judder1952
The Dam at Lake Vyrnwy.Wales
Dr George Deacon (1843-1909) started the design of the Vyrnwy Dam in 1879 at the age of 36. Following Vrynwy Dr Deacon founded his practice in London in 1890 which subsequently became Sir Alexander Binnie Son & Deacon, Mr Binnie and Partners, and finally Black & Veatch.
Dr Deacon was instructed to prepare the Parliamentary Plans for the scheme in 1879. The Dam construction started in 1881 and was completed seven years later in 1888. It was the first large stone-built dam in the United Kingdom, and is built partly out of great blocks of Welsh slate. When built it cost £620,000, which today is around £22,000,000. The dam is 44 metres (144 ft) high from the bottom of the valley, and 39 metres (128 ft) thick at the base. The dam's length is 357 metres (1,171 ft), and has a road bridge running along the top. It is decorated with over 25 arches and two small towers (each with four corner turrets) that rise 4 metres (13 ft) above the road surface.
Vyrnwy was the first dam to carry water over its crest instead of in a channel at the side. At the bottom of the dam is a body of water known as the Stilling Basin, this is necessary to absorb the energy when the water flows over the crest and into the valley, and stops the water from eroding the foundations of the dam.
Underneath the West Tower is a building known as the Power House. Inside is an electrical generator which is driven by water leaving the reservoir. Before mains electricity arrived in the 1960s this was Llanwddyn's only source of power.
The West and East Towers release compensation water by huge valves, which are controlled by Severn Trent Water. This water is purely for the River Vyrnwy, which would otherwise dry out unless in flood. Depending on the Water Levels downstream the reservoir could release anything from 25 to 45 megalitres (5.5 to 10 million gallons) of compensation water per day. Only a few hundred yards downstream is a weir, which the Environment Agency use to measure the daily amount of compensation water. This weir also holds back enough water to create the stilling basin.
Earlier dams in Britain had been built by making great earth embankments to hold back the water. This new type of stone dam would change the face of the Welsh landscape over the coming years. The next stone dams to be built in Wales on an even bigger scale than Vyrnwy were those built in the Elan Valley. 1
[edit] The Straining Tower and Aqueduct
Approximately 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) from the dam is the reservoir's straining tower. Standing only 30 metres (98 ft) from the shore its purpose is to filter or strain out material in the water with a fine metal mesh, before the water flows along the aqueduct to Liverpool. Its architecture is Gothic and built during the same time as the dam. The tower as a whole is 63 metres (207 ft) tall, 15 metres (49 ft) of which is underwater. The other 48 metres (157 ft) is above water, and is topped with a pointed copper clad roof, which makes it look light green.
The sixty-eight miles of aqueduct bring water from Lake Vyrnwy to Liverpool, and are part of extensive works that also involve Britain's first high masonry dam at Vyrnwy.
The aqueduct originally consisted of two pipelines, made largely of cast iron. To help maintenance work on the 9 ft diameter cast-iron tunnel which took the aqueduct under the Mersey, riveted steel piping was also used. This was an early use of the material which was to become the norm for trunk water mains piping.
Brick and concrete lined tunnels carried pipes at Hirnant, Cynynion and Llanforda, and a fourth later added at Aber so that the Hirnant tunnel could be made accessible for maintenance. The first section of a third pipeline was laid in 1926-38 using bituminous-coated steel. To increase capacity, a fourth pipeline was added in 1946.
Re-organisation of the pipe crossings beneath the Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal were undertaken in 1978-81. The current provision relies on three, 42in diameter pipes delivering up to 50 million gallons per day into reservoirs at Prescot, east of Liverpool.
The aqueduct carrying water away from Lake Vyrnwy to Liverpool was constructed across the valley from the reservoir between 1881-92. It crosses the valley floor near Penybontfawr and then runs north of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant and Efail-rhyd on the north-east of the Tanat Valley. The aqueduct is largely hidden from view although there are a number of visible surface features including air valves, the Cileos valve house, the Parc-uchaf balancing reservoirs, and a deep cutting to the west of Llanrhaeadr-ym-mochnant. In terms of the history of roads in the Tanat Valley it is interesting to note that complaints were made about damage to local roads during the construction of the Lake Vyrnwy reservoir.
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The Dam at Lake Vyrnwy.Wales
Dr George Deacon (1843-1909) started the design of the Vyrnwy Dam in 1879 at the age of 36. Following Vrynwy Dr Deacon founded his practice in London in 1890 which subsequently became Sir Alexander Binnie Son & Deacon, Mr Binnie and Partners, and finally Black & Veatch.
Dr Deacon was instructed to prepare the Parliamentary Plans for the scheme in 1879. The Dam construction started in 1881 and was completed seven years later in 1888. It was the first large stone-built dam in the United Kingdom, and is built partly out of great blocks of Welsh slate. When built it cost £620,000, which today is around £22,000,000. The dam is 44 metres (144 ft) high from the bottom of the valley, and 39 metres (128 ft) thick at the base. The dam's length is 357 metres (1,171 ft), and has a road bridge running along the top. It is decorated with over 25 arches and two small towers (each with four corner turrets) that rise 4 metres (13 ft) above the road surface.
Vyrnwy was the first dam to carry water over its crest instead of in a channel at the side. At the bottom of the dam is a body of water known as the Stilling Basin, this is necessary to absorb the energy when the water flows over the crest and into the valley, and stops the water from eroding the foundations of the dam.
Underneath the West Tower is a building known as the Power House. Inside is an electrical generator which is driven by water leaving the reservoir. Before mains electricity arrived in the 1960s this was Llanwddyn's only source of power.
The West and East Towers release compensation water by huge valves, which are controlled by Severn Trent Water. This water is purely for the River Vyrnwy, which would otherwise dry out unless in flood. Depending on the Water Levels downstream the reservoir could release anything from 25 to 45 megalitres (5.5 to 10 million gallons) of compensation water per day. Only a few hundred yards downstream is a weir, which the Environment Agency use to measure the daily amount of compensation water. This weir also holds back enough water to create the stilling basin.
Earlier dams in Britain had been built by making great earth embankments to hold back the water. This new type of stone dam would change the face of the Welsh landscape over the coming years. The next stone dams to be built in Wales on an even bigger scale than Vyrnwy were those built in the Elan Valley. 1
[edit] The Straining Tower and Aqueduct
Approximately 1,000 metres (3,300 ft) from the dam is the reservoir's straining tower. Standing only 30 metres (98 ft) from the shore its purpose is to filter or strain out material in the water with a fine metal mesh, before the water flows along the aqueduct to Liverpool. Its architecture is Gothic and built during the same time as the dam. The tower as a whole is 63 metres (207 ft) tall, 15 metres (49 ft) of which is underwater. The other 48 metres (157 ft) is above water, and is topped with a pointed copper clad roof, which makes it look light green.
The sixty-eight miles of aqueduct bring water from Lake Vyrnwy to Liverpool, and are part of extensive works that also involve Britain's first high masonry dam at Vyrnwy.
The aqueduct originally consisted of two pipelines, made largely of cast iron. To help maintenance work on the 9 ft diameter cast-iron tunnel which took the aqueduct under the Mersey, riveted steel piping was also used. This was an early use of the material which was to become the norm for trunk water mains piping.
Brick and concrete lined tunnels carried pipes at Hirnant, Cynynion and Llanforda, and a fourth later added at Aber so that the Hirnant tunnel could be made accessible for maintenance. The first section of a third pipeline was laid in 1926-38 using bituminous-coated steel. To increase capacity, a fourth pipeline was added in 1946.
Re-organisation of the pipe crossings beneath the Mersey and the Manchester Ship Canal were undertaken in 1978-81. The current provision relies on three, 42in diameter pipes delivering up to 50 million gallons per day into reservoirs at Prescot, east of Liverpool.
The aqueduct carrying water away from Lake Vyrnwy to Liverpool was constructed across the valley from the reservoir between 1881-92. It crosses the valley floor near Penybontfawr and then runs north of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant and Efail-rhyd on the north-east of the Tanat Valley. The aqueduct is largely hidden from view although there are a number of visible surface features including air valves, the Cileos valve house, the Parc-uchaf balancing reservoirs, and a deep cutting to the west of Llanrhaeadr-ym-mochnant. In terms of the history of roads in the Tanat Valley it is interesting to note that complaints were made about damage to local roads during the construction of the Lake Vyrnwy reservoir.
www.flickriver.com/photos/juddersstuffok/
BEST VIEWS HERE.
"VIEW ON BLACK EITHER VIA SLIDESHOW OR FLICKRRIVER"