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wallablack Senior Member Joined: 10/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 164
Posted: 02:16pm 05 Jan 2013
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I approached my shire council 6 months ago to start the ball rolling on erecting a 10m tower with a 2 or 3Kw wind turbine on top of it. With a blade length of 2m this would see the overall height of 12 metres. Yeah right....as if they will approve this I thought......I thought 10m would be a little low figuring the perfect wind is higher but I don't want to push the boundaries as 10m is still pretty high.
I live in a country residential area with block sizes of 25 x 40m with neighbours on all 3 sides and the road at the front. I "dreamed" of putting the turbine smack bang in the middle of my block.
I approached all of my neighbours (country town neighbours = good friends) a couple of years ago with my (non council contact) plans to put up a small 300 watter and they were all okay with that although the whistle from the 5 blades at high winds was loudish there were still no complaints...ever, one even liked it. Then the bug hit and there were a few up at one stage. With these few in place I was getting really good result year round and figured it was a plausible outlay. The anemometer up there recorded a 7m/s average over a year..ish. I never had a visit from the shire, which is at the end of my street, over these so I was thinking I was pushing my limits.
With my new plans to drop them and put the big tower with one big turbine atop I thought I had better contact them. I contacted all of my neighbours on the whole block with the new idea and they were all for it. I also contacted the CFA and Police who are both 100-200m away just in case of radio interference and they contacted their superiors and I got the thumbs up from them too. Word spread in town and all I have got are positive comments over the project.
My many Shire Council discussions are summed up as follows:
Do I need a Planning Permit - NO
Do I need a Building Permit - NO
Are you 100% sure - YES
The tower will be a monopole or tilting tower with all of the lateral forces etc from the top transferred to the base, do you need to inspect the foundations for size and ensure I use the correct concrete mix - NO
Are you still sure about this - YES
Are you a new employee - NO. I have been here for 6 years and the building surveyor 20 something years.
Are you still sure - YES
So after it is completed you are not going to visit me asking me to pull it down - NO
But it's a bloody wind turbine and everyone hates wind turbines, are you still sure - YES
What if it falls over because the foundations are incorrect - That is for you and your insurance company to coversate about.
Does the pole I choose need engineers certificate or the like? - NO
Could I please use your building inspector to come over on pour day to evaluate and document the footings - YES, it will cost you $168.00.
The final Shire email read:
"It is a Class 10b Structure (Pole or Like) and is exempt if it below 15m. Yours is below 15m so no Building or Planning Permits are required whatsoever."
Conversations with my insurance company were good too saying that all will be okay as above.
This all sounds too good to be true but I have been assured it will be all legal and above board but I still a little hesitant. I want to do it quick smart before they change their mind.
Do you think I should contact any other government body regarding this before I get digging?
Foolproof systems do not take into account the ingenuity of fools.
norcold Guru Joined: 06/02/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 670
Posted: 02:32pm 05 Jan 2013
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If you look enough you`ll find a Govt. employee somewhere in some Dept. that will say a big no. Than where are you. I think its pretty incredible that your insurance Co is OK, have you got that in writing?
Your Council must be different to the norm. I`d have thought they`d never give a reply rather than a positive one. Sort of put it in the hard basket forever.We come from the land downunder.
Vic
Downwind Guru Joined: 09/09/2009 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2333
Posted: 02:59pm 05 Jan 2013
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If its a free standing tower (not attached to a building) then most councils will permit it up to a certain height without any application needed.
The height varies due to current limits like building heights permitted and air traffic areas.
To the council its no different than putting up a flag pole with a bloody big flag on it.
Now insurance might be a little different, yes your pole is covered but should you loose a blade in a storm and it wrecks your neighbours roof, then they will deem it as "an act of god" and you will have no cover. Sometimes it just works
Madness Guru Joined: 08/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2498
Posted: 05:02pm 05 Jan 2013
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So then ask the insurance to prove that it was a god that did it.There are only 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary, and those who don't.
Downwind Guru Joined: 09/09/2009 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2333
Posted: 05:16pm 05 Jan 2013
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Yes and they will quote.... God works in mysterious ways and is not to be questioned.
To me that implies God is a female, thy shall obey.
Or perhaps that should be mischievous ways, as she ripped the roof on my greenhouse last night
Pete.Sometimes it just works
wallablack Senior Member Joined: 10/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 164
Posted: 05:32pm 05 Jan 2013
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I have spent 6 months looking for that surprise employee but to my surprise I have not found one YET...sure once it goes up I will find one...or two. I do have everything in writing from Shire & GIO as I am very particular with things like this.
I have a pretty good rapport with our shire as we have spent the last 18 months doing major renovations following the floods so they have been here a few times and everything has been spot on.....this could have swayed them towards thinking this would be the same.
Too hard basket...this would explain the opening line from my last email then:
"Good Afternoon Kevin,
Who would have thought it would be so difficult for you to get responses, my apologies yet again."
Foolproof systems do not take into account the ingenuity of fools.
wallablack Senior Member Joined: 10/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 164
Posted: 05:44pm 05 Jan 2013
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We live in rural Victoria so TV reception was sh*te here during the years of the good 'ol analog so a lot of TV antenna's are WAY up in the air on triangle based lattice towers and the likes. So, maybee that has a bit to do with the relaxed laws RE towers. I could not imagine a council employee have to do planning permits, hole inspections yada yada on every house in the shire with town dotted 20 - 40Km apart.
Ill put a photo up tomorrow of the new pole next to the shire office here....farkn big with foundations in next to it for a second one....for comms.
As for a blade flying off, it has always been a concern but hey if it's put together correctly it would be just "one of those things" like the chances of one of those big streetlight poles falling over...you know, the ones with the big bend at the top that wobble around like Weeble.Foolproof systems do not take into account the ingenuity of fools.
Madness Guru Joined: 08/10/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2498
Posted: 06:27pm 05 Jan 2013
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Is it that time of the month again?There are only 10 types of people in the world: those who understand binary, and those who don't.
norcold Guru Joined: 06/02/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 670
Posted: 09:10pm 05 Jan 2013
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I vote your Council is a good one, what I find amazing is an Insurance Co covering a wind turbine on a rural residental .5 acre block (assuming it incudes 3rd party compensation cover). Must be the population density down your way compared to up here in NQ, there are not too many companies that will cover you up here (rural residental) doubt whether they`d even consider extending cover for a wind turbine.We come from the land downunder.
Vic
wallablack Senior Member Joined: 10/08/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 164
Posted: 01:06pm 07 Jan 2013
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We used to have house & contents etc through QBE which we couldn't fault....until we had the Vic floods. Our house had 1 metre of water go through it over a period of 3 days. To cut a still very angry story short they didn't come through and we lost almost the lot.
After this you would be inclined to get good insurance and read every detail, so we sought one that suited our needs.
My phone call with GIO sealed the deal when they told me they cover flood fire and the usual and even riot cover (not that I'm from a rough area) and some more odd ones... but they are really good. Everyone in town who were with GIO or APIA got payed out, the rest....forgotten about.
They haven't covered a wind turbine as such (but they do know it is one) as it comes under the same category as TV or ham radio masts etc (etc used loosely). Now I used to be a roof plumber years ago and I have seen VERY OFTEN a single roofing nail responsible for holding one or two of four guy wires for some very tall tv or aerial mast. Now if this roofing nail were to fail and she came toppling down damaging the neighbours fence, partial roof and gutters would this be the same as a blade going west or a sheet of roofing iron flying off......I "think" it would be.Foolproof systems do not take into account the ingenuity of fools.
Notice. New forum software under development. It's going to miss a few functions and look a bit ugly for a while, but I'm working on it full time now as the old forum was too unstable. Couple days, all good. If you notice any issues, please contact me.
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