Sunday, September 2, 2012

Wind Power Energizing Upstate New York

Wind Power Energizing Upstate New York


This article will tell you about the largest wind power project in Upstate New York.After working on the Maple Ridge Wind Farm near Lowville, in Lewis county, New York for a year, the writer has first hand experience with the size and scope of the project.There are 195 wind turbines that reach about 400 feet into the sky from the ground up to the tip of the top blade.Each of these 195 wind turbines generates enough power to accommodate about 825 homes.The output of each turbine is 1.65 megawatts, and the average household uses about 2 killowatts in a 24 hour period.The output of the Maple Ridge Wind Farm feeds high power lines that distribute the power all throughout the Upstate New York power grid.From a distance, or even close up looking at one of these wind turbines, it is hard to believe the enormity of the size of each one.The steel tubular tower is 262 foot tall, and it has a 269 foot diameter rotor which consists of three blades that are computer controlled to take advantage of the slightest breeze, to being able to cause the turbine to shut down and free wheel in extremely high winds thereby keeping the rotors from being damaged.On top of the tower is an enclosure called a nacelle which houses the rotor hub, the gear box and the generator.The power runs down the center of the tower to a distribution transformer at the base.From there the power goes to a central site power distribution house, and then out to the grid.There is a ladder that goes all the way up to the nacelle inside the tower and that is how workers get up to work on the various components.The blades are a high-tech combination of fiber-glass, resins and balsa wood, and a worker can actually crawl right inside the blades to work on them if need be.The safety program is intense for all of the workers that have to maintain these beasts and to the best of my knowledge there has never been an accident where anyone ever fell off these turbines.As energy needs keep increasing in New York state and with the wicked prices that are charged for foreign oil and gas, these wind turbines are a much needed addition to New York's natural water power generating plants, and help to lessen the load on the coal and oil fired generating systems.You can find out more about these fabulous energy makers, and see some nice photographs of this project, on WayToGoGreen.Org.

Wind Power Energizing Upstate New York



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