Home Power Generation

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Sidestep

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#1204427 27-Dec-2014 10:45

LesF: I'm no expert (still just a casual browser on the subject, thinking about experimenting with it someday) but am I right in saying you probably don't want to attach this sort of thing to your house because of vibration noise it will cause? Advice I have seen suggests you want a free standing pole or maybe a on a building other than a dwelling. This may not apply to a quiet commercially built turbine, I'm thinking 'experimental' designs may be an issue tho.

Our homebuilt ones were not quiet or vibration free.

We live in a high wind area.

They both eventually self destructed, throwing blades off (one went 20m+)

That's just one of the reasons I'd only put in a commercial type, tested & rated one now.

A turbine large enough to provide any decent power is too large to safely attach to your house.
There's a surprising amount of tension on the upwind guy wires of a freestanding tower.

We're very rural - but the tower height required to reach clean air ran us into resource consent issues.
You'll need to check with your local council.

Niel

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#1204572 27-Dec-2014 17:01

He did say he wants to play with it, and not generate serious power.

You can never have enough Volvos!

MichaelNZ

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#1204573 27-Dec-2014 17:04

Niel: He did say he wants to play with it, and not generate serious power.

I suggested a way he could 'play with it'. There really isn't any cheaper or easier options with wind. It's either do it properly (even if using budget hardware) or not at all.

WFH Linux Systems and Networks Engineer in the Internet industry | Specialising in Mikrotik | APNIC member | Open to job offers

richms

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#1204575 27-Dec-2014 17:27

The biggest hassle with both solar and wind is mounting the equipment. Panels are so cheap now that they aren't the most expensive part if you are only doing a few 100 watts. Same for a small wind generator. The pole and concrete and support wires will cost more to get done than what's on top.

Richard rich.ms

MichaelNZ

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#1204582 27-Dec-2014 17:50

richms: The biggest hassle with both solar and wind is mounting the equipment. Panels are so cheap now that they aren't the most expensive part if you are only doing a few 100 watts. Same for a small wind generator. The pole and concrete and support wires will cost more to get done than what's on top.

+1

Allow about $150 per 200W panel for roof mounting. Ground mount even more.

WFH Linux Systems and Networks Engineer in the Internet industry | Specialising in Mikrotik | APNIC member | Open to job offers

SepticSceptic

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#1209153 6-Jan-2015 12:35

Saw a wind turbine made with a plastic blue barrel cut lengthwise. I think someone was tinkering with an idea, as I haven't seen it for a while. I think the halves were stacked to get the most wind, and had a sturdy upside-down U frame, and guy wires to stabilise it.
It was on a small hillock on SH1, just before the Toll Payment Kiosk, heading south, by Puhoi.

raytaylor

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#1209572 6-Jan-2015 22:20

I am told that a gentle annie or fisher and paykel smart drive out of a washing machine make the best wind turbine.

The hardest part i think is going to be finding slip joints to transfer the power down without using a wire, so it can freely turn.

You see smart drive wind turbines appear on trademe occasionally.

A wind turbine needs to be approx 12m above any surrounding hills or obstacles - We have used a number of commercial ones (spending upward of $1k) and they seemed to be very robust in their design, and well built, but they blow themselves to pieces with turbulance when you put them on a hill or dont have them high enough off the ground. We had ours about 6.5m above the ground on top of a hill.

Here is a picture to show you why.

We have also seen ones where the blades were found in the next paddock

Used both great watt and Air Breeze Marine at various sites - all failed from not being high enough.
Also I note that someone used one of those ones jaycar were selling on their house in napier along a main road - it blew itself to pieces too.

Ray Taylor

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