subject: Diy Residential Windmills For Drastically Cutting Your Electric Bills [print this page] The possibilities of residential windmills for wind generated electricity is exciting. It has been written that there is enough energy sent to the earth each day to satisfy all of the power needs of every man, woman and child on the planet for an entire year. Yet despite of this incredible windfall of free energy in the form of solar light and wind power, to name just a few, we often prefer to think that we are helpless in the face of rapidly rising energy costs.
Residential Windmills Used To Be Too Expensive
In the recent past this was mostly true. Buying and installing a commercial grade small wind turbine for electricity, for example, would cost a minimum of about $8,000 to $20,000 and often require 8 to 12 years or more to pay back the initial investment. This, of course, depended on:
The wind speed averaging 10 to 20 MPH (Miles Per Hour)
The windmill generator being capable of producing a peak of 800 to 1200 watts of electricity
The amount the power company charges for electricity in your area
Paying that much money up front and waiting that long for a payback was just too much for many average homeowners. That left wind generated electricity to those that could afford the cost and those that were absolutely passionate about saving our environment.
Now You Can Build Your Own Home Windmill For A Small Fraction Of The Cost
Finally the cost and therefore the investment payback period has dropped so that for $200 in materials plus less that $50 for a good set of illustrated windmill plans, you can finally own a residential windmill. The investment payback is now a matter of only a few weeks to a few months.
Only Simple Building Skills And Tools Are Required
The mechanical skills and tools required to build a windmill generator are no more demanding than that of the typical homeowner. The specific tools required are commonly found in simple garage work shops:
Electric Drill
Hand Sander
Electric Jigsaw
Socket Wrench Set
Hammer
Screwdrivers
Pliers
Post hole digger
Shovel
Other miscellaneous hand tools
Get Your Neighbors Approval Before Building
It seems as though that almost everyone will agree that cutting energy dependence, reducing the cost of electricity and improving the environment by using non-polluting methods to generate electricity. If the same people are asked if they would mind having a residential windmill next door they are much more hesitant. Their concerns often focus on noise levels, appearance and the potential danger of the spinning blade.
Even if the zoning rules in your community are squarely on your side, a few disgruntled neighbors can often cause the local zoning board to shut down a residential windmill project. So for this reason is always a good idea to meet with your neighbors individually to address their concerns prior to any contact with a zoning commission. If you receive the community approval in the form of a written petition prior to any zoning board meeting the chances of having the project approved increase dramatically.
It all Starts With A Clear Plan
There has never been a better time for building a home windmill. The necessary technology in the form of inexpensive or even free materials is readily available. Community acceptance as well as the need to cut the cost of electricity has never been at such a high level. And most importantly, there are now a few excellent illustrated instruction manuals written by authors that are willing to share their successful hands-on experience in building residential windmills.
by: John Mackinnon
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