Forebay

Forebay. . , Two miles upriver, the Folsom Water Power Company dam diverted water from the American River into a canal for delivery to this forebay. Intentionally constructed at an angle to the canal, the forebay serves a number of different functions. Wood slats under the bridge trapped floating debris like uprooted trees. The angle of the forebay, the center dividing wall, and the parallel wood baffles placed along the bottom of the forebay reduced water turbulence and helped settle out river sediment., Due to the variability of water flow through the canal, the two bypass gates located on each side were used to regulate the level of the water in the forebay. A smooth and stable supply of water was critical to the safe and efficient operation of the powerhouse turbines., The large hydraulic gates facing the powerhouse allowed the flow of water into the separate penstock pipes that fed each of the four main turbine generator sets. The two small center gates provided water for the turbines powering the Direct Current exciter generators used for starting the main Alternating Current generators.