Installing a wind turbine is a fantastic way to harness a free source of renewable energy and put it to domestic or commercial use. Brian Krause is owner of Woodstar Energy, a provider of construction services for home remodeling and renewable energy serving the Northwest Chicago suburbs. He talks here about what a wind turbine can do for a home or a business.
In areas which have good wind as a natural resource, a wind turbine is a great way to produce electricity. When looking at wind energy, one advantage is that the wind is blowing all the time in certain areas, and it really does not matter if it is day or night, raining or snowing.
Most of the time when you talk about wind turbines, people tend to think of the massive ones in the middle of a corn field or off the coast of oceans. However, quite a few solutions have come out over recent years, which are really tailored to fit residential customer use.
There are two main kinds of wind turbines. There is a horizontal access turbine, which will more or less resemble an airplane propeller. And then there is a vertical access turbine, where it looks more like a cylinder going straight up in the air.
Not Suitable for Every Area
Wind turbines are not going to work for all areas. One thing that is going to be important is we need to check the area’s wind resource, and see if there is a consistent amount of wind. In Chicago, for example, those living right around the O’Hare airport will find there is actually not much wind in that area at all. However, as you move outside of that area there tends to be a lot of areas that have a quality wind resource that can be used for wind turbines.
Wind turbines work as the wind is going to cause a motor within the turbine to turn. As that motor turns, it is going to produce a current, which is electricity. From there, we then capture that current and we can change it into usable electricity. And that can be tied into the electrical system of a home or a business.
Special Permits Required
Like all renewable energy resources, installing a wind turbine will require a special building permit, and Woodstar can assist with that, as well as helping you get the right people to help with installation.
There are a lot of sizing options, from small to large-scale turbines. The main thing is to look around your home to determine if there is a good area to mount one, away from trees. Also, think about whether it would be possible to get it high enough to capture some of the best wind without disturbing neighbors.
There is also a residential renewable energy tax credit. With this, you area able to get 30% off the entire cost of the system cost as well as the installation cost. So really, there isn’t a better time to install a wind turbine!
