Setting Up A Wind Turbine

When debating whether or not to get a wind power generator for your home or business, you should consider what you’re trying to accomplish with it, first and foremost. Wind power alone is not enough power to run most households. One can expect anywhere from 1-5kW from common types of commercially available wind turbines for power generation.

The wind speed at your location has a great deal to do with the amount of energy you’ll be capable of generating. Just a few miles an hour in average wind velocity and you’ll have a very different potential capacity. However, the higher off the ground your generator is, the more effort you need to put into the mast you mount it upon. It is always a good idea to check local codes and neighbourhood sentiment regarding a tower.

Because the winds even just a little aloft are so very often higher then those at surface level or even right at the tip of your roof, generators are almost always mounted upon a mast. In higher end systems, designed to facilitate easy maintenance or in very high wind environments, the mast will be freestanding and retractable. This is especially helpful so you can take your wind power generator down when storms gusts can damage it.

If you want to live off the grid or run a piece of power intensive machinery, you’ll need to supplement with multiple wind generators or to use it in combination with solar or water power. Most people that live off-grid use ultra-high efficiency appliances and take extra care to moderate their power use.

For most homeowners, however, the best solution is to use renewable power such as wind generated current with a grid tie inverter. This allows you to use the wind power you generate to supplement that from the power company. In states that allow net metering (most of the Western states and provinces do), you can even sell the extra power you generate back to the utility.

Wind power is especially useful because some states require power produced at peak times to be sold back to the power company at peak rates. These hours very often occur at night during much of the year, so wind power may generate you premium rates.

Once you’ve chosen a wind turbine that suits your energy and aesthetic needs, you can concentrate on actually mounting and raising it. Often when you buy a kit, all the basic pieces will be included with instructions and mounting hardware. This should include some sort of lightning rod and grounding as well as sufficient support – even stabilizing guy wires if it’s tall enough.

Wind generators made today are very quiet and light. Make sure you get a quiet one for a residential area that can be mounted on a inconspicuous mast.