Where is the best place to use a wind generator?

[Qazulight]

Originally Posted by MissingAll4Seasons

We looked into steam and hydro as well, but the problem is that it's just too darned cold in the winter to rely on any water-based system. Sure you could have an outdoor wood boiler to power a steam engine, but you may not get hot enough for steam or to keep it steam even with insulation if you have to plumb it any distance and maintaining thermosiphon without pumps will be tough. And if a mile wide river freezes solid 3-4 feet down, I'm not thinking that any nearby stream or creek will be moving enough so any microhydro would need to be in the river and fairly deep.

The cold was also an obstacle for the anaerobic digester producing methane bio-gas to replace LPG. Might have more success with woodgas with the right set up, which would be a better renewable fuel for the generator, heater and range than petro fuels.

But since we get plenty of sun from vernal equinox to autmunal equinox, as reasonable sized PV setup should produce more than enough for summer needs, in fact we'll probably need a power sink for the dead of summer unless we intend to run a lot of power tools or multiple freezers. The sun starts to taper off when the wind picks back up in fall, but panels can still produce a suprising amount when it's cloudy or by moonlight, enough for a trickle charge and to balance out what we get from the turbines. Based on our conservative calculations, we'd probably only need to run the generator for a few hours once or twice a week for bulk charge and let the PV & turbines keep the batteries topped off with trickle during the worst of winter.

Our main problem with wind is that we need to get 100 ft above the trees, not just above the ground... so the mast is the most expensive part of that system, especially since we're on muskeg & permafrost so it's hard to do good footings and anchors. And we get about 4 nasty windstorms a year (when the seasons change), so we'd have to be able to disengage the lowspeed turbine when one of those rolls through so there's no damage to the system or equipment.

It looks like you researched a lot. How about a micro-turbine?

Infinity Turbine ® - Organic Rankine Cycle Model IT10xr Waste Heat Turbine Generator ORC System

This is the 5 to 10 KW system, but there is another

Infinity Turbine ® - Organic Rankine Cycle Model ITmini Waste Heat Turbine Generator ORC System

This one, it is a 300 to 900 watt system. They work on refrigerant. Effectively they use heat, but they also can work, if the valves and gases are set right, as difference engines. In other words, they can work as well with a hot side of 200 degrees and a cool side of 80 degrees, or they could work with a hot side of 70 degrees and a cool side of negative 50 degrees.

Here in Texas I use to about 1200 kilowatt hours per month in the summer. This works out to about 30 kilowatt hours a day or less than 1.5 kilowatt hours per hour. We do not economize, i.e. two computers, freezer, and 27 cubic foot refrigerator, big (energy efficient, but big) washer and dryer, (gas) and of course electric central air. We are not careful about turning off lights, but most of them are CFL or LED.

Still, with a battery pack, I recommend a telecom lead acid system, but if you are adventurous, there are now some reasonably priced Lithium Ion systems that would work. Do your over head lighting with super bright LED DC lights and you only have your communications systems left. At that point 900 watts might cover it.

I have been looking into these as a supplemental system for my house, but have not even gone so for as to ask for pricing.

Good luck.

Qazulight

[richelles]

I recall seeing a wind turbine on the road to Homer somewhere South of Soldatna which was spinning at a decent taste every time I saw it. I made quite a few trips through that area including ones in the Winter and Summer going to the Ferry to Kodiak. It wasn't extremely large but I wont guess at the KW because I haven't any idea of the size of smaller wind machines. It appeared to be mounted on a pipe support maybe 40 feet above the ground. It was on the dunes next to Cook Inlet and the places I was able to go down to the water say they would be close to 100 feet high so it would be 140 feet high counting the dune it was sited on. I know that wind is more constant near water but the only reference I know of is for turbines with 100 + feet blades which were proposed off the New England coast. That is a totally different situation from what you are thinking about. On Kodiak I have driven up to the wind turbines on the mountain above Kodiak. They are spinning in an area where the wind wasn't really a factor at ground level. The wind at 150 or so feet above the ground isn't something I can give figures for. You might do a search for those because I do recall considerable amounts of publicity about the value of building them at that site.