What You Never Knew About Home Wind Turbine Design
When one thinks of a home wind turbine, what most probably comes to mind is a gigantic tower with jumbo-jet sized spinning blades. But, with everyone becoming more aware of conserving energy, the technology has advanced so much that it is now possible to have your own small-scale wind turbine at home. Even better is the opportunity for us to make our own, without having to rely on the professionals.
How a home wind turbine works
A home wind turbine produces power by moving a small turbine. This turbine is attached to a hub, where 3 or 5 blades are fixed, which in turn is placed at the top a tall tower. To keep the blades spinning, a guidance system or tail is attached to the hub, to keep it facing the wind.
If you do not know what a turbine/motor is or how it works, let me explain. Copper coils spin past magnets, and create an electromagnetic charge. This charge is then sent through wires to the batteries where it is stored. To use that charge in your home it needs to be passed through an inverter that changes the current from direct to alternating current. The reason wind power has become more popular on a small scale, is because of the improvement and efficiency in the design of the turbine.
Depending on your area’s wind conditions, the tower can vary in length. If you live near the sea where it is windy, the tower can be shorter, but in low-wind areas the tower needs to be taller to catch as much wind possible.
The advancement of the blades has also come a long way. They are now, stronger, lighter, and more aerodynamic, helping them to turn in even the softest of winds. Before the improvements, most small turbines had five blades, but now they mainly have only three. And like the tower, the blades come in a variety of sizes, depending on the wind conditions and power needs.
While so far we have been explaining the typical horizontal axis wind turbine, there is another design that is starting to gain popularity for small-scale projects. It is the vertical axis wind turbine or VAWT. Very different to the standard horizontal axis turbine, the VAWT spins on a vertical axis, and almost looks like a waterwheel put on its side. Since the VAWT tends to operate low to ground, it needs far more wind to make it turn efficiently, so it is not the ideal option for homeowners or small businesses. The VAWT has also been accused by ecologists of interrupting and harming various migratory birds, making it less attractive for green enthusiasts.
Things to consider before getting a home wind turbine:
The area of your property
Home wind turbines tend to work better in open areas expanding over an acre, where few nearby buildings can deflect the wind.
What is the average wind speed?
The recommended wind speed should be at least eleven miles per hour, but if that isn’t the case then you may have to use a taller tower and larger blades to catch higher altitude winds.
What else can I use the wind turbine for?
Can you think of other ways to use the wind turbine? For example many farmers still use them as a vital part of their irrigation systems.
Do you suffer from random power cuts?
If you are tired of the unreliable electricity company cutting off your power without warning, then a home wind turbine can really help. Though a small wind turbine is not capable of power your entire property for a long time, the energy can be stored and used during a blackout or whenever it is needed.
Taking the above points into consideration will help you determine how much power you require, the length of tower needed, the diameter of the blades, and the benefits and costs of using a home wind turbine.
The nice thing about technological developments is that the motor are becoming small and lighter. This make it possible to install to a few smaller wind turbine right on the roof, and make a similar amount of power to one larger home wind turbine.
While commercially available wind power kits can cost up to $100,000, you can learn to make your power for a fraction of the cost, with part and materials sourced at home and the nearby hardware outlet. Even better news is that the United States and other countries offer tax relief for green energy homeowners, so not only can you cut your electricity costs, but your tax expenses too.
Forget about using the home made energy guide to make your own power at home! Try the Earth4Energy Instructions for free, and see how you can cut your power costs by up to 80% with your own home wind turbine and solar power.