Wind Power Generators

If you have decided you are going to work on your own wind generator system, you need to find, make or buy several components. Obviously you need the wind generator or turbine itself. There are a few plans online for building your own, although many people are going to skip this step and go right for the store bought residential wind turbine. In a lot of cases this makes sense. A lot of do it yourselfers realize that they don’t want to go through the trial and error phase of building a unit that eeds a lot of repairs and might break down prematurely. You don’t want to work your butt off only to find out you were barking up the wrong design tree either.

Once you have the wind generator, you need to figure out how to get it high enough off of the ground to catch sufficient wind. This is going to require a sturdy tower or pole which is very solidly anchored to the ground. You don’t want your unit to crash through a rtoof of a nearby building, or smash on the ground in a stiff wind. Not to mention any bystanders could get hurt. And all of your hard work could go down the drain fast, leaving you without residential wind power. It is more important to achieve your goals of a tower gor the wind generator safely than it is to do this part cheaply. And if the tower were to come down, you will be out a lot of money anyways so spending a little more on a good tower now might mean you will be ahead in the long run.

So with these problems in mind, lets examine a couple possibilities for recycled towers. Many people mention the old towers used for TV antennas. Some of these are indeed tall enough and would do the job for you. Another question is, what sort of a weight load were they designed to handle? And, are all the parts of this tower still in good shape, wi no damage from being taken down, moved or stored? All of these factors should be considered for any used wind generator tower as well.

Another option is a single pipe planted in the ground, such as the ones used in commercial wind farms. This can work very well if the pipe is strong enough to resist any forces against it. Remember that you will need some method to either clinb up the pipe, or to lay the whole assembly down for installation and mainenance. Laying the unit down can be accomplished by placing a hinge assembly at the bottom.

And speaking of the bottom of the wind power generator tower, one of the best methods to secure the tower is to cement it in. Alternatively, the anchor can be cemented in with concrete and the tower can be bolted down to it. This way the unit won’t come crashig down and cause a whole hill’o damage to whatever might be in it’s path.

Hopefully your new wind power generator will be a great addition to your home. It is just one of many DIY home improvements that you can make, but this one will also save you money on electricity. It will also increase the resale value of your property. Good luck with your construction!

What is Residential Wind Power? Should I Get A Home Wind Turbine?

Wind power is making a return appearance as an inexpensive, inexhaustible form of renewable energy.  It is, of course, not a new idea; people have been harnessing the wind to do their work for over 5,000 years.  In the past, wind has been used to power ships, land vehicles such as sail-powered wagons, and air vehicles such as gliders, as well as mills, furnaces, and irrigation systems.  The current conversation about wind power centers around using wind farms, wind mills, and turbines to convert the energy of wind into electricity.  This is being looked at on national, state and even domestic levels, through the use of residential wind power and home wind turbines.

Why should we consider wind power?

One of the basic laws of physics is that energy is not lost.  Clearly, wind contains huge amounts of energy that is largely unharnessed—and sometimes even destructive.  But what if all that energy could be controlled and converted into a form that people could use on a daily basis, such as electricity?  Doing so efficiently could mean a reduction in our dependence on oil and its volatile market, as well as reduction in our use of other fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas.  Wind does not hurt the environment, it doesn’t have to be dug or refined or shipped.  The only costs associated with converting wind to electricity are the installing of turbines and windmills and the storage of electricity.

How can we use wind power at home?

Wind power is considered a true alternative, or at least a complement, to fossil fuel use in the home.  Hundreds of thousands of homes in the United States and Europe put home wind turbines on their homes.  For a one time cost, domestic wind power can not only make a home more ecologically responsible, it can also lower the cost of all future energy use.  For a home with a home wind turbine, fossil fuel-based electricity becomes a back-up, rather than a primary source of energy.

Some states in the US also offer financial incentives and tax breaks for families who improve their homes and make them more energy efficient and ecologically responsible.  In many cases the tax refund can cover up to 40% of the cost of installing the home wind turbine technology in the first place.  Residential wind power is more feasible with every passing year, with new technologies making home wind turbines more sightly, more efficient, and less expensive.  States and countries with residential wind power incentives often find their total consumption of fossil fuels going down, and their total energy costs going down as well.

Of course, the use of residential wind power and home wind turbines isn’t accepted by everyone.  Some people say that it takes too long to make back the cost of the equipment, or that wind power is too unreliable for any wide spread efficient use.  However, any technology that decreases the use of fossil fuels in the world can only help make the world, the environment, and people’s lives better.

Before getting into the actual insallation of q wind power generator for your home, it is a good idea to do some rough calculations and see if it makes sense economically. Residential wind power will most likely be better for the environment in the long run, but that doesn’t mean you will save money! Running some numbers specific to your situation will give you a much better idea of potential savings and such.

The first thing you need to determine is how much electrical power your home uses (or will use, in the case of new/ different homes). This information can be found on your power bill, for current home owners. It is good to take a yearly average, and seasonal highs or lows may be a concern. If you don’t have access to an electrical bill, you can find information on average household energy uses with an internet search.

Now that you know yoiur electrical needs, you can look for a wind turbine which can meet some or all of those needs, as well as an inverter, battery storage system for your wind turbine, and any other items required. Many of these items will last for years, so even if the cost is high initially it can be averaged over a longer time.

Having a better idea of initial setup costs for your residential wind turbine, you can now weigh the pros and cons of such a system. Is the outlay too high to get into home wind power right now? Do you need to start with a smaller system and add onto it later, or save for a year and buy it then?

It is great to see so many people interested in the greener energy of wind and other renewable resources. Hopefully as time gores on more and more will take advantage of the benefits of residential wind power.