Updated:
The following information is from Rick Johnson, Varian’s Facility Manager.
When winds at 7 miles per hour or less, the Varian turbine will not operate for economic reasons; when the wind speed is 56 miles an hour or greater, the turbine will shutdown for safety reasons.
“economic reasons” is incorrect. The turbine will not spin unless the wind is maintained at more than 3.0 meters/second (6.7 mph).
• The Varian turbine has also been down for the six week maintenance inspection that occurred a couple weeks back.
• We are also experiencing trouble with a couple of relays that are killing power to the turbine. We had service here last Thursday and yesterday working on the issue.
• The turbine can also be down due to icing being detected on the blades. It causes an imbalance and shuts the turbine down until ice is no longer detected.
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I just assume there is a logical reason that the windmills aren’t always spinning on days when there is wind but for many folks it drives them up a wall.
What drives me up a wall is not that they aren’t all spinning all the time on windy days but what drives me up a wall is the people who constantly question why the windmills aren’t spinning all the time on windy days.
To my thinking, the people that spent the money, time and energy to get the windmills erected obviously want to generate as much power as they can from them. That’s a logical assumption, right?
So why would anyone complain when they are not spinning as if there is some conspiracy theory as to why they aren’t spinning? Do you really think the people that put up the money to build them are trying to withhold the generation of power from them for some reason?
One of these people is someone I may or may not be related to through marriage who asks the question every time we pass a windmill that isn’t spinning.
Another is one of my lobstermen who looks out the office window every day and gives me the update on how many are spinning on any given day.
So please, anyone with real inside knowledge as to why they don’t spin all the time when there is wind can you please enlighten me so the next time we pass one that isn’t spinning I can give the correct response to the conspiracy theorists out there who constantly harp on about it.
I’m not looking for guesses from ordinary citizens like myself. I’d really like someone from Varian, Gloucester Engineering or the iron workers union who actually knows the factual answer to why they aren’t spinning when there would be enough wind to turn them to enlighten us.
Please and thank you.
signed- Joey C
Good Morning Gloucester 