I think if I were to build an alternative-energy system to provide electricity for my home, I would want to combine several methods together with the aim of creating a varied and constant source of power - for example, solar panels, wind power, and a water wheel (if I were lucky enough to have a small river nearby) all feeding into a bank of batteries for storage, and then powering the house. That said, how feasible is wind power for someone like me? Is it reasonable - and cost effective - to build or purchase some sort of windmill that would generate an amount of electricity that would be worth storing? Does a windmill have to be 100' tall and blot out the sun? Would it take 100 years of use to recoup the cost in power savings? All this assumes that I live in an area where I have a good amount of wind, and not a lot of neighbors to complain. :D