Story time. I grew up in a small middle eastern country that was part of the former Soviet Union. Housing in the 90s was scarce due to the severe economic recession/depression that rocked the region. My father is a welder, and worked in a boiler station that had since been abandoned. The whole complex was a big factory that produced things like plastic bags, candles, weirdly - fruit jam, and of course there was the steam. This is the steam that would be fed into the city to warm homes during winter (those old school radiators that they still use in Europe). Anywho, since my dad worked there, we were given a converted changing room as home. The word "changing room" is deceiving - imagine a locker room big enough for a factory that employed hundreds of people. The place was huge, there was exactly 1 window at the back of the "house". The ceiling was close to 20' and that "window" was greater than 10' high. Needless to say, we never saw the back side of that window, and to be honest it overlooked the factory so there wasn't much to see except decay. As a kid in an almost lawless land, I would go and explore that factory (that's how i know what they used to make). But one time, my father, his friend, and I went deep into the factory, to the back side of our "house" where I had never been before. Right beneath that giant "window" that looked into our home was a steel grating floor, and a few feet below it was a black pit of water, and some industrial blue pipes and a pump. The image of us walking over those steel grates over god knows what substance was underneath our feet still terrifies me. The whole factory was scary but nothing will ever compare to the day I saw those grates. As you are showing us in this video that the turbine have started by looking at the water rushing under those similar steel grates, it just shot me back to when I was 7 years old behind our old house. I've always had a fascination for industrial places, but still nothing will ever terrify me as bad as water in a factory (or a hydro plant). To add insult to injury, in order to leave our house we had to walk out of the front of the factory gates. On the way out of the factory, out in the open air, was a massive overflow pool that the boilers used to use (these boilers were easily thousands of gallons big... it was a massive complex that served the whole city). My dad took my sister and I swimming in that "pool" ... mind you this is not a swimming pool with a depth of 3 feet... that thing was a flat rectangle at least 15 feet deep. TERRIFYING. Over years of neglect, obviously the water evaporated or drained, the pool became filled with garbage and rubble from the old factory. One year before we finally left that house for a real, beautiful, apartment I actually fell into that fucking pool. 15 feet down. Broke my fall on garbage and a foot of stagnant water with algae and frogs in it. Luckily all that happened is I broke my arm, and that is the ONLY injury I ever sustained during my idiotic explorations of that factory.
Always interesting seeing how hydroelectric dams work thanks for posting these video and sharing your experiences with everyone on youtube be safe in your work
I worked with the company that maintained this plants electrical substation and switchgear. I've been down by those generators working on the switchgear across the room.
No spank you! Eff that! I live in the Scottish highlands and my granddad worked building hydroelectric dams after WW2. We have lots of them up here and they all scare the bejaysus outta me!
Yes.. at first it’s super cold but your body will heat up the water in the suit and you fine for a while. But a lot of times we cheat with hot water pumping into our suits... check out some of the other vids. Thanks for the comment!!
That place is 120 years ago and leaks everywhere. Plus when we are in the draft tube the floor drains are open to help with the head gate leaks. Then we removed the sealing on the head gate and re-water the draft tube with floor drains closed. Then start them up!!
Is it just me or does that plant look like a exercise in neglect... between the ladder from the other video and the general state of things I would price any work there with a healthy amount for "hazard pay". I get that painting rust doesn't equal safety but the whole plant comes off a bit sketchy.
It does look horrible but it’s 1900 build is solid... and the ladder in Alice Falls is an example of always checking equipment and to be honest we use our ladders only. It was a ladder that was left in and broke from freezing. And ur right rattle can rebuilds are not professional fixes.
Paper mills never put money into their hydro units.... Divers probably cost a little less than just fixing the gate seals, but the company will just keep paying divers over and over....dumb.
Exactly and that is about how all hydros work!! Sad. We have seen better designs for gates but nobody will spend the money. Ps 71 cuda is my favorite muscle car…. Shaker fish gill. 😍😍
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Story time. I grew up in a small middle eastern country that was part of the former Soviet Union. Housing in the 90s was scarce due to the severe economic recession/depression that rocked the region. My father is a welder, and worked in a boiler station that had since been abandoned. The whole complex was a big factory that produced things like plastic bags, candles, weirdly - fruit jam, and of course there was the steam. This is the steam that would be fed into the city to warm homes during winter (those old school radiators that they still use in Europe).
Anywho, since my dad worked there, we were given a converted changing room as home. The word "changing room" is deceiving - imagine a locker room big enough for a factory that employed hundreds of people. The place was huge, there was exactly 1 window at the back of the "house". The ceiling was close to 20' and that "window" was greater than 10' high. Needless to say, we never saw the back side of that window, and to be honest it overlooked the factory so there wasn't much to see except decay.
As a kid in an almost lawless land, I would go and explore that factory (that's how i know what they used to make). But one time, my father, his friend, and I went deep into the factory, to the back side of our "house" where I had never been before. Right beneath that giant "window" that looked into our home was a steel grating floor, and a few feet below it was a black pit of water, and some industrial blue pipes and a pump. The image of us walking over those steel grates over god knows what substance was underneath our feet still terrifies me. The whole factory was scary but nothing will ever compare to the day I saw those grates.
As you are showing us in this video that the turbine have started by looking at the water rushing under those similar steel grates, it just shot me back to when I was 7 years old behind our old house. I've always had a fascination for industrial places, but still nothing will ever terrify me as bad as water in a factory (or a hydro plant).
To add insult to injury, in order to leave our house we had to walk out of the front of the factory gates. On the way out of the factory, out in the open air, was a massive overflow pool that the boilers used to use (these boilers were easily thousands of gallons big... it was a massive complex that served the whole city). My dad took my sister and I swimming in that "pool" ... mind you this is not a swimming pool with a depth of 3 feet... that thing was a flat rectangle at least 15 feet deep. TERRIFYING. Over years of neglect, obviously the water evaporated or drained, the pool became filled with garbage and rubble from the old factory. One year before we finally left that house for a real, beautiful, apartment I actually fell into that fucking pool. 15 feet down. Broke my fall on garbage and a foot of stagnant water with algae and frogs in it. Luckily all that happened is I broke my arm, and that is the ONLY injury I ever sustained during my idiotic explorations of that factory.
Wow interesting footage thanks for uploading. This type of work is fascinating.
Always interesting seeing how hydroelectric dams work thanks for posting these video and sharing your experiences with everyone on youtube be safe in your work
One of those places we dont get to see inside very often if ever!
Thanks and we don’t always blow bubbles.
Love this! Thanks for sharing the real scary dirty work very very few of us get to see.
my submechaniphobia would paralyze me if i had to work around those turbines, in penstocks, around gates like that. kudos to you my guy
Fist I saw snow than you went swimming damm you are brave respect man
I worked with the company that maintained this plants electrical substation and switchgear. I've been down by those generators working on the switchgear across the room.
Awesome.. definitely takes multi trades to keep these oldies running.
I always wanted to see what a turbine looks like under water in a dam thanks so much this helps
No spank you! Eff that! I live in the Scottish highlands and my granddad worked building hydroelectric dams after WW2. We have lots of them up here and they all scare the bejaysus outta me!
You definitely need to pay attention to everything.
Vids like this are the best keep em coming bud...
I hope it pays well … you're certainly earning it.
And what tool will you be using to repair our multimillion dollar hydroelectric plant?
A bag of mulch?!
A bag of mulch.
Mulch does work!! Lol
Imagine a human being sucked into that intake at full capacity load
OMGAWWDDDDDDDDD! Can you say "lock out/tag out??" Just no, nope, no no no no, nope, never. Scary AF! 6:09 tho...😉👌
Thanks.. just another day!! 😁
For me thats a unusual setup
Can you feel the cold at all in the wet suit ? I just can’t believe it
Yes.. at first it’s super cold but your body will heat up the water in the suit and you fine for a while. But a lot of times we cheat with hot water pumping into our suits... check out some of the other vids. Thanks for the comment!!
Can you explain what problem was so urgent that it required two men to dive in the middle of winter in order to fix it?
Just curious, if the turbine is off, why is there so much water flow through that 2" gap in the gate?
That place is 120 years ago and leaks everywhere. Plus when we are in the draft tube the floor drains are open to help with the head gate leaks. Then we removed the sealing on the head gate and re-water the draft tube with floor drains closed. Then start them up!!
Is it just me or does that plant look like a exercise in neglect... between the ladder from the other video and the general state of things I would price any work there with a healthy amount for "hazard pay".
I get that painting rust doesn't equal safety but the whole plant comes off a bit sketchy.
It does look horrible but it’s 1900 build is solid... and the ladder in Alice Falls is an example of always checking equipment and to be honest we use our ladders only. It was a ladder that was left in and broke from freezing. And ur right rattle can rebuilds are not professional fixes.
are those Stillwell Bierce or Rodney hunt turbines? They look like Stillwell Bierce.
The generator appears to be Allis Chalmers, so the turbine more then likely is the same
nice to be able to see inside the turbine, but I have a little bit of mechanophobia...
brave!!
I bet this job pays a lot.
Divers One and Two don't like the looks of this. A man climbs into and out of one of my worst fears and says "that wasn't so bad"!
Thanks for the comment!!! And it’s definitely not for everyone..
Kudos to you guys
But
Hell no
Paper mills never put money into their hydro units.... Divers probably cost a little less than just fixing the gate seals, but the company will just keep paying divers over and over....dumb.
Exactly and that is about how all hydros work!! Sad. We have seen better designs for gates but nobody will spend the money. Ps 71 cuda is my favorite muscle car…. Shaker fish gill. 😍😍
Playing on Essex
Delta p is SCARY