Whenever you are helping your child with his school projects, there may come a time when you will need to have directions on how to make a model windmill. This is actually a really simple craft project that you can then place in your garden or backyard to enjoy in the future. If you plan to do this though, you will need to keep it in mind as you create the proper scaling for your windmill.
In order to create a wooden windmill you will need 3 sheets of ½ inch thick treated plywood; a large bolt with a nut; a small treated wooden post; copper or metal sheeting and waterproof adhesive. Begin by cutting out 3 triangles from treated plywood sheets. Use wood screws to secure these together in the shape of a 3-dimensional triangle. Now cut 2×2 inch treated wood into an 8-inch wooden post. Attach this to the top of your triangle. Cut 4 more triangles from your metal sheeting and stack these on top of each other so that you can drill an opening that is big enough to fit your bolt through. After you do this you will want to separate the triangles and form them into a circle whose tips overlap and the holes all match up. Use a waterproof adhesive to glue all of these together. You can now attach the windmill’s vane to the wood post with a bolt and use the nut to secure it in place. If you’d like, you can now paint the base of your windmill.
You can also choose to make a PVC windmill. For this you will need a PVC pipe; some metal sheeting; a bolt with a nut; some cement; wooden stakes and string. Now cut a piece of this pipe to the height you desire your windmill to be. Next drill a hole the whole way through the top of your pipe to 1 inch beneath the top end. Your windmill vane will need to be made out of sheet metal and bolted into the PVC pipe through the hole that you drilled at the top of it. Whenever you place this windmill outside, simply use some string and wooden stakes to brace it in place. You can also put cement into the hole where the PVC pipe goes.
Now that you know have directions on how to make a model windmill you probably can tell just how easy it is. Of course, this can also be a really fun project. Together you and your child can learn a lot from doing this together.
References
If you would like to learn more about how to make a model of a windmill, you can take a look at the following websites:
chatboard
http://fli.hws.edu/myplace/windactivity/Worksheet1.pdf