rbrtcrowther Posted January 29, 2011 Share Posted January 29, 2011 Nothing military here but today i went for a walk up to our local slate mine. We sometimes go under ground for several hours at a time exploring cwmorthen slate mine but today we had another mission.:cool2: Some years ago the last owner on the mine decided to build a garden. Built around an old wheel pit. in this wheel pit was an old pelton wheel which he restored and and conected to a generator to run the pumps and lights in his slate garden. there are also some nice water features he made to all on a huge scale. Unfortunatly he passed away a good few years ago and all is now overgrown but his garden has matured and some has been reclaimed by nature:-( However the pelton wheel is still there but the door has been kicked in and rubbish dumped in the wheel pit. the vandels have done their best to wreak the place. I made the dangerous walk of death over the decaying wooden flor to the controll valve and heaved on it and with a bit of back and forth action if started to free off,:wow: My mate said he could see an increased flow of water so i thought i would see if i could shut it again. All was well:laugh: So i opened the valve further and the bloomin wheel started to turn and build up speed. We played for about 10 minuits before shutting the valve tightly sat feeling smug. It then came to our attension that we had dropped the level of a small lake about a foot:wow:. How often can you walk up a mountain. find an old turbine and find it still works. I still canT belive it. Sorry i tried to take a video but the light was to bad so you will have to wait till summer unless the local vandels have smashed the place up further. Oh the by the way this is no small toy wheel it is about 5 foot accross and has twin jets and a double wheel!!! Just wait till he climbs down the ladder then you will get an idea of its size!! Hope you like my little adventure just a change from the norm This is a link to an old film about him not long before he died. Something went wrong... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbrtcrowther Posted January 29, 2011 Author Share Posted January 29, 2011 Try not to cry but here is how it looks today:cry: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
private mw Posted January 29, 2011 Share Posted January 29, 2011 looks a nice place , shame about the vandals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbrtcrowther Posted January 29, 2011 Author Share Posted January 29, 2011 IT's actually worse than that picture:embarrassed: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
younggun Posted January 29, 2011 Share Posted January 29, 2011 and where was my invite ???? i love this typ of stuff have u ever explored the lanberris bombstore ? no kool turbines in there but still kool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbrtcrowther Posted January 29, 2011 Author Share Posted January 29, 2011 Yep been in the bomb store:D there are some crazy echoes in the upper floor. If you jump in the air and slam your feet down the echo almost knocks you over:cheesy: I went in the mine at cwmorthin with a couple of mate and we were under ground for about 4 or 5 hours. Its vast down there:wow: Ita also joins up to the oakley mine which is also vast. http://www.mine-explorer.co.uk/mines/Cwmorthin_226/Cwmorthin.asp We think our next mission might be to make a rope ladder to get down to the wheel oil the bearings and refit the flat belt to the 7 kilowatt alternator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
N.O.S. Posted January 29, 2011 Share Posted January 29, 2011 ....We think our next mission might be to make a rope ladder to get down to the wheel oil the bearings and refit the flat belt to the 7 kilowatt alternator Why not take a submersible pump too - you'll be able to put most of the water back in the lake without anyone knowing what you've been up to........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
younggun Posted January 29, 2011 Share Posted January 29, 2011 next time u go for a little trip underground rob let us know i would love a guided tour :cool2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbrtcrowther Posted January 30, 2011 Author Share Posted January 30, 2011 Why not take a submersible pump too - you'll be able to put most of the water back in the lake without anyone knowing what you've been up to........ My god i think you may have solved the worlds energy crisis!!!! Perpetual motion :cool2: We only noticed cos he could hear the ice cracking and then he saw the 6 inch gap round the edge! I was too busy in the wheel pit playing:red: He went out to try and find the out flow, which he did and then he heard the ice braking on the header pond wich is filled from the lake. We had an idea where the wheel was fed from but we were unsure. (I also had visions of said valve breaking off in my hand , getting very wet, draining a huge lake that also feeds a new 500 kva hydro system and flooding a small town:undecided:) Turns out the worst that could happen is an empty header and a lower level in the small lake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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