Posts tagged "build your own wind turbine"

Build Your Own Wind Turbine

More and more folks are seeking out new and innovative methods for reducing their overall home energy consumption and their monthly power bills. Recently, home wind power generation is becomming a more popular solution to this problem. Today, almost anyone can build their own reliable and inexpensive wind turbine with the proper guidance and information.  

Before you build your own wind turbine, you need at least a high level overview of how these machines work and their major components. Most wind turbines consist of the same few basic parts. None are terribly complicated on their own, and all are easy to find and inexpensive. Assembling these components is farily straightforward and uncomplicated. However, your results can be negatively impacted if any single part isn’t properly sized and optimized to work with the others.

Find out how to build your own wind turbine here.

The blades, which we’re all used to seeing, are attached to a hub in the center of the machine. The hub is secured to an alternator which generates the electrical current. WInd force and their shape causes the blades to turn the hub. This rotational movement produces current in the alternator which is directed through the wiring into your power system.

The turbine’s blades are shaped into a “twist” that produces a greater pitch at the ends and a lesser pitch as the blade approaches the hub. The degree of pitch along the length of the blade must be specific to the blade length and to the speed of rotation required by the alternator. The blades must also be balances (sort of like the wheels on your car) to prevent wobble.

As already noted the alternator is responsible for creating the energy.  It most often includes magnetic rotors and copper wrapped coils inside a stator. current runs through wiring from the alternator to your energy collection or distribution system. Once again, compatibility of parts is important because efficiency, (the amount of produced energy that can actually be used) can be reduced by several factors including the wire gage used, the total length of wire run, the batter banks or inverter.

The tail assembly consists of a horizontal boom to which the tail vane is attached. The entire wind turbine is installed onto a pivot point (called the yaw bearing). As wind direction shifts, the tail and yaw bearing allow the turbine to turn as needed to maintain maximum speed. Wind turbines must also turn out of the wind when their maximum speed has been exceeded, but just enough to still produce full or near full power. Once maximum speed is exceeded though, the turbine must also turn slightly out of the direct wind to reduce the speed down to just below full. This is known as “furling”. The turbine will not furl when it needs to unless the weight and size of the tail are correct.

Finally, it is highly advisable that every turbine should have some kind of electrical or mechanical shut off device for times of very high wind and/or maintenance. Multiple options exist including a switch that shorts out the alternator or a mechanical breaking system. However it is accomplished, there should be some fast and easy way to shut the machine down when necessary .

While this may all sound a little complicated, it really isn’t. In fact building your own reliable and inexpensive home power generating wind turbine is very simple with the right instructions and guidance to follow.

Please stop by our site for more advice, information and great instructional resources on how to build your own wind turbine.