Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility

Mom, Dad, Susan and I visited the Wild Horse Wind and Solar facility earlier today. It is located 285 miles southeast of Seattle between Ellensburg and Vantage. Puget Sound Energy owns and operates the wind farm, which entered into production in 2006. The visitor's center is open daily between April and November and free tours are provided twice a day.

The weather was spectacular and we could easily see Mt Rainier, Mt Adams and just the tip of Mt. Hood in Oregon.

There are currently 149 turbines on 9,000 acres. The power output at peak capacity is 229 MW, enough to meet the total power needs of about 60,000 households. One MW of wind energy capacity equals the electrical needs of 225 to 300 U.S. households. Puget Sound Energy has gone to great lengths to make sure that the facility has minimum impact on the environment and wildlife. It has one of the lowest bird and bat mortality rates in the nation.

Andrea, our tour guide, is sharing information on the rotor blades. Each of the three blades is 129 feet long and constructed of composite materials weighs more than 7 tons. The blade is 11.6 feet wide at the base and 1.6 feet wide at the tip.

Some of the 2,723 solar panels installed on site are visible in the background. Solar power produce at this facility is used to power the computer systems and provide backup power. At 500kW, the Wild Horse solar array is the Northwest's largest demonstration of photovoltaic technology. which turns sunlight into electricity.

The foundation of each tower is buried 25 to 32 feet deep and sits in 260 cubic yards of concrete. The anchor bolts shown below extend from ground level to the bottom of the 14-foot diameter foundation. Each bolt weighs 150 pounds and is 28 feet long.

We were able to go inside the base of the tower and this is the view if you look straight up. Each turbine is 351 feet tall and weighs 223 tons. The tower is 221 feet tall at the rotor's hub, 13.2 feet wide at the base and 7.6 feet wide at the top. The technicians that surface the turbines can climb to the top in five minutes.

The rotor spins at 16.5 revolutions per minutes and the turbines generate electricity at wind speeds as low as 9 mph. Peak generation is reached at 31 mph and the system is shut down at constant wind speeds of 56 mph. The turbines change direction depending on the direction of the wind. The towers are painted white to reflect heat and for visibility to aircraft. If you have an opportunity to visit this facility, you will find it very interesting.