Ampair 600

Ampair Pacific 300

Ampair 100

Rutland 913

When the going gets tough - Ampair.


Aquair 100 mount


Aquair 100

UW 100

 

 



Marty's note:
When you look at a wind generator for your boat there are many considerations and what you choose depends a lot on what kind of sailing you do - and how far off shore you go - because this determines exactly what you are looking for in a wind generator. Here are a couple of accurate statistics for Air compared to Ampair and Rutland for you to think about.

Over the past 10 years I have sold only around 15 individual blades for Rutland and a single blade for an Aerogen 6 and none at all for Ampiar. All the rutland blades were sold to cruisers as spares, the Aerogen blade was a replacement for a turbine that had an altercation with an "object".
At the time of writing, Over the past 10 years, I have sold no less than 950 sets of three blades for Air - that's 2850 individual blades - that's more than 1 blade per working day. Most of these have been sold to people who's blades had been broken or simply failed without apparent reason.
Over the past 3 years there have been around 10 legitimate warranty claims for Rutland and no warranty claims for Ampair.
Over that same period of time I have performed more than 150 warranties on Air - that's one each week. That's around 12.5% of turbines sold have come back for warranty service.

To be fair, there are some Air out there that have been absolutely trouble free for years - but, and it's a big but - there is a lack of consistency and I have had turbines back two or three times, especially when they are in a windy location such as Tasmania. There are definately less failures in the more temperate zones. Okay for the Barrier Reef cruiser but not a lot of good for the more adventurous offshore types - or people living in Tassie using Air for home power.

Another thing worthy of consideration is the regulator. If something is going to go wrong with a mechanical devise that has electronics involved, it will be the electronics that fail - almost every time. The regulator for both Ampair and Rutland is external to the turbine. What this means is that if you have the most vulnerable part of the set up go bung on you - the electronics - you can fix or replace the reg but leave the turbine up in the air and still giving power. Nice and simple. With Air, the reg is built in, so if you have a problem with the electronics, you have to take the whole shebang down. This is a particularly accute pain in the rear end for people who have mast head mounted their turbine as they need a cherry picker to get it down, or land based people who have the turbine on a 50' tower.

A snippet for owners of the lastest Air Breeze wind generator with white blades, if it has been in the air for more than 5 months, Check your blades, there is a good chance they have been significantly degraded by the sun. See pic below Air Marine: This is a set of Air Breeze blades from a turbine I installed on a yacht in Tasmania last February. And this is only one example. With Rutland you can buy a single replacement blade in the event of a problem, whereas Air will sell as a "matched" set. I guess Rutland have more confidence in their consistency of quality control. Ampair blades come as a set but I've never had a request for them.

"Made in the USA" it is claimed on the Air Breeze box. I reckon it would be worth popping the question to the manufacturer as to exactly what is "made" in the USA and what is made elsewhere - and where.

For my money, being an offshore cruiser myself, I would put reliability over style and "claimed" output any day. The new boat I am building is named KISS, just in case you don't know what that stands for, it is - Keep It Simple Stupid. A good motto for the offshore cruiser and remote land dweller alike.

Ampair 100 Wind Turbine

The Ampair 100 wind turbine is a rugged, reliable, install and forget, small turbine.
With a reputation for absolute reliability for charging battery systems in harsh conditions. Although it only generates up to 100 watts of electrical power in practice it often outperforms so-called 400 watt machines because of its very good low windspeed performance.

· Generates up to 100 watts for 12 volt or 24 volt battery systems.
· Designed to survive the severe marine environment.
· Heavy duty, all-weather generator, sealed to keep corrosion out.
· Permanent installation as a fit & forget unit.



"Ampair 100 Specs"

Ampair Pacific 300 wind turbine system.

The Ampair Pacific 300 wind turbine system is a powerful and reliable wind charger for larger yachts or any stand alone power system on sea or land. The big brother to the Ampair 100, this turbine shares the same rugged and reliable characteristics but with the addition of the revolutionary PowerFurlTM blade pitch control system, advanced aerodynamic blade design and a more powerful generator.

· Non intrusive operation with elegant modern styling.
· Accurate aerofoil construction of each turbine blade optimises performance, minimises noise and vibration, and improves power-to-weight ratio.
· Rigid blade design avoids "whooping", "motorboating", or "screaming", vibration, resonance and flutter.
· Integral marine-grade sealing system protects internal components from condensation and corrosion.
· Operates with no thermal cut-outs, commutator brushes, or complex electronics.
· Revolutionary simultaneous PowerFurlTM blade pitch control system reduces turbine speed in high winds whilst maintaining power output.
· Three phase AC output from turbine minimises voltage drop and permits use of smaller cables; external DC rectifier included in system.

"Ampair Pacific 300 Specs"



Ampair 600 for battery charging or grid connect.

Ampair 600

The Ampair 600 is available in three versions. The battery charge version for charging 24V or 48V battery banks and the grid-connected version is available for 230V grid connection.

Ampair 600 is not your average wind turbine.
The Ampair 600-24 and 48 volt are designed for charging high capacity DC battery banks, typically 800Ah or more. The correct wind turbine and regulator must be purchased at the outset - either the 24V version or the 48V version - as it is not possible to change the voltage at a later date. The wind turbine must be installed in conjunction with the Ampair 600 regulator which includes the regulator itself plus the dump load; the fuses; the rectifier; the stop switch; and heatsinks. Loads can be either 24V or 48V DC equipment or a stand alone sine wave inverter can be used to power 115V or 230V equipment.

Ampair 600-230 for grid connection
The Ampair 600-230 is designed for connecting to 230V 50Hz grid systems operated by public utilities. It is ordinarily connected on the client's side of the electrical utility supply meter and is ideally connected into the consumer unit (fuse board). Electricity generated by the wind turbine is then used in preference to electricity supplied the public utility.
The Ampair 600-230 must be installed in conjunction with the Ampair interconnect set which includes a G83 sine wave inverter; stop switch; overloads; power conditioning; and isolation.

"Ampair 600 Specs"


Aquair 100 tow generator

Aquair 100 Hybrid Wind & Water Generator

The Aquair 100 is a towed turbine generator for yachts.
can be converted to a wind generator with the wind conversion kit.

Okay, let's get "Serious".

· Are you a "serious" cruiser?
· Do you have a "serious" problem keeping the batteries up at sea?
· Do you need some "serious" power?
· Are you "seriously" tired of running the engine 3 hours each day?

This baby, (Or the UW100) can probably do it for you.
A tow generator is the most effective way to charge your batteries at sea.
If you average 5 knots, as most cruisers do, you can accumulate 120 amps @ 12 volt over each 24 hour period, probably enough to run an efficient fridge and an autopilot - two big on board power suckers.

Generates approx 1 amp per knot boat speed (12v) at average cruising speeds.
Rope transmits power of spinning turbine to on-board generator.
Gimbal mounting of generator gives fool-proof operation & long-life.
Simple installation from stern rail - no permanent hardware. Easily rigged.
Thousands in use worldwide. Hundreds of circumnavigations made.
Highly suitable for use on long distance blue water cruising yachts.
Wind turbine conversion available for use at anchor.

The Aquair pedigree
Proven over thousands of miles of ocean cruising. Reliability is achieved by using a towed turbine on a 30 metre line directly coupled to the alternator shaft. Totally sealed alternator. Stainless steel gambol ring provides a simple and automatic alignment method.

Built to professional standards for long term endurance and backed by full manufacturers warranty. The Aquair 100 is constructed of marine grade materials for minimal maintenance. Only a spare turbine is recommended to cater for accidental loss. Electrical contact is direct to the battery using a simple on/off control switch.

With the use of the optional wind conversion kit, this generator can be used as a wind turbine when on anchor.

Able to produce a continuous output up to 7 Amps at 12 volts. Permanent magnet alternator, has no commutator brushes, windings cannot overheat so requires no thermal cutouts.

Course pitch propellor available for fast boats - Catamarans, tri's etc.

Marty's note.
I will be fitting a water generator to my new boat.


UW 100
Underwater (UW) 100 micro hydro generator

A submerged generator for fast flow zero head streams.

The UW100 is a submerged generator designed for charging 12/24-volt battery systems from fast flowing zero head streams. Strictly speaking it is a picohydro generator ideally suited to:

Yachts.
Navigation Buoy.
Water Supply Monitoring.
Remote Homes.
Aquaculture.

This unit stands out from the crowd in submerged generators.
Can be used with equal success on a yacht at sea or on land in fast flowing rivers, mountain streams & water pipe systems.

 


The UW100 offers the opportunity to generate up to 2.4kWh per day from any 400mm deep (15") fast flowing stream. When the stream flows at 8-knots (7mph; 15kph) the UW100 will produce 8 amps continuously, and when the stream flows at 6-knots (5mph; 10kph) it will still produce 1.5kWh per day. And remember that a stream can be diverted into a narrow culvert to increase flow rates.

Technical specs.

Starts charging at flows below 1m/sec (2 knots) - generates up to 8amps at 12v.
Proven to depth of 10m.
All water joints (mechanical & electrical) are double sealed.
The oil filled housing has a pressure expansion chamber to allow operation at intermediary depths & in all temperatures.
UW 100 technical description
The UW 100 is a submerged water powered generator for 12/24 volt battery charging. It is a self-contained unit, (on-shaft propeller, streamlined housing, sealed alternator with pressure relief chamber), operating to depths of 10m below the water surface. The UW 100 features low waterspread cut-in (1½ knots) and a high charge rate (8 Amps) without sacrificing space for weight. The body is filled with hydraulic fluid to eliminate corrosion and to equalise temperature-induced pressure changes.

The forward facing 3 bladed propeller drives a permanent magnet alternator producing up to 8 Amps output current for a 12 volt system. The shaft rotates in double seals for optimum protection, backed by twin O-ring static seals at the rear of the casing. The cable exit is similarly double sealed by an internal moulding and external gland. The alternator body is filled with hydraulic fluid to eliminate corrosion and to equalise pressure changes caused by ambient temperature.

UW100 electrical information
Four metres of 4-core cable connects to two external rectifiers fixed on a heatsink which should be mounted in a suitable dry location near the battery. The output control switch and fuse are wired in the DC battery line. Any connector in the AC cable needs 4 individual contacts.

Propellor options

There a variety of different propellors available in production with the following three menu choices:
Shrouded or unshrouded
Shrouded propellors should be slected whenever the water may contain rope or fishing line fragments, fine weed, or plastic debris.
Clockwise or anti-clockwise rotation
Normal propellors rotate clockwise. The anti-clockwise version is to balance towed buoys with twin underslung units.
Standard pitch or coarse pitch
Standard propellors are ideal for low speed start-up (1.8-knots) and thereafter produce approximately 1-amp per knot. Above 8-knots (4 metres/second) the coarse pitch (low RPM) propellor should be selected. This also reduces propellor drag at low speeds which is useful for racing yachts.

Standard, clockwise, unshrouded
Coarse, clockwise, unshrouded
Standard, clockwise, shrouded
Standard, anti-clockwise, unshrouded

The Rutland 913 is designed specifically for marine use on coastal and ocean going yachts but is equally at home on your home or campervan. The Rutland 913 has been a common sight in marinas for many years, thousands are in use worldwide, boat owners like it's no pretences look, its quiet, continuous and very reliable operation. This latest marine model accumulates more energy than any other comparable windcharger available, you'll always see a Rutland spinning in the lightest of breezes! Below you will see the performance specification and the dimensions of the Rutland 913.

Rutland 913 Spec sheet
Price:
Call for current pricing

Regulator to suit:$160.00
Switchable regulator
for two battery banks
(plus solar panel): $ 399.00
Spare blades: $33.00 each

· Low wind speed start up of just 5 knots
· Generates 90w @ 19 knots, 24w @ 10 knots
· Delivers up to 250w
· Weighs 10.5kg
· One way only fit fine profile efficient aerofoil blades
· Three phase Rutland "unique" generator design
· Automatic thermostat protection in prolonged gales
· Modern, durable materials for reliability at sea.
· No radiated interference - complies with EEC directive 89/336/EEC

Air Breeze Marine Wind Generator.
The Air Marine wind generator has been around for 13 years now. Unfortunately, despite all their previous bad experiences and many hassles with the Air range, the lastest turbines are a long way from being hassle free.
If you are the type of yachtie who sits in a marina and does the odd coastal passage, always in striking distance of a service point, and want a turbine that looks "pretty" on your boat, then Air Breeze may be for you. Certainly the best looking wind generator currrently on the market. However, if you are a more serious cruiser who is looking for a wind generator you can put up and forget about for a few years, then, in our opinion, you will be better off to forego the "good looks" aspect of your wind turbine and go for something like an Ampair Pacific 300 or Rutland 913..

Too many problems with Air Marine so
we no longer sell or recommend them.

Blade Diameter... 46" (1170 mm)
Weight:..................5.90 kg
Mount size............48mm OD
Start up windspeed 6 knots
Voltage.................12, 24.
Rated output..........200 watts*
* @ 28 knots wind speed.

Replacement regulator when it packs up. About $250.00
Set spare blades when they fall to pieces, our price - $220.00

 

 

Something to think about!

Air Breeze blades after only a few months in the air

And more to think about!
This slip ring came off an Air Breeze turbine after being installed only six weeks.
Even more to think about!
This completely burnt out Air Breeze was a result of some heavy winds, nothing real serious, 50 knots in the gusts. The coating and insulators have completely burnt off the stator so you can rattle the windings. And this is not an isolated case.

 

See below for mounting kits for
Rutland or Air Wind Chargers.

While stocks last

 

Clearance Special

Guyed Tower kit 27' (8M) suit Ampair, Rutland or Air turbine.

Normal retail $400.00. Two only to clear. $220.00 each including GST.




Targa mount kit


This is how it works

The Targa mount kit has been specifically designed for mounting a wind generator on the Targa bar of catamarans or, as shown here, on the Targa frame of a mono hull. This will almost completely isolate your boat from vibration transmission.
Made from polished stainless steel, comes complete with rubber mounts and washers. Bolts are not supplied.


Rutland 913 blades.

Genuine, rugged, Rutland 913 blades.

Sold individually with fixing screws.
Six in a set.

Just $33.00 each or $192.00 per set.





Air 403 blades or Air X blades or current Air Breeze Wind Turbine Blades

Manufacturer supplied, blades, if that means anything.
Come in sets of 3.
Just $220.00 per set

Limited stock remaining.
Once they're gone, they're gone.


Air Breeze Wind Turbine Blades
Just $55.00 per set

Genuine, manufacturer supplied, blades.
Come in sets of 3.
Marine - White
These are the original Air Breeze blades that are suseptible to UV degradatio. However, if you were to properly paint them with a two pack paint from new, they should fine. Black would be the best colour. A chaeap set of blades for your Air Breeze.

Updated 05-08-2010