Eco Sustainable Village

by Bob Buchanan, Alberta Agriculture, Barrhead, Alberta

The Dechant family farm near Manning, Alberta, experienced a rather desperate situation during the winter of 1988-89. Their dugout water quality got so bad that home usage had to be stopped. In fact, the water had turned black and smelly due to decaying plant material under the ice.

The Dechants and Alberta Agriculture staff were convinced that aerating the dugout would correct their water quality problem caused by low dissolved oxygen levels in the water. Two obstacles prevented the installation of a conventional aeration system:

 

1. the dugout was 1/2 mile from the home, and
2. electrical power.

An electrically powered air compressor system for dugout aeration seemed unrealistic because of the high costs of installing either a power line or an underground air line from the farm yard. It was decided to try a bank-mounted windmill system for dugout aeration, since the dugout was well exposed to the prevailing westerly winds.

A joint demonstration project with Alberta Agriculture was set up to monitor the effectiveness of the new windmill system, manufactured in central Saskatchewan. The windmill was installed in early March of 1989. The windmill system worked so well that within two weeks the Dechants were able to use their dugout water again.

Over the past two years, the windmill system has worked very well and the Dechants have enjoyed the benefits of good water.

The windmill system is well suited for aerating farm dugouts. The windmill starts pumping air at low wind speeds (5 to 7 miles per hour) and averages about 1 cubic foot of air per minute which is ideal capacity for farm dugouts. Bank-mounted windmills also have some definite advantages over the floating types. A bank location allows the windmill to catch the wind better and they are also safer to service.

Across the prairies, there are now 3 manufacturers (two in Alberta and one in Saskatchewan) of bank-mounted windmill systems for dugout aeration. Two of the manufacturers are using a multi-blade turbine and the other a highspeed propeller. All of the wind turbines are coupled to a crankshaft set-up which compresses and expands a 6 to 8 inch diameter diaphragm type pump. A system of 2 check valves and a 3/8 inch diameter hose delivers air to the dugout. The check valves also prevent a backup of water into the line and freezing in winter.

A few important recommendations for windmills and dugout aeration include:
 

	windmill systems must be well exposed to the prevailing winds.
	windmill towers should be high enough to protect people from walking into the turning blades.
	dugouts should be well posted with "Thin Ice" signs and children told not to play on aerated dugouts.

The windmill aeration systems have proven to be a reliable low cost alternative for dugout aeration. The Dechant family plus hundreds of other prairie farm families are enjoying improved dugout water

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Last modified: 04/08/06