Solar Power Energizes Farmer's Irrigation System
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network in Technology
Powering Center-Pivot Irrigation System with Solar Energy
Dolf Ivener turned to sunshine to water his corn field this growing season.
Ivener became the first Siouxland farmer to power a center-pivot irrigation system with solar energy. It's also one of the first of its kind nationally.
He designed a photovoltaic system based on the average 4.3 hours of daily sunlight the Sioux City region receives each season.
An array of 22 solar panels, measuring three feet by six feet, produce around 300 watts each, or 11,000 kilowatts to 12,000 kilowatts per year, enough power to pump water through the system's pipes and propel its wheels around the field four times. That's the average number of trips in a typical year for irrigated farmland like Ivener's 160-acre tract southeast of Whiting.
Weather wise, this year was anything but normal, however, the Sioux City Journal reported. On three different occasions, heavy rains flooded the Missouri River bottom land. The stubborn, wet conditions slowed the installation of the solar system, as well as the growth of the corn plants.
"You can see it's not as tall," Ivener said, pointing to the corn plants, some with yellowed leaves, as he drove his pickup down a dirt path to the center pivot.
With the Monona County field finally drying up, Ivener turned on the center pivot for the first time. But it was only to feed a late season application of fertilizer through the sprinkler heads.
But it's possible the system won't be used for irrigation at all this season if precipitation is in the forecast, he said.
"As much rain as we've had and as cool as it's been, I wouldn't be surprised if this year the pivot runs for even a day," he said.
Still, Ivener views the technology as a sound, long-term investment.
It cost $23,000, but a 30 percent federal tax credit and a 18 percent state tax credit is covering nearly half the costs. The credits, claimed through filing income tax returns, are designed to encourage solar power.
If everything works right, the payback on the solar system would be 10 years, he said.
Ivener estimates it would cost $50,000 to $60,000 to run traditional power lines to the center pivot.
Before installing the solar system, Ivener worked out a 10-year deal with Western Iowa Power Cooperative, or WIPCO, a rural electric coop that serves Monona and other eight counties. The coop installed a bidirectional electric meter in the field. It measures how much power the solar panels produce, as well as how much excess electricity the array feeds back to the coop.
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