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Step 11Base
Since my tower was 36 feet tall and in a triangular lattice structure (18 inches per side), I knew I would need a big sono tube to support it. After googling, reading, and asking a certified wind turbine installer, I settled on a 2 foot diameter, 6 foot tall sono tube. It's not a bad idea to consider the soil you'll be digging into, as some places may need more of a footing just to be sure.
Luckily for me, since this project was being funded, we were able to talk the local concrete place into doing it all for free. They even dug a hole and centered a piece of pipe in the casing for us.
Also, consider how you want to attach your tower to the base. My first thought was to have tree bolts sticking up from the base (one for each leg), but the wind turbine installer suggested something different. He suggested we put a piece of plate or something on the bottom with a hole in it, then have one solid pipe or piece of bar stock in the base and slide the tower down over. This does a couple of things. Firstly, it allows the tower to move, which is nice, and secondly, it reduces stress on the concrete base because the pipe is centered on the casting.
Luckily for me, since this project was being funded, we were able to talk the local concrete place into doing it all for free. They even dug a hole and centered a piece of pipe in the casing for us.
Also, consider how you want to attach your tower to the base. My first thought was to have tree bolts sticking up from the base (one for each leg), but the wind turbine installer suggested something different. He suggested we put a piece of plate or something on the bottom with a hole in it, then have one solid pipe or piece of bar stock in the base and slide the tower down over. This does a couple of things. Firstly, it allows the tower to move, which is nice, and secondly, it reduces stress on the concrete base because the pipe is centered on the casting.
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