Residential Wind Turbine systems may be an attractive option to those who are environmentally conscious and frustrated with fluctuating energy prices because they are generally less expensive than solar panels and geothermal systems. Powering your home with wind turbines presents its own unique set of challenges despite having a lower price tag than their eco-friendly counterparts.
Determining if Wind Turbines are Right for Your Home
Not all locations are suitable for effective production of wind energy with a residential wind turbine system. First and foremost you must find out if average wind speeds in your area are sufficient to effectively make use of wind turbine systems. You will need to research your local laws and permitting guidelines to understand if construction of a wind turbine on your site is allowed. Similarly to solar panels, you will need to decide if you want to have an on-grid or stand-alone system. If you’ve come to the conclusion that it is technically viable for your site to have wind turbines, then it’s time to consult the list below for determining your location-specific cost analysis:
- Average wind speed
- Cost to connect system to grid, or if a stand-alone system the cost of the battery system
- Legal and local permitting costs
- Shipping and installation costs
- State and Federal tax rebates/incentives
- Cost of capital
Average Wind Speeds
If the wind in your area is insufficient to turn the blades fast enough to generate electricity your investment has been wasted. You will not always achieve optimum energy production because wind is an unpredictable and ever-changing part of our weather. It is wise to consult a detailed map that charts the local winds of your area to determine if your location is viable for a wind turbine energy system. The US Department of Energy’s website has detailed maps for this purpose by state. Another good resource for obtaining wind speed information is the National Climatic Data Center, but you will have to pay for their products and their website is a bit cumbersome.
Home Wind Turbine Cost Analysis Estimates
On-Grid System
The on-grid systems are a good idea if your site is already connected to the public utility grid. Utility companies are required to allow you to connect your system to the grid. Depending on the state you live in you may actually receive a small tax credit for any energy sold back to the utility company.
The two manufacturers used in the cost analysis were Bergey Wind Co. and Skystream Energy. The Bergey 1 kW system is rated to produce about 156 kWh per month with 25 mph average wind speeds. This is a highly unrealistic average wind speed for a land-based site, so a more realistic figure would be the approximately 100 kWh produced at 14 mph average wind speeds. Since the average home uses about 780 kWh a month in energy, you will not be able to sell energy back to the utility company.
Assuming a standard 20 year useful life of a home wind turbine system, the Bergey will produce just over 23 thousand kWh over its life. This system with a 20 to 30 meter tower installed is about $6,000 dollars. The resulting cost per kWh for the Bergey 1 kW system is about $0.26, and this excludes any financing costs if you cannot afford to pay cash. Most US residents pay anywhere from $0.06 to $0.21 per kWh for energy from the grid, so the Bergey system is slightly more expensive than grid energy. If the average wind speed was 24 mph over the life of the system the cost per kWh would be about $0.16-right in the range of public utility energy prices and slightly less expensive than solar panels.
The Skystream 3.7 (2.4 kW rated) home wind turbine system produces far more energy than the Bergey 1 kW. It is also much more expensive with average fully-loaded cost (turbine, tower, install) of about $18,000. At average wind speeds of 14 mph this yields a $0.19 cost per kWh. If the average wind speed over the system’s life was 24 mph the system would have energy costs of $0.11 per kWh. Despite the higher initial cost of the Skystream 3.7, it is actually more cost-effective because it produces more energy per dollar invested than the more affordable Bergey system.
Stand-Alone System
Stand-alone systems are generally better for those who would incur a large expense to connect to the public utility’s grid. In certain remote areas and rough terrain, it can cost anywhere from $5,000 to $50,000 per mile to connect to the grid. In these instances, it is far more preferable to go with a stand-alone wind turbine system. The cost to connect to the grid can be viewed as an offset to the turbine, battery, and tower installation costs. For some sites the installation of a wind turbine, or more than one wind turbine even, can be less costly than connecting to the grid. If the cost to connect your site to the grid is as much or more than the installation of the home wind turbine system and you choose something similar or equivalent to the Skystream 3.7, then your energy will actually be the same price or less than grid energy and you will be contributing to the increase in renewable, clean-energy production in the world.
Image Credit
Wind turbine blades courtesy of Flickr user vaxomatic under the CC license
Map of US Wind Speeds courtesy of the US Department of Energy
6 Comments
Nice breakdown Jay. Did any of your research mention anything about performance over time or maintenance requirements?
The actual output of each system will varying very drastically based mostly on the exact location of your unit. You could have a turbine in an area that has been rated excellent or outstanding for average wind speeds, but local characteristics like trees, hills or buildings coupled with an inappropriate tower height can reduce the system’s performance dramatically. So the US Dept of Energy recommends that you measure the wind speeds of your intended location for at least 6 months prior to making a decision. They also recommend calling the turbine manufacturer to inquire about actual system performance achieved by customers in kWh, since their spec sheets only provide kW.
Maintenance is allegedly very low, and will depend on he manufacturer you buy from like any piece of equipment. But in general, they are pretty reliable. In areas coastal areas the maintenance tends to be higher because of the degradation to equipment from salt water in the air, but that is no different than any other piece of equipment.
I’d be curious to hear a first hand account from a home owner that actually has installed one of these systems. Find out what their motivations were and see if the system has measured up to their intentions and expectations.
There’s a case on Long Beach Island, NJ where a man was taken to court by his neighbors and the Township because he tried to build a tall windmill on his house. LBI has strict height limits because of the race to the sky of waterfront homes all trying to see over the guy in front of them to the ocean.
One more thing to consider is the political and neighborly impact of putting these on your house. The prospect of ice thrown and blade throw is also not appreciated by the people around you.
Yes, that is a good point and major concern with this type of energy. That’s why I think it typically fairs better in more rural locations and offshore than in your normal neighborhood. It seems pretty dangerous to have a 12-ft blade spinning around 30 m in the air near your and your neighbors’ houses…
Great Writing, you really know your stuff, this information is very educational, thank yoU!
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