Fabry]

At less than $13,500 per home, this project should pay back in 10-12 years. Hopefully the equipment lasts that long or longer.

This dynamo will power 150 homes. What about the other million? []

No doubt it's good, but they need to be working on large scale projects, using tidal power, for example.

You've got to make it affordable. Right now tidal power is significantly more expensive that hydro, coal, & gas, which form the bulk of our current power profile. My prediction is that tidal & wave power won't gain a significant foothold until the cost of coal & gas go way up.

[Marc]

This dynamo will power 150 homes. What about the other million? []

No doubt it's good, but they need to be working on large scale projects, using tidal power, for example.

They're simply using energy given up by water displaced from a higher elevation to a lower one, not unlike a dam/reservoir.

Small sources such as this one can add up to a lot of power and can improve the reliability of the overall supply if they're all linked by a well designed grid.

These turbines yield no radioactive waste and no carbon dioxide and they're not expensive. It's the smart move.

Marc

[Jim Katen]

http://www.berkshireweb.com/sports/comp/bearswamp.html

One of my clients works at this project out in Western MA... your post brought it to mind..

So they pump the water up the hill when they have plenty of power and they tap the energy of the same water falling down the hill when they need more power? Like a big battery that you charge, drain, and charge again?

I don't know why, but that's hysterical.

[Marc]

Sounds expensive. Neither process is 100% efficient so power is lost both ways.

Marc

[David Meiland]

The Bear Swamp plant is a way of using the turbines at full speed even when demand is low.

There are large-scale hydro projects that use solar PV to pump water uphill to a reservoir, then drain it through a turbine when the sun's not out. It's a way of storing sunlight. As far as I can tell, just about all of our energy sources are stored sunlight.

[John Kogel]

In the 1960's we borrowed from the US to build huge hydro plants. In return we sold cheap hydro electric back to the states, mostly California. Since there was a surplus and no way to store it, it made sense to share.

As time went by, hydro electric prices went up here but never increased for our southern neighbours. So now we have an ever increasing demand, and we are having to replace the turbines and so on. Our hydro rates are going skyhigh, even though it is just water falling by gravity.

But you'all are still getting the discount. Enjoy. []