A Wind Turbine Recipe Book
 | A Wind Turbine Recipe Book (Jan 2009 English Units edition)
This is the latest edition of Mr. Piggott's 'axial flux windmill plans' as used in the courses he teaches worldwide. The Recipe Book replaces his older plans 'How to Build a Wind Turbine' (2005).
The Recipe Book is a much better structured document than the older 2005 plans. Rather than evolving 'organically' it is carefully planned to include six different sizes of turbines. Each section offers general advice combined with specific d | |
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Your Questions About Wind Generators Alaska
Chris asks…
If it is dark in Alaska half the year, what about solar items?
Do items such as solar calculators and such still work? Yes I know you can just go inside and turn on the lights.
admin answers:
Little solar items like watches and calculators work like anywhere else – fine indoors and fine outdoors dawn to dusk. And they don’t work outdoors at night (the northern lights can get bright enough to cast a shadow but never bright enough to power a solar cell.) Just the nights are longer in Alaska.
Note that where most all Alaskans live (Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau, etc), there is always daytime and nighttime throughout the year. Very short days in winter and very long in summer (5.5 hours in Dec, 19.5 hours in June where i live in Kenai), but you have to be north of the Arctic Circle (like Prudhoe Bay or the town of Barrow) to have weeks or months without any sun.
In those locations, various solar installations wouldn’t work – power for remote highway phones, radio repeater sites, weather stations, railroad switching gates, etc (not that the Alaskan Railroad goes north of Fairbanks). Such off-the-grid uses would require wind power or a fuel-powered, auto-start generator.
Both solar-generated electricity and solar heating are tough up here. When you need it (winter), we’ve got only a few hours of low-angle sun. When you’ve got it (summer), you don’t use much electricity nor need much heat. Since you need to be on-the-grid or have a generator anyway, the advantages of solar rarely emerge.
I have seen an Aaskan Railroad switching gate just south of Denali National Park with a huge array of PV solar panels for power. At 11 pm, the sun was shining almost directly at the BACK of the panels. Looked all wrong, but they were installed correctly. And sized large for winter use.
Linda asks…
How to people have electricity in remote places? ?
I was reading someone’s web page who had built a cabin in a remote part of Alaska. They had to have an outhouse, no running water, etc. But then they showed pictures of the inside when it was finished and it looked like there were lights lighting up the place….so how could that be possible in this situation? A generator? or what? Thanks for any ideas!
admin answers:
We lived ‘off the grid’ for years before power was brought out to our more remote area in Alaska. You can run a generator (gas or diesel) for basic power needs. Generators come in all sizes depending on your power needs. Or have inverter that allows you to use the power stores of batteries, which will need to be recharged with a generator, wind, or alternative means.
If it is just lights you can easily install propane lights in a cabin that work quite nicely. A a propane stove and propane refrigerator, and you are all set.
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ALEKO WG3KW 3KW 3000 Watt Residential Wind Generator Wind Turbine
 | Use wind energy to generate electricity and charge into storage battery group. Through the multi-voltages power supply system, the electricity can be changed into DC and AC used for illumination, home appliances, communication devices and electric tools. This unit includes blades, blades rotor, rotor, permanent magnet generator, tail vane and hardware. | |
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Solar Panel Starter Kit 100W Monocrystalline:100W Solar Panel UL 1703 Listed+2 20′ Solar cables+PWM 30A Charge Controller+ Uniquely Designed Z Bracket Mounts
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Sunforce 45444 600W Wind Turbine
 | Ideal for backup and off-grid power, The Sunforce 600W Wind Turbine will generate power day and night! Charging 12V and 24V battery banks, this turbine is constructed with aerodynamic fiberglass blades to ensure low wind noise. A weatherproof industrial strength design makes for do-it-yourself, maintenance-free installation. For safe and efficient charging, the turbine is accompanied with a Maximum Power Point Tracking Charge Controller that maximizes power output for optimal charging capability | |
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Your Questions About Wind Turbine Technician Jobs
Sharon asks…
what industry has more growing jobs and is growing faster?? wind turbines or solar panels?
I wanted to get training as a wind turbine technician but i’m wondering if maybe a job in solar panels is a better choice. And I live in southern california.
admin answers:
Firstly, your very lucky there in california as either way would actually be pretty good.
Solar will be bigger than wind for many years to come as there are many more companies investing in solar panels as they require a lot less maintenance. This could be a good reason to go into wind, More money, less work. Being in california you may have enough work either way. Maybe do both? Might sound weird but there are many companies employing people that know about both. Solar companies that want to expand into wind but cant afford 2 experts might want a join expert.
Linda asks…
What are some high paying jobs with dangerous aspects? (Fearsome aspects, fear, potential danger, etc)?
Long ago I discovered the job “Wind Turbine technician“, which basically involves greasing the turbines and perform regular maintainence while receiving 14-25 dollars an hour. The job doesn’t seem too rigerous, but the fact is that these technicians operate from a terrifying hight which intimidated the reporter interviewing the technician. Obviously the job requires additional education, but even with that aspect there isn’t any availability in my state.
I’m not sure what the term is for these types of jobs, but it seems very appealing to me
admin answers:
Dangerous jobs include working on our power-line workers, crab fishing, timber cutter (lumberjack), structural metal workers, farmers and ranchers, miners, roofers, truck drivers, and fishermen. This is a list of careers that record the most fatalities annually and they all pay more than average because of that.
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ALEKO WG3KW 3000W 3KW Watt Residential-Commercial Wind Generator Wind Turbine
 | Use wind energy to generate electricity and charge into storage battery group. Through the multi-voltages power supply system, the electricity can be changed into DC and AC used for illumination, home appliances, communication devices and electric tools. This unit includes blades, blades rotor, rotor, permanent magnet generator, tail vane and hardware. | |
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Your Questions About Wind Turbine Generators Types
Donald asks…
what are different types of wind generators?
i am looking forward all kinds of generators which can be used in wind turbine(wind farms).
i search about real types and industrial of generators, not mankinds or labratoars ones.
thank you
admin answers:
Induction generators are used for stand alone systems, synchrounous generators could be used as well.
Susan asks…
How would you calculate the theoretical power output of a Savonius wind turbine?
I built a small scale Savonius style wind turbine for a project. I can easily measure the power it puts out in a wind tunnel using a wattmeter, but how would I calculate the theoretical maximum power output? I want to use these two values to find the turbine‘s efficiency. Thanks!
admin answers:
Hey Drew, Gatorbait is on the right track, but the formulas in Mr. Voneshen’s publication cannot be used for a savonius turbine.
First, the actual formula originally derived by Albert Betz was this:
P = .5 X rho X A X V^3
P is power in watts
rho is the air density in kg / cubic meter
A is the swept area in square meters
V is the velocity in m/s, which is cubed to get the final power.
This is the actual formula to find theoretical power available in a moving column of air. There are lots of hybrid formulas, such as the one Gatorbait references. Mr. Voneschen’s instructions use one that takes air density at sea level times one half, then converts it to a constant to adjust for the fact that he is using Diameter instead of swept Area. That’s fine, as long as you are using a horizontal turbine. With a vertical, or savonius, the diameter means nothing, because the area can be changed dramatically with a taller or shorter barrel. It is the area of the rotor that the wind sees that must be used for power calculations. Once Mr. Voneschen finishes his discussion, showing a diagram of a horizontal turbine, he then goes on to show you how to build a vertical one, so the hybrid formula no longer applies.
The other problem is the efficiency he is using. The best modern turbines that science can build today run in the 25 to 35 % efficiency range, and they are all horizontal. Albert Betz correctly calculated that the best ideal efficiency any turbine could ever reach is a theoretical limit of 59%. The horizontal types have horrible efficiencies, generally in the 5 to 8 % range. The reason for this is that most of the torque developed by the downwind blade is used to push the upwind blade back into positon, so very little is left to actually push the generator. It is this reason that no commercial applications of these devices are built today. I think Savonius rotors are neat, as do most of creation, but besides turning a wind chime in the garden, or running a small pond pump, they can’t really do anything for us. In Mr. Voneschen’s instructions, he is using 50% as the “rough” efficiency of the home made barrel rotor. Even the very best horizontal units today do not come close to this level of efficiency, a good quality well engineered savonius rotor won’t be within one tenth of this level.
We’ve been powering our home for 11 years now with the wind and sun, and the last 5 years or so I’ve been teaching renewable energy seminars in the local schools. In my experience, there are two things in vast supply when you get into wind power, wind, and missinformation. My suggestion is to go to the source and don’t waste your time asking questions to hacks like me online. When your turbine is finished, if you can get it to run well in a wind tunnel, get some good watt readings, then go to the American Wind Energy Associations website and do your calculations for theoretical power available, and it will be simple math to come up with your efficiency. Don’t be dissapointed by the results, if you can reach 3 or 4 %, you’re doing really well. Take care Drew, Rudydoo
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ALEKO® WG450A 450 Watt 12 Volt Residential Wind Turbine Generator
 | ALEKO WG450A 450 Watt generator is 12 volt model. Fresh 2013 Version just shipped from the factory. This is the latest design with 5 blades. This item is new in the factory unopened box. Comes with instruction manual and all warranty information (1 year warranty from the purchase date). | |
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Your Questions About Wind Generators For Sale
Sandra asks…
What type of power inverter should I get for home use?
I would like to have a power source I can use when the power goes out for a couple of hours. I would just want to use a lamp, a cable modem, maybe a fan. Nothing which would draw a lot. I am looking for an alternative to a gas-powered generator. Are there power inverters available that you can keep plugged in so a battery stays charged? And when the power goes out, you pull it out and use it. It would need to have a standard outlet you can plug into. I do not want a power inverter that plugs into the car cigarette lighter. I think I saw such a device at Staples, but I’m having a hard time finding devices for sale on the internet.
admin answers:
A UPS would do what you want and would automatically switch online so you wouldn’t lose power to the devices. Check the manufacturers specs for run time at various loads to help determine which size would work best.
I have a pair of very large storage batteries which are kept charged with a 28VDC power supply. They power a 1kW sine wave inverter which powers the outlets in my bedroom. During a power outage there is no change to whatever is plugged in. I can watch TV, clock radios do not start flashing. In the event of the batteries draining, the circuit will automatically revert back to normal AC power.
There are some pictures and other information on my web page.
Http://members.rennlist.org/warren/wind.html
Susan asks…
Detailed information on the Hush wind generator?
It is an Australian invention and should be released for sale soon.
admin answers:
Haven’t heard about it, but sounds like I would want one.
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GudCraft 900W 900 Watt 24 Volt Wind Turbine Residential Wind Generator
 | GudCraft 900W Wind Generator is 900W 24 volt model with 3 blades. Fresh 2012 version just shipped from the factory. This is the latest design model. This item is new in the factory unopened box. Comes with instruction manual and 1-year warranty from purchase date. | |
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LEGO City Limited Edition Set #7747 Wind Turbine Transport
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Your Questions About Wind Turbine Syndrome
Carol asks…
After seeing videos like these, do you still think more wind turbines are a good idea?
Or are they still good until they are brought into your own neighborhood?
Headaches, dizziness and nausea cause by the unnatural “flicker effect” of the giant shadows cast by the giant turbine propellers:
People being forced out of their homes because of health health problems cause by “wind turbine syndrome” caused by the flickering, EMF energy pollution emitted, noise, and vibrations.
Maybe I’m more sensitive than some, but even seeing videos of wind tubines spinning and causing blinking lights makes me sick.
admin answers:
The flicker effect is annoying. Maybe the agw socialist hippies would like to live in the shadows of wind turbines because they’re a bit like disco strobe-lights. They’re already dizzy and nauseous in promoting global warming.
Seriously, wind turbines have a role to play in isolated areas where generating power is a problem. But they’re expansive, expensive, ugly on any landscape, noisy and only work when there’s enough wind to make them turn. The idea of building them to power large communities is scary, and now apparently they lead to health problems. My opinion is to use them only where other power sources aren’t practical/possible.
Jenny asks…
After seeing videos like these, do you still think more wind turbines are a good idea?
Or are they still good until they are brought into your own neighborhood?
Headaches, dizziness and nausea cause by the unnatural “flicker effect” of the giant shadows cast by the giant turbine propellers:
People being forced out of their homes because of health health problems cause by “wind turbine syndrome” caused by the flickering, EMF energy pollution emitted, noise, and vibrations.
I’ve seen a lot of electrical plants and I would rather live near one of those if I had to choose. Seeing these giant EMF towers with their spinning propellers makes me sick, don’t they make you sick too?
It Girl: I agree–when you look at them they stand out as not belonging there. As being unhealthy and unnatural.
piegowdealer: The third video is in the US–Oregon.
And I’m not against clean energy at all–I still think electric cars are a good idea. I just think fake “clean energy” schemes/scams are bad ideas and bad for our health.
admin answers:
Hmm…strange, because we have wind farms where I am and I have not heard of this. At all. I have not felt massive vibrations, I have never seen shadows that large cast anywhere near residential housing, and I know of no animals who have suffered dangerous reactions to the stimuli. I have never experienced hearing much noise from them either. It isn’t like you can compare a wind farm with an international airport, a train station, a bus depot, a nuclear energy plant, an oil rig, a coal processing plant, a shooting range, a major waterway, a large city (more than a million), barges, lock and dams, a major grain plant, rendering plant, hog or chicken farm, or distillery (they all smell to high heaven) or even a military base where they set off ammunition–all of these are way worse (trust me–I have lived near all of these items at some time or another in my life).
If you do not trust my accute assessment (since I am not a scientist or an energy advocate of any kind), then try reading up on the views of wind energy from communities that have lived with it for many years. You will find that the level of satisfaction in this method of energy production is superior to that of energy created by other methods. Not everything you see on youtube can be trusted as comnplete fact–if you believe everything you see on there, then I would be worried. As for them not being attractive…well, not everything can be aesthetically pleasing, now can it. If you can’t seem to live near it, then move–people do it every day, especially when they live near noisy or obstructive things (airports are a great example). Otherwise, get over it–unless we want to spend billions of dollars in solar panels, or geo-thermal energy systems, this is one of the cleanest energy solutions we have available.
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CafePress Wind turbines – Large Landscape Pet Tag – Standard Silver [Misc.]
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Your Questions About Wind Turbine Generators Wiki
James asks…
How much longer are we going to put up with these stupid wind turbines?
Recent research has proved that the power that these hideous contraptions put out is unbelievably puny and that they are monstrously inefficient. When are the wind energy plant kissers going to admit that they have been conned?
admin answers:
They’re not bad. Research makes them better all the time, and they’re getting steadily more important. So many people don’t agree that they’re bad.
“At the end of 2006, worldwide capacity of wind-powered generators was 74,223 megawatts; although it currently produces less than 1% of world-wide electricity use, it accounts for approximately 20% of electricity use in Denmark, 9% in Spain, and 7% in Germany. Globally, wind power generation more than quadrupled between 2000 and 2006.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_power
They’re one important tool in fighting against global warming. They’re not going away any time soon.
George asks…
what are the necessary parts to build a small wind turbine?
what parts are required?
is a gearbox needed and what is the price range of everything since i don’t want to just buy a complete system, finally where are the parts available for purchase?
admin answers:
If you actually want to use it for anything serious, you are better off to buy a small wind turbine for a few hundred $ than to try to build one yourself. Prices on small win turbine generators have come down over the years.
If on the other hand, you just want a simple demonstration device, all you need is a generator with a shaft of adequate length, a fan assembly to bolt to it, a post to mount it on, output leads and some bits of hardware. This will produce a varying and uncertain voltage……
BUT…………..
You can then gussy it up with a wind vane and a pivot and add control electronics and you may well end up with something usable.
Here are two sites to help you go that route:
http://greenterrafirma.com/DIY_Wind_Turbine.html
http://www.mdpub.com/Wind_Turbine/
http://en.howtopedia.org/wiki/How_to_Build_a_Small_Wind_Turbine
Have fun!
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Your Questions About Wind Generators Cost
Charles asks…
What size and cost for windmill power for school needed?
My school is trying to get an energy saving wind generator to help make it “green.” Our physics class is working on the cost / size issue, and I would like to know an estimate for both. I have been researching and according to my teacher our school uses 100,000 KWh each month.
admin answers:
There are two options here.
1) Install a wind turbine to meet the building’s maximum demand. This allows the school to “disconnect” from the grid.
2) Install a wind turbine that reduces the school’s carbon footprint by producing enough kWh to offset all the electric energy used by the school.
I suspect your teacher is interested in option # 2, since all you were given is the energy usage of 100,000 kWh per month.
The average wind turbine only produces about 25 to 30% of its rated power (RP). A really good location might get up to 40%. This value is referred to as the Rough Capacity Factor or RCF. I will assume your location has wind conditions that will result in an RCP of 30%
RP x RCF x 24 hours x 30 days = 100,000 kWh.
Solve for Rated Capacity:
RP = 100,000 kWh ÷ (RCF x 24 x 30)
RP = 100,000 kWh ÷ (.30 x 24 x 30)
RP = 100,000 kWh ÷ 216 hours = 462 kW.
Round this up to 500 kW.
Assuming an average cost of $3000 per kW, a 500 kW wind turbine is going to cost you about $1.5M before tax incentives and other credits.
Daniel asks…
what are the components needed in order to make both: a solar-panel and the system to apply it to daily use?
I heard on an add (trying to be VERY persuasive for me to get the guide) that building solar panels, wind generators and the system to put them to use, is easy and much cheaper than getting the set and it implemented by specialist, but the guide cost $50 so i cant be bothered, but i would still be interested in learning more about it for free! So anyone got the know how?
admin answers:
Well, you can’t make a solar panel. Unless what they were talking about was buying solar cells (those small 1″x1.5″ cells) and soldering them all up together to make a panel. Then buying or making an aluminum frame and putting a low iron glass sheet over it. Then wiring up the diodes for the panel you just made. I guess it would be cheaper if you don’t count the hours of labor you would have to put into it to make one panel. Oh also, you would need an inverter to convert it to AC. Some people just buy broken solar cells which cost next to nothing and make a panel out of that.
As far as the wind generators? I guess it would be far less time consuming than the solar panels and that might be worth doing but you will still need an inverter. They are actually pretty handy for camping, I made one that gave out 24v at max with a voltage regulator. The only problem with that is that you’re going to need more than one and they need to be bigger. Plus you need a healthy amount of wind. They are just trying to make a quick buck, this isn’t something practical really.
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