Household Wind Turbines

These days there is a lot of talk in the media about building environmentally friendly ‘green homes’ because of the awareness we now have about exhausting natural energy sources and heating up the planet. This has generated a lot of interest in installing alternate energy sources in homes and work places. In this context putting in a wind power generator for the energy needs of the home appears to be an attractive option to many home owners. Such alternative sources of energy will not only lessen the use of fossil fuels but will also help in making the planet healthier and safer for the human race.

Wind power is coming into common use for generating electricity. Wind power generators may be installed on a large scale, or just a few for domestic needs. These machines are actually wind mills which use the natural breeze to convert mechanical work into electricity. All that is needed is natural wind power that is not only freely available, it is also inexhaustible.

It would be good to know the basics of using a wind power generator if one is planning to install one for home use. Essentially, in this process, the physical rotation of the blades of the machine is converted into electrical energy by using powerful permanent magnets.

This is how turbines work: the flow of water or wind turns the blades of the turbine and huge magnates convert the mechanical work to generate electrical energy. Generators are capable of producing either direct or alternating current. The electricity produced can be stored in batteries, carried by wires for immediate use, or for distribution through a power grid.

Some renewable power sources are very expensive to install. Fossil energy is relatively cheap. The reason for this is that the technology for generating renewable energy is quite new and is not yet fully understood.

As we learn more about the technology, and develop the required engineering skills the cost of setting up alternate energy producing devices will be reduced. Actually, even at present there are several such systems suitable for home use are available. It is now possible to build your own windmill or turbine at your home.

A major difficulty for such a scheme will be the availability of space. The space required is different for different systems. While some can be installed on the roof of your house, others need to be free standing windmills. Also, you may not live in a place where there will always be a good breeze.

Finally, you must keep in mind that it may not be windy all through the year. This means that you must provide for other sources for electricity when there is very little or no wind to generate the energy that you require for your domestic use. In spite of such difficulties or limitations, wind generated electricity is still an environmentally friendly process and a great way to ‘go green’!

Learn more about wind turbines with Earth4Energy.

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