Well, if it’s designed correctly there is very little maintenance. I toured two micro hydro sites in WV. beforeI started my build. They have both been running for over 10 years with very little maintenance at all. BUT, they have to be designed correctly. If you cheap out on the vital components you’re just asking for problems. For example, the 2’x2’ coanda box from Elgin Inc. for my system cost right about $7,000. Most will see this price and decide to try and build their own vastly under engineered screen that doesn’t filter out much of anything. So debris is making it’s way to the turbines.
I also built my own coanda box but knew that I had to use an actual coanda screen. So I built my collection box and shopped around for just the screen to attach to it. I found a place that built me 2 screens for about $800.
A proper turbine is another great example. The proper ones that are manufactured and not repurposed car alternators are leaps and bounds more dependable with bearing replacement really being the only maintenance and that task is usually completed about every 10 years or so.
also , opting to not bury your penstock is a very bad move just asking for multiple problems down the road
the video below is of one of the systems I toured. ( Micky and I actually became friends and we text about this stuff all the time )
Keep in m8nd this system is still chugging along as you read this and his video was made 7 years ago
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