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Last week we talked more about How to build your own solar power system , If you haven’t read it yet, go back and take a look! This week I will be explaining how Wind power work’s and how you can get started on setting up your wind power system today!
What is Wind Power?
Wind power is the energy generated from Wind Turbines that get its power to spin from the wind! If you have ever been through Oklahoma, South and West of OKC, you will definitely pass a few different Wind farm’s. There are many other states to where you can find them, I’ve seen them in about 8 or 9 different states so far. If you live in an area where there is a lot of
sustainable wind’s, then chances are, you’ll be seeing a Wind farm in your area in the future.
How do I generate my own Wind Power?
First you’ll need a Wind Turbine and motor, a Mast to mount it on, a charge controller to properly charge your batteries, battery bank and an inverter. You will want to check your local wind history, Some require 15+ MPH wind to start charging your battery bank. Some will need more wind, and other’s less wind. If you look online you can buy a variety of wind turbine’s. There are some with blade’s that spin vertically and some that spin horizontally.
A Turbine like this 400-Watt Wind Turbine Power Generator for 12-Volt systems can start charging your system with as little as wind speed as 7 MPH, at 28 MPH you will get up to the full 400-Watt’s. At just over a dollar per Watt, it is priced cheap. Other brands will be a bit more, but if you are looking to get the cheapest possible, this is it. With any wind turbine, you will have to worry about maintenance since there are moving part’s, but it can be a supplement for your solar power.
Just like with Solar energy, you will need to determine how much energy you will be using. Since wind isn’t always blowing, just like the sun isn’t always shining, so you will need to know how much energy you will need to have stored for when the Turbine isn’t generating enough energy to charge or recharge your battery bank.
Can I rely on Wind Power alone?
That all depends on how much power you are planning on using. If you don’t use very much energy, and have a great battery bank to store a lot of power, then you might be able too. But if the wind’s die down for an extended period of time, you wont be able to recharge your batteries. I suggest going with
Solar as well, to make sure you have different capabilities for acquiring energy. If you have a creek or river running through your property, you could also look into Water energy. But with that, there are some places that will restrict you from doing so, You might have to get a Permit to use water energy. I will talk more about steps to take in order to start using water flow to gain energy next week.
Can I build my own Wind turbine?
Yes, you can build your own Wind Turbine, there are many video’s on YouTube that I have found that show you step by step on how to get the part’s to put together your own system. You will need to make sure you are able to produce enough energy if you are using wind power alone. Different motors will produce a variety of Wattage output’s, be sure to look at the specifications to make sure it will work for you.
How do I check for restrictions on Wind Turbine?
There are a lot of HOA restrictions as well as city ordinance restriction’s for folk’s wanting to put up a Wind Turbine. If you live within a HOA (Home Owners Association) You will need to check with them to make sure it is allowed. There could also be covenant’s made for your area, these are different from HOA and city ordinance’s, so that make’s them harder to find out about.
They are usually on you Deed, but that isn’t always the case. They are usually associated with housing development’s, but they can be used anywhere. You can check with your neighbor’s to see if they have any problem’s with it or know of any restrictive covenants in your area.
With City ordinance restriction’s, you can call your local Code enforcement office and talk with them about your plan’s. They can determine if there are restriction’s that will hinder your plan’s. If you live out in country, there still might be restriction’s and permit’s that you might need to acquire before putting up a Wind Turbine. Check with the County to Make sure there are no issue’s.
If you are looking to go with wind power for homes, the concept is pretty well the same as solar, the major difference is that you will need a Turbine and motor to generate the power. You would still need a charge controller, battery bank a power inverter. I was able to find more information about batteries, I will be adding another part to this series just for that. These batteries do cost more, but they last 3 to 5 times as long as FLA batteries and you are able to use more of the battery itself.