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Southern Cross are proud to have been installing windmills Cloncurry can rely on since 1903.
With over 100 years of experience designing and manufacturing windmills, Cloncurry residents can be confident knowing they have the support of Australia’s oldest windmill manufacturer.
People in Queensland are mindful of their need for a reliable water supply, and considering this, many have, and still look to a Southern Cross windmill to assist them to meet their water pumping and harvesting needs.
Just over 100km west of Mount Isa, and built mainly as a town to service local mines, Cloncurry has twice won Queensland’s Friendliest Town award, and is considered one of the most livable inland towns in the country.
Our windmills are available in a range of sizes. The Southern Cross Windmill can be fitted with a windwheel between 6′ and 14′, and mounted on a tower between 20′ and 60′.
Our experts can help determine what wheel and tower sizes would best suit your windmill, based upon the landscape you wish to have it built on, and the amount of wind your property receives.
The Southern Cross “FA” Series Windmill Towers are available in the following heights:
The minimum recommended tower height for each windwheel size, is as follows:
For centuries, we have used wind to power our boats, mill our grain and pump our water. Wind power is the first renewable energy to be harnessed by mankind.
Windmills have been a part of rural living in Australia for more than a century, and is a great renewable energy source, in addition to being an Australian icon. Windmills have been a part of rural living in Australia for well over a century, and is a great renewable energy source, along with being an Australian icon.
Windmills can be constructed anywhere there is access to water, whether it be a bore, a well, a river or dam, the windmill continues to be one of the most reliable and greenest water harvesting solutions.
Water has always provided a challenge for Australians, living in a famously dry and arid country – so much so that 85% of Australia’s population is located within a mere 50km from the nearest coastline.
The advent of the modern windmill, thanks to George Washington Griffiths, was a game changer for pastoralists and graziers, allowing them to move further away from the coast for stock grazing, where land was more affordable and accessible.
Despite being mostly used to pump water from deep bores or wells linked to underground water tables, windmills can also be used to pump from any body of water, such as dams or rivers.
As with any other sector, as technology improves, challengers will present themselves. The most recent challenger to the windmill being solar pumps
While solar pumps look promising, they certainly aren’t as tried and tested in the long term as the traditional windmill, with many properties across Australia featuring windmills that have been pumping water for more than 50 years.
Despite solar systems being advertised as a safer option, they may contain a potentially dangerous current, while the “dangerous” windmill accounts for less than 1% of all accidents on rural properties.
Southern Cross has been providing windmills that Australian families can rely on for over a century, and all of our windmills have a 30+ year design life.
With the backing of over a century of industry leading windmill design and Australian innovation, Southern Cross continue to increase on the over 250 000 windmills sold since 1903. All Southern Cross Mills are hot dip galvanised.
All Southern Cross Windmills come with a 3-year warranty.
Southern Cross Windmills pride ourselves on the quality and integrity of our product. We specialise in the manufacture, installation and service of industry leading windmills throughout the country and across the world.
All of our windmills are designed and engineered in-house, and are durable enough to thrive in the harshest of Australian climates, rain, hail or shine.
Authentic parts are available for Southern Cross “IZ” windwheels and “FA” towers. Parts for the retired A, J, R & Z Pattern Windmills”, “J” Series Windmill Pumps, Troughs, Check Valves, Pump Heads and Pump Jacks may still be available upon request.
From the very first Southern Cross windmill rolling off the Toowoomba Foundry line in 1903, nobody has experience like we do of dealing with Cloncurry and Australia’s unique water harvesting needs.
The Griffiths family produced their first windmills in 1876, which were based on blueprints from American inventor Daniel Halladay, and improved upon for strength and functionality
The introduction of windmills to the Australian outback allowed rural families and pastoralists to populate more arid areas of the country, causing towns and pastoral runs to begin growing across these areas.
Unlike another Aussie classic, the lamington, Southern Cross Windmills origins in Toowoomba are not up for debate, however, both have certainly gone on to become recognisable Australian icons.
Southern Cross is an Australian owned brand, and we still operate out of Withcott to this day, servicing Australians all across the country, including graziers, irrigators and rural families.
Now comfortably located at the Gilgandra Museum and Historical Society, this 7.3 m Southern Cross windwheel was built and delivered to Mendooran in 1924.
While now used purely for display purposes, the Windmill pumped tirelessly and faithfully for 73 years before it was donated to the Gilgandra Museum and Historical Society by the Payne family in Mendooran.
Now closing in on 100 years old, at its most recent service, all that was required was some oil in order to maintain it. While it probably won’t get a letter from the queen, this windmill is a testament to the dependability and durability of Southern Cross Windmills.
Cloncurry boasts a massive 11 working mines, making it the most geologically rich town in Outback Queensland.
Much more than just a rural mining town, Cloncurry is the birthplace of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, and there is an exhibit in the town for any wishing to learn more about the history of the Australian icon.
If you find yourself in Cloncurry, don’t forget to check out the Chinaman Creek Dam to the west of the town. Bring a picnic blanket and the family, and enjoy the view.
Not in Cloncurry? For Windmills Boulia click here.
