Successful Results With a Home Wind Turbine?

Answer 1

There has been quite a bit of discussion online about the idea of putting up your own windmill. More properly known as “wind turbines,” these are wind-driven turbines that generate electricity. A wind turbine can, if the conditions are right, produce enough electricity to completely cut out the utility company. Considering that, it’s no wonder these devices are getting a lot of attention.

Wind turbines come in all sorts of sizes. On the extreme large end, there are humongous ones with blades as long as a football field. Needless to say, this isn’t something that’s going to be erected in someone’s back yard. Instead, these huge versions are used by municipalities, which hope to generate far more power than a single house would ever use.

At the single-home scale, the blades of a wind turbine can still reach 15 or 20 feet. This, in turn, necessitates a tall and sturdy stand for the blade apparatus. Combined, this means that they are best suited for rural areas where the sight of such a structure won’t disturb the neighbors. Theoretically, they could also be installed on roofs in more populated areas, but it is likely that the local zoning board wouldn’t approve; plus, the roof would have to be strong enough to hold it. Therefore, solar panels are likely the better bet for urban or suburban locations.

Provided there is enough room for the wind turbine, the next consideration is how much wind the piece of land actually gets. The higher the windmill part can be placed, the better: those who are lucky enough to live on an embankment or high hilltop have the perfect geography. On flat land, the height issue must be solved by making the tower taller, which in turn means that it will need better reinforcement to keep it from falling down.

Once the location is selected, actually assembling a home wind turbine isn’t that hard. Simple plans are easy to find online and are available for immediate download. In a weekend or so, a handy homeowner and some helpers can have their own electricity-generating wind turbine up and running to provide free electricity from then on.