I'm having some (hydro) dam problems!!

[ScruffyBamboo]

SO I'm loving, and I mean LOVING the game... it's what SimCity should've been. And when I found out I could build a hydroelectric dam, I was very excited.

So far though, I haven't really had any success. I'm trying to find the fastest-moving parts of the river, and the estimations I get seem to tell me it would be a good spot, but after a few days, the dam stops producing power. Here's an example where the estimate was 80 MW:

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=409829157

It worked for a few days, getting up to 48 MW, then it just stopped working. Can anyone tell me why this dam isn't producing any power??

[Nickie]

80 MW is NOT good. 1600+ MW is good. Most likely not enough flow in that river.

[ScruffyBamboo]

Originally posted by Nickie:

80 MW is NOT good. 1600+ MW is good. Most likely not enough flow in that river.

Hmm, that's interesting... it's the fastest river on the map it seems, though. Maybe it's just not wide enough? I'll have to keep experimenting.

EDIT: But still, shouldn't I be getting SOME power out of that dam??

[firesofhades1]

not if there isn't enough pressure behind it, the terrain seems pretty flat, try it in a river that flows downhill

[firesofhades1]

also, make your dam a little lower than the river banks, how your dam is now, the river will probable overflow before the water level raises enough for the dam to take in water.

[ScruffyBamboo]

Originally posted by firesofhades1:

not if there isn't enough pressure behind it, the terrain seems pretty flat, try it in a river that flows downhill

Seems logical... is there an easy way to see contour lines on the terrain (is there a map filter for that?)

[Prisoner 76561197992841073]

attack of the invisible words

[firesofhades1]

i wish i could respond but all of a sudden all messages and topic titles have dissapeared :(

[M3ssiah]

power created from hydro dams is based off of the difference in height in water on each side of the dam. I personally prob wouldn't make a dam unless it was getting at minimum 400 MW. that puts you at competitive price point per MW created and getting more than that will further reduce the cost per MW. Also dams can sometimes take a little bit of time to settle all the water behind it before it starts working. If you are sure all the water is settled behind the dam check the flow behind the dam. if you made a new river somewhere in the back then its possible the damn will not work at all.

[Prisoner 76561197992841073]

i was here when it happened

#2015 #march #18th

[Venatacia]

Why would it start working and then stop ?. My dam was working at 160mw and then stopped working, surely water will flow through the dam. Seems more like bug to me.

[Trekner]

ive been having dam problem lately to, the very first dam i made gave energy, every one since then havent, by now i think they are only good for reclaiming land.

[Taddl]

Dams are just generally rather buggy at the moment.

[firesofhades1]

Originally posted by Venatacia:

Why would it start working and then stop ?. My dam was working at 160mw and then stopped working, surely water will flow through the dam. Seems more like bug to me.

because you build it in the wrong place maybe? the dam empties the lake faster than it can fill.

Originally posted by Trekner:

ive been having dam problem lately to, the very first dam i made gave energy, every one since then havent, by now i think they are only good for reclaiming land.

please search for some tuts, you can't just build them everywhere, dams are one of the most realistic features of this game.

i agree its not easy to see where and how to build them though

[Ottomic]

I've had the power in my dams fluctuate like crazy from 0 to 48 mw, built on what seemed to be the best spots in both the black woods and two rivers maps. I thought it might be something to do with seasonal flow or just how dams operate normally.

[Mansen]

No seasonal flow - But the water physics can be a bit wonky over time.

I suggest you plop your sewage outlets behind your dam to get some more pressure buildup. If you can avoid the pollution spreading to your water pumps.

Keep in mid - Pumps suck away water from bodies of water. Sewage outlets puts it back in. Putting a bunch of water pumps on a river that's supposed to lead into a hydro dam resevoir is not a good idea.