Homemade Wind Power

[LeoinSA]

Disclaimer right at the beginning - I AM NOT affiliated with the company linked to here.  I'm just an admirer of their ingenuity and dedication to providing instruction on how an average Joe like me (or you) can build a viable wind generator that, combined with the appropriate number of solar panels, storage batteries and associated electronics, can provide all the power you need to live comfortably completely off-grid.  I'm talking enough stored power to light efficient lights, to power efficient refrigerators and freezers and have enough left over to heat water in a well insulated bulk tank.  Water that can be used to heat a house, greenhouse or a hot tub! 

http://www.otherpower.com/ and http://www.otherpower.com/otherpower_wind.shtml

There was a thread here in the last couple days that had some generators mounted on the roof of a square block of a "efficient" house.  Please note the added emphasis in the last line below.

"Building a wind generator from scratch is not THAT difficult of a project. You will need a shop with basic power and hand tools, and some degree of dedication. Large wind generators of 2000 Watts and up are a major project needing very strong construction, but smaller ones in the 700-1000 Watt, 8-11 foot range can be built fairly easily! In fact, we highly recommend that you tackle a smaller wind turbine before even thinking about building a large one. You'll need to be able to cut and weld steel, and a metal lathe can be handy (though you could hire a machine shop that turns brake rotors do do some small steps for you).

In most locations, GENTLE winds (5-15 mph) are the most common, and strong winds are much more rare. As you'll see by examining our latest machines, our philosophy about designing wind turbines is to make large, sturdy machines that produce good power in low wind speeds, and are able to survive high wind events while still producing maximum power. The power available in the wind goes up by a factor of 8 as the wind speed doubles.

Other critical factors are rotor size and tower height. The power a wind turbine can harvest goes up by at least a factor of 4 as you double the rotor size. And making a tower higher gets you above turbulence for better performance and substantially increased power output. Putting a wind turbine on a short tower is like mounting solar panels in the shade!" 

If'n y'all poke around on their site they have (or used to have) a link to a national map of average wind speeds.  Many, although not all states also had a state map that gave a better clue to a specific area and its average wind speeds.  As an example - if memory serves - most of the areas east-south east of I35 here in Texas - with the exception of the very coastal areas - don't have a high enough average wind speed to make installation of a tall tower and homemade generator financially viable.  That said, most areas west of I35, including the panhandle, do have enough wind to make some sort of a generator installation a viable project.

Finally, the thing that impresses me about the folks at OtherPower is they seem to be just like the most of us that frequent this forum - that is down-to-earth common sense people that want to help.  Take the time to check out the scads of info on their site and I think you'll come away as impressed as I am.

Leo

[glenn kangiser]

I have spent a bit of time there in the past and found lots of good info.  Need to spend some more there someday.

I have a Bergey xl1 1000 watt wind generator at 85' up.  100 would have been better - wind around 100 feet is about 3 times or mare that on the ground.  Clear all trees etc by at least 30 feet.

Some areas that are not shown to be good can still provide decent wind deopending on your micro-climates which they do not indicate on maps.

I am gathering stuff to some day build my own.  I hear my generator making power right now - something the solar cannot do.  Wind is a great assist at night and in stormy weather.

[Squirl]

I have spent much time at their site.  They have great descriptions of the calculations.  They have good tower descriptions too.  I would say it would be a complete destination for wind power knowledge if they had some of the physics or engineering calculations for towers on their site in addition to the ones for wind turbines. These guys are some of the premier writers for the home wind power movement.  You can frequently read their articles in Home Power magazine.

[LeoinSA]

Some years ago I had a retirement dream of buying a boat and spending my active post-work years lounging in some tropical paradise with a bikini clad lady lounging next to me and with both of us having a paper umbrella festooned drink at hand.

Hmmm...  With the medical issues I've experienced it doesn't appear this particular dream is any closer to reality than it was a decade ago.  Shame that.

Regardless - In my initial post above I made mention of "efficient" lights and refrigeration.  Sailing yachts that are not dependent on generators must have low electrical demands that can be met by small wind generators and a limited number of solar panels.  This translates into ultra-efficient low power use equipment.

Once again, I am not affiliated with either of these companies other than being an admirer of their products and reputation.

For efficient LED lights try http://www.bebi-electronics.com/ . I like the idea that they're providing employment way out in the middle of nowhere Pacific Ocean without contributing to local pollution and disturbing local village life for the island natives.  Yeah, y'all might take issue with that, but to my mind the less we crap in our collective nest the better off we all are.

Sorta the same thing with this refrigeration - http://www.mexicolder.com/ . The deal here is to build a super-insulated box.  Perhaps, depending on your local climate and average summertime temps, up to 8" of  high-density insulation.  With the unit properly installed in such a box it will provide both a freezer section and a refer section.  See the 'FAQ' section here http://www.mexicolder.com/more_info.html for more complete explanations.

If'n y'all wanna see a rebuild of a refer box, try here http://www.wbryant.com/StellaBoat/Projects/galley/fridge/index.htm for an excellent description.

That said, here's a fella that took a plain 'ol chest freezer and turned it into a refer - http://ecorenovator.org/diy-superefficient-fridge-1-kwh-day/ .  Hard to imaging the compressor only running 90 seconds per hour!  It's certainly a thought provoking article.

So... that's the entirety of my noon-time thoughts on this bright and sunny Friday.  19 minutes till go home time!

Leo

[peternap]

They have a good site and good information. They also have some of the snottiest, most anal and irritating people I've ever come across.
I always feel for the noobs that get hammered by some of the self proclaimed experts.

[Windpower]

I definitely agree with your accessment of OP and some of the people there Peter

I was once suspended for a week for the crime of starting too many forum posts in one day ( 3 IIRC)

I saw Dan Bartman and Dan Fink at the midwest renewable energy fair (MWRE) they were 'colorful' to say the least

there was an interesting exchange in the Q&A after the talk

A man asked a very detailed question about the aerodynamics of their blade design (way over my head --and I am a pilot) -- Dan started to dismiss the guy's comments as irrelevent but the follow up questions were interesting to say the least -- I think they were both impressed with the in depth knowledge of the other  -- they guy in the audience sounded like an aeronautical engineer to me but Dan held his own.

That said both Dans seem to have a chip on their shoulders -- but they know their stuff

[Squirl]

I had the same experience.  Great information on the site.  Although, the site steers you more towards buying things than it used to.  They are not very friendly on the forums though.