WAIPORI POWER.

Evening Star, Issue 12882, 3 August 1906, Page 12

WAIPORI POWER.

A CHAT ABOUT THE TRAMS. " When arc we going to get the power in ? Some time in November." Cr Brinflley, chairman of the Electric Power and Lighting Committee of the > Council, has -recently been spending a week at Waipon, and that was his answer to the rinst question that naturally sprang to the lips. In a recent, issue .of* the 'Star' Mr Goodrnan's account of tho progress being. - made with the electrical portion of the scheme was given. Cr Brinsley began his account with the hydraulic portion. "There were parts of the fluming,'' ho said, " whore they had considerable difficulty; on account of earth slips, and settlement after the benching was done. We allowed the water to run through the flume for a good many months to settle, it.,down ..before we put it right. We found a settle--ment of over Ift in-some places. -.This has ,all been put straight, and there is hardly a possibility of further settlement. There is .one place - where- the whole hill has been slipping away, - but the fluming has been thioughly protected there by a. strong Mructure. Again, one of the'three spillways or by-washes was found defective, and it has been removed to more solid ground. !lt can now be said that all the fluming is in a thoroughly, sound condition. All we shall need will be a competent man—young and active—to look after its length of a mile and three-quarters. The public can then rest assured that the electric power itnd lighting system, when started, will not be in danger of temporary stoppage through the flume breaking away." The penstock is the chamber connecting tho end of the flume with the pipe line whwh gives the Pel ton wheels awav down the lull their head of water to work on. "The water has been let into the penstock," continuer] Cr Brinsley. "and the pipes wcr» filled." These pipes have to i-tand the pressure due to a fall of 688 ft, and that they showed no trace of leakage when the water was admitted shows what sort of work has been put into them. Tho hvdraulic portion of the work has been carried out by Mr Williams, and all he has to do to complete it is to fix the connections from the pipe line .to the nozzles that plav on the Polton wheels. Cr Brinslev spoke very highly of the way in which Mr Williams's work has been done. There are four Pelton wheels, arranged in pairs, with an electric generator between each on the same shaft. "The wheels are sitting in their bearings," said Cr Brinsley, " but they were not permanently fixed up when I was there."

Our informant went on to speak of the power-station, this building having been completed for some time. Most of the machinery is erected, and, that being the case, the careful designing of everything forced itself on his notice—that is to say. the arrangement of the machinery to ensure facility of getting about and immunity from Accident, as well as ease in shifting" heavy parts of machinery. For this there is a large overhead travelling crane in the power-house capable of liftina; 16 tone. Cr Brinsley saw the armature got in place on Friday last, A ■-gravitation tramwav has been built from the top of the hill overlooking the power-station. The armature was in two pieces, and the case was safely lowered down the hill, taken 70ft on skids to the power-station, and fastened to the Krupp crane, which deposited it in place. The foreman in charge ; Mr Iveon, is forwarding this work without a hitch. Cr Brinsley went over the greater part of the route of the transmission line from the power-house towards Dunedin. Considerably over half the poles are erected, and the rest should take under six weeks, gangs of men working from the two ends. There is a span of 1,500 ft from the power-station (practically in the river bed) to the top of the hill across the river. The weight of wire in this span will be considerable, and two towers have been erected at the ends, comparable to the towers of a supension bridge. Experiments are now being conducted 60 as to get the gauge of copper wire best suited to carry its own weight on this span. The other spans are 150 ft. The wiring will be started as soon as the insulators'arrive from London. Already the wire is being landed, about 60 tons coming out of the shrp's hold here last week. So much for what is being done at the other end—with one word in passing, viz.. appointments. Cr Brinsley says that probably eight men will be required at the works at Waipori permanently, as well as two engineers. Barracks have been built -for the men and cottages for the engineers, and good aecess is being provided, tins Tnapeka County Council sharing the cost of the branch "road from the Main Waipori road. The men's quarters are being made comfortable, otherwise difficulty would probably bo experienced in getting good men to stay.* But it is about these mop. themselves and their selection that Cr Brinsley said great care would be necessary. He #raphasised this point strongly—there should bo no interference. "Mr Goodman has been appointed our electrical engineer, and he should bo allowed to select his own men." Preparations for the change are going forward apace at the big building with the tall chimney in Cumberland street. So long as the chimney smokes, so to speak, this building will bo the power-house—but no longer. When the electricity is brought in it will be a converter station—the power station will bo at Waipori. When tlie current takes the wires at Waipori it will bo an alternating current of 33,000 volts. At the sub-station at- Halfway Bush u, will be transformed to 2,200 volts, and at Cumberland street it will be converted into a direct current of 550 volts and sent out to drive the trams. An alternating current is all right for power (driving machinery) and for electric lighting, but so far it .has not been 6uccessf«ly used to drive trams. So what is required for the trams only will go to tho converter station, except, perhaps, any direct current needed to work elevators. The rotarv con.verters—three of them —are alreadv in position in the Cumberland street building. 'They each consist of a direct current generator, an alternating current motor, and a small starting motor, all on one shaft. Tho small motor (direct current) is to give its alternating neighbor a start. Alternating motors won't start revolving when the current is turned on—tliey can't act until they arc going, to borrow from the Irish. Once going, they manage all right "on theirown," and the small starting motor is switched off. So the - alternating current from Waipori will work tho motor, which, being on the same shaft as the direct current generator, will revolve i.,e latter, which will give out the direct current to work the trams. Then the boilers, engines, and dynamos now in use will merely to be used as a stand-by. The solitary stoker who looks alter" the six furnaces single-handed will then be able to take a long holiday. His. prototype will bo the man in. charge of the fluming out ut Waipori.