Why does my Fan Club turbine sometimes stop spinning?
Find out why, on the rare occasion, your Octopus Fan Club turbine might not be generating any power...
Wind turbines are extraordinary pieces of machinery and on the whole, they are extremely reliable. Nevertheless, wind turbines (like us sometimes…) can have an off day. Some of these off days are planned, others are not…
Here are a few reasons as to why on the rare occasion you may find that your Octopus Fan Club turbine is not generating any power.
Just like a car, wind turbines need to be looked after and checked on to make sure they are in tip top condition. Not only does this ensure that the turbine is working as effectively as it should be, but it also makes sure that the turbine is safe to run. We will always let you know of any planned maintenance on your Fan Club turbine plus keep you updated on any unplanned maintenance that may occur.
Extreme weather conditions can make the turbine unsafe to run. This is especially important to be aware of if the turbine is located close to any public areas such as footpaths/walking trails. Some examples of extreme weather that could affect the turbine would be dangerously high winds and freezing conditions leading to ice on the blades.
Wind turbines are smart, so smart that most wind turbines can be monitored remotely. This is great, however, sometimes we lose connection with that turbine and are no longer able to communicate with it. In cases where this happens, as a safety precaution, the turbine is turned off to ensure there are no issues we are unaware of whilst connection is down.
Curtailment or curtailed wind is when a turbine or wind farm is temporarily but intentionally turned off. This is often why you’ll notice that not all of the turbines in a wind farm are operating at the same time! There are a few different reasons why this may occur, one reason includes grid constraints. Wind energy potential is enormous, so enormous that sometimes the amount of energy generated by a wind turbine/farm exceeds the amount that the grid is able to support. When this happens, the turbine is switched off as there is unfortunately nowhere for the generated energy to go.
Octopus Fan Club members are some of the UK’s very first customers to benefit from cheaper energy when it’s windy from their local wind turbine. In the future, we want to see millions of people getting cheaper power this way - hopefully this has provided you with a little insight into the way in which wind turbines work.
Wind turbines are huge pieces of machinery that are incredibly advanced, reliable and easy to control - they’re just in need of some TLC every now and then (Turbine Loving Care…)!
Want to know more about the Octopus Fan Club? Check out our website and register your interest here.
You can also email us directly at octopusfanclub@octoenergy.com.
