Posts from — August 2009

If you live in a region where the prevailing winds are regular and relatively strong, then you can probably install a residential wind turbine to save a great deal on your electrical energy costs. A wind turbine can help you to use less power from your local utility company, especially when used in conjunction with photovoltaic cells. Some people living in areas where conditions are ideal have even managed to go completely off the grid! While that's not possible for most of us, the ability of a wind turbine to turn the kinetic energy of wind into the electrical power you need for your home can save you a substantial amount of money on your energy bills.

Typically, a residential wind power application is served at the same time by the wind turbine and the local utility. If the wind velocity is beneath cut-in speed of seven to ten miles per hour, there will be no output from the turbine and all of the appropriate power is bought from the utility. When wind speeds accelerate, turbine output increases and the load of power purchased from the utility is suitably decreased. When the turbine generates more power than the house needs, the added electricity is sold to the utility.

In general, a wind turbine can lower a homeowner's electric bills by around 50% and up, depending on the exact wind power system and number of turbines used. How much a smaller wind turbine will save exactly all depends on the power usage of the home and the average wind speeds in the area, among other factors.

The efficiency of a wind power system depends entirely on the average wind speeds in your region. If you live somewhere where the wind speeds average above 10 mph, then your home is an excellent candidate for a residential wind power system ad you should be able to save a significant amount on your energy bill.

However, home owners don't usually need to take measurements of wind speed in order to use residential wind power systems. This data is already freely available without having to do your own tests; though you may want to look up the average wind speed in your area before you install. If you happen to live somewhere which has enough wind to make a residential wind turbine cost effective, then you may go ahead and install the residential wind turbine in confidence.

Residential wind systems are quiet and don't interfere with television or other electronic signals and can be installed with relative ease. Your local utility may even install an additional meter in your home to measure the excess electricity your wind power system is feeding back into the power grid.

Most wind turbine system dealers provide either complete ready-to-install applications or the option to buy directly from a store and let a would-be turbine owner do the installation instead. While the first option offers more customer support from the company, self-installation offers considerable savings and a technical understanding of the turbine. Soon-to-be owners can discuss the choices available with manufacturers to settle on which method best suits their financial accounts and skills.

Homeowners can save a lot of money by installing a home wind power generator. These alternative energy technologies have the additional advantage of being environmentally friendly. A wind turbine doesn't produce any pollution and greatly reduces the amount of fossil fuels needed to power your home.

See how to build a wind turbine for your home and save dough on your hydro bill. Get a guide to building homemade wind generator and you can save lots on how much it would cost of purchasing one and still make lots of power.

Today we live in a world where fossil fuels (oil, natural gas and coal) provide more than 90% of the total energy. The energy needs are increasing and it is estimated that fossil fuels will be depleted in not so distant future. The need to look for alternative sources of energy is therefore a priority.

There are two reasons why - energy supply and environmental issues. Fossil fuels are limited resources and cannot be replaced. They were formed, as their name suggests, from the fossilized remains of plants and animals over hundreds of millions of years. In other words - they are non-renewable. When the supplies run out, and they will run out, that's it.

The second reason is pollution. We use fossil fuels by burning (combustion) which produces many pollutants - carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds. Emissions from the consumption of oil, natural gas, and coal, are responsible for approximately 80% of yearly carbon dioxide emissions in the world. This affects both our health and the environment.

So what can we do? The future is definitely not in fossil fuels, we know that. It belongs to renewable energy. Solar power, wind power and hydro power are the leading renewable energy technologies of today.

By increasing the use of alternative energy sources, we could slowly start decreasing our dependence on fossil fuels. The best thing about renewable sources is that they will never run out.

One of the biggest reasons why renewable energy is not used more often is the cost. But this is positively changing. The technology is improving and the costs for solar, wind, and other renewable sources are going down.

There is no doubt, renewable energy sources are the future and it is up to us to smooth the transition from fossil fuels. The sooner we start, the better.

You can start using renewable energy today and greatly reduce or even eliminate your power bill. Learn how to generate electricity at home and see earth4energy manual. It's easier and cheaper than you think.