affordability

KB3GZW

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what is the price of a setup? I was loking into it and I never found anything real affordable. I guess its like solar right now. The panels that are produced now are incredibly inefficient and pricey. I would put a small turbine up at my house if I could afford it.
 

coopy

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It depends on the size of the trubine and the KWs you are wanting to use. Go to www.awea.org you might be able to find your answer there.
 
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The new man in town says part of his energy plan is rebates or tax credit for solar and wind. He might make it happen, sounds pretty serious about reducing dependence on oil and fossil fuels. I'm going to wait and see what happens. We live on a hill in Colorado on the high plains. A day without wind is a very unusual day. Like to make it useful.
 

Wifezilla

Low-Carb Queen - RIP: 1963-2021
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I have been looking in to urban wind turbines. It uses more of a helix pattern than the traditional blades. Less noise and can be used in areas with variable wind speeds and directions. I think I might even be able to make one.
 

FarmerChick

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do alot of research before buying. there is tons of things you need to know about kwh etc. and how the power is converted. I looked into this deeply and it is not as fab as one would think for the small homeowner if you need real power.

Also, check permits. If you are putting up a long pole to generate alot of power, many places require permits, etc. etc. And if you have neighbors noise could be a problem etc.

And maintenance and repair is time consuming also.

When I hit the net....and researched big data on homeowner type models, there was more involved then I had thought.

best of luck finding what you are looking for!
 

sylvie

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I wouldn't rush into it yet. Wait to see what incentives will be offered. There have been many promises of green and affordability for the homeowner that haven't been signed into law yet. There may be guidelines that need to be followed and met before you would qualify.

A friend bought a used wind turbine on Ebay. It was a deal for the amount of output it was capable of producing. It had been used in Africa.
He had problems because it was so large that he had additional expense erecting it. He had to modify its tower into sections and raise those individually from poured concrete pylons. Zoning was a complete battle because it needed to go 80' up, despite living in a rural area.
An area alternative energy organization was of tremendous help. They helped him engineer the tower, erect it, appealed to zoning and helped him acquire all the permits, credits, and helped with the paperwork.
I would suggest getting in touch with your area group which is usually affiliated with a college. They can provide you with answers to all your questions.
 

Homesteadmom

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Ever watch Living with Ed? He put a urban wind turbine ontop of his house & it looks like a big whirly gig you put on your roof for ventialtion. Not sure of the costs involved with it but it looked fairly simple to install like a whirly gig. He said it would not power his whole house but it would help reduce his need for the grid even more(he already has solar panels). Check out the website & see if there is more info on the turbines there.
 

dddct

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We have also been interested in wind energy. Farmerchick...did you get a turbine after all your research. Id be interested to know and if you did get one do you like it. I would want one that could give me enough to run my well and fridge and washer. If I got more juice from it that'd be bonus but I would learn to live without lights etc if I had to.
 

Mackay

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If anyonne has found a good source for small windmills please post. We've got so much wind it is stupid not to use it! I hear rebates can be up to 60% these days. Its suppose to be pretty easy to connect it to your meter and run the meter backwards. The power company ends up sending you a check instead of you to them.
 

TanksHill

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Not sure about the turbine or windmill link. But around here when you net meter you never receive any money back. The power company just credits your account. So when your usage goes up its covered.
 
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