Water is collected upstream from the hydro and piped downstream to where the turbine is located. These small turbines are especially well suited to produce usable power from springs and creeks that are too small to sustain a conventional A.C. generating system. There are times, however, when as much as 10,000 watts are needed, as when a refrigerator or well pump is started. An A.C. system cannot store energy and must be sized to meet this peak demand, requiring up to 40 times as much water as a similarly useful D.C. system.
Smaller size saves money.
A D.C. system is matched to the average demand and extracts power the way that nature provides it, slow and steady. The standard configuration uses two nozzles which are adjusted on-site to match available water supply. Four nozzle models are a vailable to accomodate flows in excess of 400 gallons per minute. The generator loading is adjusted by raising or lowering the magnetic top plate of the alternator to peak the output. Each hydro site is unique and specific equipment will vary.