Iron Man Windmill Co. only produces 4 leg windmill towers of high quality construction made from quality alloy steel and completely hot dip galvanized after all fabrication work is completed. We do not produce three leg towers and will never do so. We cannot condemn to strongly the practice occurring in some areas of mounting windmills on cheap, light weigh three leg towers. Thes are usually painted and frequently made from painted steel tubing or pipe. While being a little lower in cost, such towers have a short useful life, are inherently weak, unsafe and likely to fail in the first real storm. Such cheap towers lacking protection from hot dip galvanizing tend to sufer from rust and when tubing is used, to rust internally, especially near ground level concealing evidence of impeding failure. The cost and then failure of these cheap towers with the resulting destruction of the windmill results in a most expensive and unsatisfactory investment. We know. We have replaced many of them. The use of a strong, properly made, alloy steel, hot galvanized four leg tower with hot galvanized forged alloy steel fasteners that fits your windmill properly is cheap insurance that provides safety and is an investment that lasts a lifetime. Let the buyer beware!

Only competent, experienced workers capable of working safely at high elevations should be allowed to work on towers and windmill. Appropriate safety equipment must be used and all personnel working on towers and windmills should be completely familiar with safe working practice and proper safety precautions with the potential hazards involved. Workers must be competent and familiar with safe rigging and handling of heavy parts. With our larger windmills some of the key components weigh more than a ton. If any worker is not familiar with the required safe working practice, they should not be allowed on the tower or serious injury or death may result!

The main methods of installing windmills and towers are building from the ground up and tilting up. We recomend the later method for use when access to equipment is limited of not available. It is the safest method, especially for people new to working with windmills.

ANCHOR LEGS: Go below ground and hold the corner posts. The part number is always stamped at the lower end.

ANCHOR PADS: bolt to the bottom of every Anchor Leg. There are always two for each anchor leg. The part number is always stamped at the lower end.

CORNER POSTS: provide the main strength of the tower. There are three types - plain, having no holes for ladder steps and the corner post for mounting the ladder. Top Corner Posts - have notched ends that fit tightly together to lock the end into a solid structure. Three Top Corner Posts are plain and have no provision for mounting ladder steps. One has holes to mount the ladder steps. Be sure to use the corner posts for the ladder all on the same corner or your tower will be difficult to climb! The part number is always stamped at the lower end.

GIRTS: are always horizontal and have the part number stamped in the middle.

BRACES: always have four types and are always used on the bottom section of the tower. The wide end of the Brace always goes up. The folded (narrow) end always goes down. The part number is always stamped at the lower end. See the illustration below to see how the brace with the twist is used.

ROUND BRACES: can go with either end up or down and have no part number stamped on them.

PLATFORMS: are always made from galvanized steel (Iron Man Windmill Towers never use wood platforms) and are mounted with four or more bolts.

NUTS and BOLTS: are made from hot dip galvanized high strength alloy steel forgings. Do not substitute them with cheap, un-hot galvanized bolts. Extra bolts are provided with every tower. They are in the correct position when a tight bolt extends beyond a nut a distance equal to the diameter of the bolt. Fasteners used on towers for small windmills may be stainless steel. It is good practice to always place the head of the bolt on the outside of the tower and the nut on the inside of the tower. Never use lock washers. We never provide lock washers and warn against using them. You do not need them and they corrode badly and destroy the galvanizing.

We assume that the proper windmill and tower have been selected. For information on selecting the proper windmill and tower, see: Selecting the proper windmill

1. Decide how you will place your tower. Which corner post is best suited to have the ladder? This is frequently of little importance, but some instalations, especially when in yards or close to fences or buildings should be given consideration. Larger windmills have an access hole in the platform. It is best to place this access hole down wind so that it will not be obstructed by the wind wheel. The ladder will always go on a corner post on either sid of the access hole. Consider which face of the bottom section will have the pipe window. This special face of the tower is for moving long lengths of pipe and pump rod in an out of the tower. It should be in a convenient location. Layout the anchor hole locations according to the diagram on the right and the dimensions below. Dimension "B" must be the same.

At left, you can see the Girt and the Brace connected to the corner post at the top of the section. The top end of every brace is always wide and bolts to the outside of the tower. The Girts always bolt on the inside of the tower. The part numbers are always on the lower end of all corner posts and Braces made from angle steel. Girts always have the part number in the center for parts mounted horizontally.

At left, you can see the Brace bolted to the corner post at the bottom of the first section, just above ground level. The bottom end of every brace comes folded over, is narrow and bolts on the outside of the tower on the top bolt of the anchor leg. There is no Girt at the bottom of the first section. The part numbers are always on the lower end of all girts.

The illistration on the left is most important and time spent understanding it will help speed work considerably. Notice how both Braces bolt to the outside face of the Girt. Braces attached to the bottom right corner post of each face always remain on the outside of the tower as they connect to the bolt on the top left girt. There is a twist in the Brace that connects to the top right Girt bolt. This twist allows the Brace to cross over to the inside of the tower. This is an extremely strong connection and adds considerable strength to the tower. The bottom of the Braces on the upper section always go over and above the top of the lower braces.

Assemble the bottom section of the tower as shown at left. Snug up the bolts but it is best not to tighten them now. Three faces of the tower will look as shown and one will have the pipe window as shown below. Use two corner posts from the upper section and clamp it to the top of the anchor leg, just below the bottom of the corner posts as shown. Four "C" clamps of the proper size work very well. Place leveling blocks as shown for smaller towers. For taller towers, the leveling blocks will be placed between the anchor legs. Level the tower accurately and be certain that it is centered accurately on the well. When the bottom section is completely assembled, leveled and centered on the well, you can cement the bottom of the anchor legs in place. You do not need to fill the hole with cement and there is no advantage in doing so. Use the amount of cement specified for maximum strength. When the cement has set, you can fill the anchor holes with earth, being sure to compact it very well.