GRAAFF-REINET NEWS - Bobby Glen of EmBee Installations, assisted by Tinus Minnie of Tinus Minnie Electrical, successfully repaired the watermill at the Reinet House Museum that was installed in 1978, but became inoperative in 2019.
According to Anziske Kayster manager of the Graaff-Reinet Museum who shared the history of the watermill with Graaff-Reinet Advertiser, this watermill was installed after the donation of an old watermill by J J van der Berg of the farm Towerwater in the Murraysburg district in 1973.
A fully functional watermill on the premises of the museum would demonstrate how, in the past, the energy of running water was harnessed to grind wheat. Despite the initial enthusiasm, it would eventually take six long years for this vision to come to fruition.
The machine, donated by Van der Berg, could unfortunately not be restored due to advanced decay, but a Grahamstown farmer of the farm Strowan, Geoffrey Palmer, offered to rebuild a replica and install it in the newly erected mill house.
Careful consideration was given to the type and size of the mill house while also considering the period and architectural context of the Reinet House precinct.
Advice was sought from many sources, including the author of the seminal publication on waterwheels – Water mills, Windmills and Horse mills of South Africa – by the late James Walton.
It was not until 1977 that the building finally commenced. The machine was manufactured of Mozambican Chamfuta and Rhodesian Mahogany is known for its durability. The work took a year to complete at a considerable cost of R1 000. This, together with the cost of construction of the mill house, was quite a blow to the finances of the museum.
Palmer, with the assistance of his son Robert, installed the watermill at Reinet House on 10 May 1978 and Brunette, the building contractor, installed the final components in December 1978. To the delight of visitors, water flowed, and the wheel turned.
"While the expert work of Mr Palmer has stood the test of time, the same cannot be said of the modern mechanical components that deteriorated over the decades to a point that the mill had become inoperative by 2019. The replacement of the electrically powered centrifugal pump was far too expensive for the board to contemplate repair," says Kayster.
"This would, however, change in 2022 thanks to the innovative approach of Mr Bobby Glen of EmBee Installations who was able to modify and reinstate the water circulation system and replace the outdated coin-activated system with a cleverly modified token-activated switch at a fraction of the cost. He was assisted by Mr Tinus Minnie of Tinus Minnie Electrical who was responsible for replacing the electrical wiring and switchgear. The water wheel and mill can now, once again, churn away cheerfully thanks to these gentlemen."
The Board of Trustees is grateful to EmBee Installations and Tinus Minnie Electrical for the economical and functional manner in which the work was completed.
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