I have interest in putting a wind turbine on my new property. The down falls are: I dont know much about them and they sound real expensive.
I would like to sell power back to the power company but is the cost of a wind turbine ever going to pay for its self??
Travis
There certainly is the possibility of it paying for itself if you take advantage of government programs, some of which will pay up to 70% of the installation costs. At this point I haven't researched it much myself, as every nickle I can store away right now will go into the log home I have plans for in the not-to-distant future. But put the old hound nose to the ground, and I'm sure you'll sniff out some positive information you are seeking.
I was listening to a radio show a few weeks back talking with an installer basically he was saying that to run a "complete" home with every day ammineties it runs around $25,000 -$35,000 for an install of course he was stressing that it could be cheaper if you use only the basic "life support" things he included most appliances not to mention the maintenance ( battery) which is getting better with technology improvements, He also said you could get in for as little as about $5,000 for like a water heater and a couple of lights, as for me in lue of the prices I will put my money into my house until I move to a more remote location like Alaska.
Thanks guys for the info.
I think I will pass with those kind of prices.
I am going to look into a tankless water heater to save propane. Any experience with them?
Some discussion here..
http://www.loghomebuilders.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=789
A few years back Up at EAA Arlington I taught a class on subsonic
aircraft design. I was always told that an airfoil driven by the wind
is much different from an airfoil that drives the wind. Hmmm...
some recent research apparently show they have a lot in common.
So far, this is what I have for a small eight bladed turbine driving
an aircompressor.
1. The compressor stroke is short...very short about 3/4"
2. I'll need some very large storage tanks for the compressed air.
3. The air must be released in a cascade system.
4. The airfoil is NACA 4424
5. The angle of attack is 9 degrees
6. Each blade is 120"
7. The root chord is 17"
8. Tip chord is about 12 1/2"
Best to run the Reynolds numbers. Sounds complicated but it's
actually very simple. The very best reference I have ever found
is RC Model Aircraft Design by Andy Lennon.
Hope this helps a little, but hey, these are my answers. Might be
best to do a little study before you start cutting foam and laying 'glas.
-Rick
I was in a hurry to get the information posted before I timed out.
Should have also mentioned:
*Wash out is somewhere between 2 - 3 degrees
* NACA 4424 has a "semi" gentle stall break
* This will run in a gentle wind but about 4 mph or more is beneficial.
* The compressor is mounted on the turbine
* The compressor is Goodyear HTD or serpentine belt reduction drive.
* The compressor is about 3/4 - 1 cubic inch/stroke
Seems like a big fan to get a maximum of 1/2" per revolution, (just
how many cubic inches are in a big propane cylinder??) but this allows
for air to be compressed in a slight breeze. If you have higher velocities,
and consistent wind then the drive ratios can be changed. YMMV.
Remember, I need to have air...any air in my tank, and the compressor
will be driving a tank up to 200#. I also have very little wind where I
am situated. The good news is that modifications are easy. Change
the ratios, and if you have enough wind, add a second compressor.
A few miles away is a metal recycler. There are some propane tanks
that are about 4' x 24'. Now those at 200# would keep my sander
running for a few minutes!
-Rick
Hummm... I replied to this yesterday and it seems to have disappeared. :?:
Doh! :shock: The link I gave yesterday just lost their domain name. Here's one from the Popular Mechanics web site.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/technology_watch/1288371.html
Jeff
Here's another different type of windmill I just ran across.
http://www.windwandler.de/eng/index.html
Ponyboy,
I've been looking into wind turbines also since I'm worried that solar power and a passive solar design won't be of much benefit on overcast winter days. In NC the average wind speed is 8mph at ground level, which is far too slow for most systems. I was excited when I saw the roof-mount on that site, but then I did the math... 8mph is only 4 m/sec which only yields 18 watts according to their charts. What can you do with 18 watts? Then I started looking into other roof mounted wind turbines and found out that sound and vibration are serious problems that have to be dealt with, so mounting more than one wind generator on your roof probably wouldn't be a good solution either. I don't know. It's hard to let go of the idea of a wind-turbine, so I might eventually end up building one myself and placing it on a tall pole-mount (80 feet+) but it won't be a high priority since I doubt I'll get much of a return on that investment. Even with that cool looking "Windwandler" design I don't think a roof-mount turbine would be practical for anyone unless they lived somewhere where it is very windy. (Ahem - Kansas...)
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