Cambered Plate Fan Windmills

Because of their low maintenance and long life, Cambered plate fan windmills, also known as American windmills, are a viable source of mechanical power to use where electricity is unavailable. This type of windmill can be made from locally sourced parts and labor from designs available for public use or can be purchased for a moderate price from commercial manufacturers¹².

Background

In 1854 Daniel Halladay obtained the first American patent for a self-regulating windmill, but other manufacturers soon produced many designs, including ones that would feather out of high winds and others that needed only yearly oiling and maintenance . The American windmill was used to fill water tanks for steam locomotives and to pump water for irrigation and cattle, contributing to the US expansion across the Great Plains³.

Most American windmills fell into disuse after the Rural Electrification Administration that brought electric wires to rural areas of the country⁴. American windmills are still used in some locations to provide water for cattle on the open range and to pump water for remote homesteads or those looking to get off the grid.

How it works

Cambered plate fan windmills are a horizontal type of windmill that usually has a steel, multi-bladed, fan-like rotor and are most often used to pump water, but can also be used to run machinery like a saw, grain mill, or cotton gin⁵⁶.

Benefits and advantages

American windmills are relatively low speed and high torque, so they are more suitable for mechanical tasks than for electricity generation⁷.

Footnotes

1. The University of California. 1970. Low-cost Windmill for Developing Nations: multi-vane fan type. University of California. http://www.cd3wd.com/cd3wd_40/vita/w...n/windmill.htm

2. Aermotor Windmill. Harnessing the Wind in Africa: One Family Makes a Difference. http://www.aermotorwindmill.com/Comp...ews/Mulder.asp

3. Volta Torrey. 1976. Wind Catchers: American Windmills of Yesterday and Tomorrow. The Stephen Greene Press, Battleboro, VT. ISBN 0-8289-0292-5

4. Stuart Leuthner. The Windmills that Won the West. http://www.americanheritage.com/arti...003_2_56.shtml

5. P.L. Fraenkel. 1986. FAO Irrigation and Drainage Paper 43: Water Lifting Devices. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Rome. ISBN 92-5-102515-0. http://www.fao.org/docrep/010/ah810e...0.htm#Contents

6. Volta Torrey. 1976. Wind Catchers: American Windmills of Yesterday and Tomorrow. The Stephen Greene Press, Battleboro, VT. ISBN 0-8289-0292-5

7. Practical Action. Energy from the Wind. http://practicalaction.org/shelter/d..._from_wind.pdf