Home project wind generator?

[GoodOlBoy]

I have been doing more than a little research into wind power lately. Was wondering if anybody else has built a homebuilt wind generator for adding to their home? I don't want to store electricity I just want to help reduce the overall costs of running the home.

GoodOlBoy

[Catfish]

If your wanting to hook it to the grid your looking at big bucks. One reason is yours has to be perfectly in faze with theirs, it not you`ll get a big explosion when you through the switch. I do know 1 guy that put up a wind mill and hooked it to the grid and hopes to sell them enough electricty to pay for it, but with what it cost him he`s going to have to live to be a real old man to get it paid off. From what I`ve seen they are not cost effective yet. Now if you just want to play around you can always hook a car aultinator to a wind mill and charge some batteries and use they for emergancy lite ect. and not break the bank.

[fabsroman]

What about solar panels? I have heard about home made solar panels being somewhat easy, but have not really done the research into them yet. I am hoping to go the solar and/or wind route if we end up building our own house. Time and research will tell if that is possible, feasible, and cost effective.

[skeet]

Built a wind generator years ago. Still have all those mother earth news mags too...starting at number one. GOB if you want to help your electric bill what has been said is pretty much true. If you want to make electricity to store in batteries ..you can use an inverter. Will work in the garage for some low uses of power. At the last time I checked The cost for a whole house solar and wind powdered system the cost is approx 35-40 thousand. There is a company that will set you up and finance the whole thing and after a few(10??)years it will be paid for and you will have free electricity...but you have to pay the bill every month while it is paying for itself. What they in effect do is set up a solar wind system that feeds your house and back into the grid. You pay the bill every month at the current rate and the electric company pays them for excess produced until eventually the system is paid for and you will earn free electricity..but by that time the useful life of the system is more than half over..and then repairs are up to you. The one thing you get out of such a system is the fact that you are "helping" the environment..maybe!! As the old saw goes..there ain't no such thing as a free lunch Tanstaafl. To make an effective wind generator to power some items in your house you will need a minimum of at least 10 deep cycle batteries..more like 20 is much better. The one I set up years ago worked ok but I had 30 batteries but not deep cycle so they didn't hold as good a charge..But the batteries were free.

[GoodOlBoy]

Not so worried about helping the enviroment as I am help my electric bill. Don't really need to spend more than I will make for it since that would defeat the purpose.

Besides right now I am trying to fix up my grandfathers old truck so I can build a cattle rack in it. Got a heck of a deal on five pygmy lawnmowers if I go get them within two weeks. Four of the five are pregnant with more lawnmowers, and the fifth is the daddy. . . .

GoodOlBoy

[Ridge Runner]

here if you hook up to the grid, no matter how much electricity you send them, the most they'll pay you is the amount of your bill, yep give them your excess and they write it off your bill, when the bill says "0.00" thats what they pay you!
RR

[wrenchman]

parts of mich is off the grid and i no a couple guys that they use soler panels and generators.
They have there places wired forr both 110 and 12v its kind of neat and they use l.e.d light to light there places they are very low demand

[Mr. 16 gauge]

Some of you fellows might find this guys sites interesting:

http://www.mdpub.com/Wind_Turbine/index.html