Wind power 101

Wind power 101
Tags: Going Green, Wind Power
August 10, 2010 - Jason Warnock

A friend of mine recently installed some small “micro” wind generators to supplement power for his rural home. His success and claims of cost savings got me thinking about the possibility of adding something similar to my suburban home.

In order for me to get in on the savings I needed a number of questions answered. How much wind is required to install a wind turbine? How much does it cost? And what types of laws or restrictive covenants are there in regards to installing these turbines in a suburban environment?

The first question appeared easy at first, but is actually more complex that I thought -- do I even get enough wind to make a turbine useful? The minimum operating levels for most wind turbines is roughly 9 mph, but most manufacturers rate the relative energy performance on a more robust standard, usually 24-36 mph. Typically, the highest wind speeds for North America are found along the sea coasts, the Great Plains and ridgelines, but any fairly clear and elevated location such as a hill top will also work. For more specific information, the Department of Energy (DOE) publishes a Wind Powered Atlas of the U.S. which can be found at www.windpoweringamerica.gov.

So now that I have the sufficient wind levels, but how much power do I need to generate and how much does that cost? The American Wind Energy Association (www.awea.org ) estimates that small wind energy systems cost from $3,000 to $5,000 for every kilowatt of generating capacity. Adding the tower and installation to the grid, my estimates were $10,000-$15,000 for a 2kW system. A typical home consumes roughly 10,000 kWh (kilowatt hours) of energy a year or about 830 kWh per month. A 2kW turbine operating in a 14 mph average annual wind speed location could generate enough electricity to off-set 400 kWh per month. Using that logic, I could conceivability reduce my power needs by 50 percent. Definitely more than I expected, and certainly a significant cost savings.

The final question may be the trickiest depending on your location and the jurisdictions and zoning restrictions on wind turbines in your region. When I was doing my research I had heard rumors that wind power was illegal in my town, but what I found was actually more typical of residential zoning guidelines that structures (including wind towers) could not exceed 35 feet in height. Beyond the restrictive legal guidelines I also needed to consider the visual and audio impact the tower might have on my neighbors. I’d also need their consent before building.

Ultimately, the type of turbine I required could not operate within my zoning restrictions, but my search was not totally in vain. Urban and suburbanites like myself can take some solace that new wind turbines for city dwellers are already in use and helical or vertical systems with much shorter towers are not far behind.