3-Phase Power From Single-Phase Lines

3-Phase Power From Single-Phase Lines ENERGY Miscellaneous 4-2-24 If you're short on electric power but high on needs, you'll want to take a look at M & W Gear's new 70 hp. electric pto drive, designed to run off single phase electrical power. "Ordinarily, a power unit this large requires 3-phase service. Because we've arranged seven 10-hp. motors around a single drive shaft and start them separately, start-up power drain never exceeds the limits of a single phase line," explains Loren Alpers of M & W Gear, Gibson City, Ill. Extending 3-phase power to a farm can cost $2,500 to $3,000 for installation, plus a $100 hike in your monthly electric bill, says Alpers. "If it's needed for only one operation - drying grain, for instance-that's an expensive fee. Many farmers own more than one farm and need power in remote locations only occasionally during the year." Although intended to power M & W's 450 bu. per hour pto-driven grain dryer, the new electric unit will drive silage blowers and other stationary equipment you might ordinarily power with your tractor pto. The seven motors in the drive unit are connected to the drive shaft by V-belts. At start-up, one motor kicks in to get the others turning, thus reducing the power needed to start the other six, which kick in all at one time. This main shaft is connected to the unit's pto drive shaft by a heavyduty drive belt, which is engaged by an idler pulley once full power is reached. "Any farm with 200 amp single phase service will be able to use it. It can also be used on 3-phase lines where starting loads are limited," explained Alpers. The unit runs at a constant 1,000 rpm's once started, with a full 70 hp. It's fully portable, mounted on a trailer. Limited production is planned for 1980, with full-scale production scheduled for 1981. For more information, contact: FARM SHOW FOLLOWUP, M & W Gear, Rt. 47 South, Gibson City, Ill. 600936 (ph 800 637-1144, toll free).

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