Posted: 10/27/2014 8:55:59 PM EDT
| A lot of us have done some work with solar. Has anyone hear tried wind power to store up electricity? What was your experience? |
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/kornflake pissin on
I'll be your huckleberry... Wind power is not cheap... It gets really expensive if there are trees or hills that block the wind. That is why the commercial wind turbine farms are in places where the land is flat and bare. The power generated depends on 2 things; average wind speed, and turbine size. Average wind speed is slower than you think...I think it is about 8mph here and I am where there are wind turbine farms. Turbine size...bigger is better and bigger costs moar. Maintenance costs too...There are some smaller wind turbines on 100 foot towers around here that have not turned a single bit in the last 20 years. These were set up by private individuals in the 1970s oil crunch and have fallen into disrepair since. I am in an area that is great for wind power...within 20 miles there are hundreds of commercial wind turbines...I cannot justify the cost without gov treehugging grant money. If there are no commercial wind farms near you, and you cannot get a green grant, then do not fo. /kornflake pissin off |
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I've played with some home brew PM motor versions. Thus far, it isn't worth it, but I haven't given it a very good try. Around here, when it is sunny, it is still. When it is cloudy it is windy. There is a wind farm about 15 miles from me, but the land is VERY different over there on the other side of the ridge. Over there is flat and nothingness. Here is steeply rolling hills and trees/swamp/lake. There is a guy about 4 miles from me with 2 60 ft turbines. His area is in between our steep terrain and the flat nothingness. You will almost NEVER see both going at the same time: Maintenance issues. One sat for almost 2 years producing nothing after it was installed because of constant problems.
I still want to put up something, hoping to produce around 5-6 hundred watts for charging a battery bank for 12vdc loads or I can use my inverters. |
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I recommend you start small, very small to test the waters; it would also be wise to gather some data on wind speed for your area, to figure out a realistic expectation on power generation. I bought a couple of micro 15 watt turbines and wired them in series, which allows current to be generated in light winds (12-15mph+).
I have this turbine on my camper, it has been up there a couple of years now with no problems. I have it connected to 2 6v golf cart batteries wired in series to 12v also supplemented by three 15 watt solar panels. 
Here is a single 15watter that keeps my boat on a trickle charge, about 25ft up in the air: 
You can build these units cheap, but I bought mine from this guy: http://usawindgen.com/ A couple of years ago I bought build plans for a 200+ watt unit, but have not started on it yet. I have also kept my eye out for a deal (or used) one of these: http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/product_200481463_200481463 
I see these on sailboats in the local Marinas, but for $500 bucks I can have a few of the smaller units that have proven to be successful; although these things might be the ticket if you are in a high wind area if you are trying to build a setup on the cheap. Good luck and let us know what you settle on! |