If you don’t have a basic understanding of what a wind turbine is then you must have been living under a rock and not noticed all the huge turbine plants popping up all over the country. Wind turbines are one of the most common and effective technologies available today for producing your own electricity for your home. This blog acts as a beginner’s to wind turbines and gives you the options for your own home. Get ready to be transported to a place where it is possible for your home to come off the grid.
Wind power can be used to produce electricity for your home via a wind turbine. The modern day turbine systems can mesh effortlessly with your current electricity supply meaning your current life will not change at all, but you will be using clean, renewable power for free! Now that sounds pretty awesome.
Wind power is typically more cost effective when it comes to energy production. A modern wind turbine can produce several times more energy than their solar counterparts. However there are many different variables you need to consider before you decide wind power is right for you, your family and your home.
Is wind power right for you?
There are many factors that you need to consider when deciding on wind power and some of them may seem ridiculously straightforward. Ask yourself these questions before you make your decision.
a) Is there wind where you live?
This may seem like quite a straightforward question but your wind turbine is not going to be effective if you don’t have enough wind. The best way to decipher if you are situated in a good area via wind maps. Obviously if you are on a hill surrounded by wind farms it is safe to say you are good to go.
b) Does your home have lots of space?
It goes without saying that wind turbines weren’t built to be put right next to your house. Turbine structures aren’t huge but they shouldn’t be placed too close to a building. A wind turbine cannot be placed on a roof or to the side of a building. So you need at least an acre of space to have a wind turbine for your home.
c) Do you have support in your area for wind power?
You will need to check the rules from your local government regarding wind power. It is likely that you may receive opposition from your neighbours and you need to check this before you spend time and money installing a turbine.
If you have answered yes to all of the above questions then you are eligible to start searching for your wind turbines.
Finding the wind turbine for you:
The search for the wind turbine that is right for you and your home can get a little tricky. Follow this advice:
- Energy: What energy demands do you have in your home? Go prepared with your monthly and annual usage in kWh when you seek out your turbine. This piece of information will be very helpful to your advisor. The closer you can match the turbine to your energy needs the better.
- Homework: Make sure you always ask for testimonials or third party data on all turbines that you review. Some manufacturers may inflate the energy produced by their product to make the sale. Be wary of that typical salesman and do some homework before you buy.
- Safety: Make sure you choose a wind turbine that can shut itself off but that can also be over ridden by you. Many small turbines do not have a reliable means to stop the rotor on command so this is a very important perk that you want to ensure you have. You also want to avoid an emergency stop on your wind turbine. Nobody wants to go wading out into the night to stop their turbine in an almighty storm. Remote shut down is ideal.
- Warranty and Life Expectancy: you want to buy a product with annual maintenance. Make sure that if your turbine is top heavy – aka all the components are at the top – that it is tilted slightly. In an ideal world a portion of the components will be at ground level.
- The Grid: Does your turbine have a direct connect system with no inverter? Or is an inverter required to convert the power generated onto the grid? If you have to convert the power you can lose up to 30% of your power.
If you are happy with your turbine choice after considering all of the factors above, then it is time to get the turbines installed!
Have you had wind power installed to provide your home with power? How have you found them so far? How has it affected your bills? Is there much maintenance? Tell us below!
