Transformers vital to campus
Jacob Spiekermeier
Issue date: 10/29/09 Section: News
Replacing a failed transformer is a lot more complicated than changing a light bulb.
That point was driven home to Kirkwood Community College students and instructors when a transformer failed Oct. 9, cutting off power to parts of Benton and Cedar halls and disrupting 28 classrooms. A number of classes were moved; others were canceled.
Power was restored after a new transformer brought in from Ohio was installed Oct. 13.
Kirkwood's main campus has more than 14 transformers. Dominique Greene, supervisor of maintenance and facilities, said there are three transformers in Linn Hall alone. Each transformer is responsible for supplying the right amount of power, taking it from a higher voltage to a lower voltage.
Greene said there are two types of transformers on campus, inside transformers and outside transformers. Greene said transformers that sit outside use a combination of oil and fins to keep cool, while inside transformers use air.
Greene said newer buildings use oil transformers and older and bigger buildings use air transformers because they can be centrally located and cost less money to wire.
"The average life of a transformer is about 20 to 25 years," Greene said. The equipment that failed Oct. 9 was a 28-year-old inside transformer.
Alliant Energy, which supplies 12,470 volts of electricity to Kirkwood's main campus, doesn't stock inside transformers. So Kirkwood had to buy one from a company in Cincinnati. The transformer reached Kirkwood three days after the loss of power.
Greene said that if Kirkwood could have bought the transformer locally, the switchover would have taken about four hours.
Although parts of Benton and Cedar halls were out of power for five days, the recovery went smoothly, said Melissa Jensen, director of emergency services and energy.
The new 6,000-pound transformer cost about $40,000, according to Jensen. The transformer is about 5 feet long, 2.5 feet deep and 4 feet high.
And what happened to the old transformer? Jensen said some of its metal was recycled through Kirkwood's scrap metal recycling program, bringing in $200.
Looking to the future, Greene said the Linn Hall transformers, installed in 1970, will be replaced within the next few years.
That point was driven home to Kirkwood Community College students and instructors when a transformer failed Oct. 9, cutting off power to parts of Benton and Cedar halls and disrupting 28 classrooms. A number of classes were moved; others were canceled.
Power was restored after a new transformer brought in from Ohio was installed Oct. 13.
Kirkwood's main campus has more than 14 transformers. Dominique Greene, supervisor of maintenance and facilities, said there are three transformers in Linn Hall alone. Each transformer is responsible for supplying the right amount of power, taking it from a higher voltage to a lower voltage.
Greene said there are two types of transformers on campus, inside transformers and outside transformers. Greene said transformers that sit outside use a combination of oil and fins to keep cool, while inside transformers use air.
Greene said newer buildings use oil transformers and older and bigger buildings use air transformers because they can be centrally located and cost less money to wire.
"The average life of a transformer is about 20 to 25 years," Greene said. The equipment that failed Oct. 9 was a 28-year-old inside transformer.
Alliant Energy, which supplies 12,470 volts of electricity to Kirkwood's main campus, doesn't stock inside transformers. So Kirkwood had to buy one from a company in Cincinnati. The transformer reached Kirkwood three days after the loss of power.
Greene said that if Kirkwood could have bought the transformer locally, the switchover would have taken about four hours.
Although parts of Benton and Cedar halls were out of power for five days, the recovery went smoothly, said Melissa Jensen, director of emergency services and energy.
The new 6,000-pound transformer cost about $40,000, according to Jensen. The transformer is about 5 feet long, 2.5 feet deep and 4 feet high.
And what happened to the old transformer? Jensen said some of its metal was recycled through Kirkwood's scrap metal recycling program, bringing in $200.
Looking to the future, Greene said the Linn Hall transformers, installed in 1970, will be replaced within the next few years.
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