Newb to wind

[Stewfish]

So I'm looking at the 1600w $1200-ish kits from missouri wind and solar that a friend has.

They have a 600w divert load looks like a heater coil. I assume it just produces heat. What happens to the other 1000w if my batteries are full but its 20mph outside? Is it as easy as solar? Just put it up and the controller chargers the batteries no issues like more panels? If so why the divert load?

I just don't want to over charge my batteries. I thought I remember reading you can't stop the power thats being produced if the wind is blowing thats why super high end windmills can disengage the gears or something to the "generator"

Is this a good kit and do I need anything else?

1600 Watt | Freedom™ Wind Turbine Kit

A home wind turbine kit from Missouri Wind and Solar brings clean, efficient power to your house. Our 1600-watt kit is easy-to-use no matter your skill level.

windandsolar.com

 

[OzSolar]

So I'm looking at the 1600w $1200-ish kits from missouri wind and solar that a friend has.

Correct when the batteries are full and the turbine is producing power (high winds or not) you have to have some method of reducing the turbine's energy. Turbines that use dump loads (that heater coil thing) to do that are a recipe for disaster because if that dump load fails then your batteries are in trouble.

Is your friend pleased with their turbine? Are they actually monitoring it's energy production? I'm talking about actual KWH's not 30 amps for a few seconds during a thunderstorm.

If you're looking for more energy then adding solar panels is a way better place to spend your money as small wind rarely (never) works out for folks. You might spend some time reading through this sub forum before you proceed.

There's no doubt that using wind is captivating but keep your expectations low.

 

[peakbagger]

Some wind turbines require diversion loads, basically big electric heating elements, other have governor controlled pitch, that feathers the blade angle so that the turbine absorbs less power. Some have tails that change the angle of the prop relative to the direction of the wind.

Most small wind turbines fail long before they ever generate appreciable power or see a high wind event.

 

[Stewfish]

Correct when the batteries are full and the turbine is producing power (high winds or not) you have to have some method of reducing the turbine's energy. Turbines that use dump loads (that heater coil thing) to do that are a recipe for disaster because if that dump load fails then your batteries are in trouble.

Is your friend pleased with their turbine? Are they actually monitoring it's energy production? I'm talking about actual KWH's not 30 amps for a few seconds during a thunderstorm.

If you're looking for more energy then adding solar panels is a way better place to spend your money as small wind rarely (never) works out for folks. You might spend some time reading through this sub forum before you proceed.

There's no doubt that small is captivating but keep your expectations low.

There was a wind farm that was proposed to be built right next to our town, and the town shot it down. It was years before my time, but from what I can tell we are 5.5 to 7 m/s. Depending on location within 10 miles of where I am since I'm 10 miles from the lake and can use that as my guage for location. I'm on top of a hill, but the wind map doesn't show the topo lines so I'm guessing based on the higher butte right next to me and the lake on the map and the higher butte having the red spot along with us a mile from the butte that these are the two red spots = 7 m/s. Otherwise its open desert and a lake. So, again I'm assuming the two red dots are these two hills. But At 11ms the primus turbine makes 400w at 11m/s and at 20mph it looked like it just made 100w ish from the looks of their graph/curve. So I think average thats what I would see based on how windy it generally feels to me all the time. I would like 700wh when my batteries are low and can't be used for the dozen days a year it is low from snow or clouds. 1 gallon of gas on a yamaha 2200w generator powering my aims charger fills the batteries pretty good by morning on the low days/times. I saw 1600w for $1200 and though, heck why not that would be perfect for running a mini split and charging at night

I'd like two run 2 mini splits for two cabins at night though. One will be fine but 2 means basically another huge battery and I would have to build my other array 50'x10'. I already have a 40ft 2" galvanized pole for my LTE router and it was way easier than the 1st solar array and took half a day. So, that means more gas/genny time as is, more battery, or wind. I have 50 solar panels and half are up now. The battery is charged by 10am. The problem is at night (w my dads cabin added soon), and cloudy/snowy days.

The 600w divert load heater element shows me that missouri wind and solar turbines are actually less than that 600w, not 1600w. Maybe they saw 1600w at 100mph just before it blew up.

Another thread here said Primus and Bergey were the only two good manufacturers and the rest lie about specs etc.

The Missouri wind and solar reviews with 1 star are bad and show they don't warranty thier stuff - It's just too bad. Thats why if Costco has something I need I get it. After 5 years I may have gone through 5 inflatable mattresses for guests, but I only paid once. I'm sure I have spent over a 100K at costco and 100Ks at Home depot building houses, but they are going the wrong way in the past year making thier return process harder and 90.days max. I have built 5 houses and many times, I buy extra, but now they are making their returns more difficult. I now spend less at home depot. Companies need to have good return policies or people will just spend extra to not get junk. I don't mind using my tractor to lower a pole to fix a bearing, but if they won't even send a bearing then I won't do business with them. But I digress

 

[OzSolar]

But At 11ms the primus turbine makes 400w at 11m/s and at 20mph it looked like it just made 100w ish from the looks of their graph/curve. So I think average thats what I would see based on how windy it generally feels to me all the time

IMHO, 98% of sites aren't not suitable for small wind and the most common small wind mistake people make is assuming they're in the 2%.

Quite naturally people get caught up in a wind turbines wattage, but energy is all that matters. Below is the energy chart published by Primus for their turbine which from a fair bit of experience I can say overstated by a factor of at least 2. At least they have the decency to not publish energy for wind speeds above 6.5 m/s.

Do not touch any wind turbine that doesn't publish monthly or annual energy output (AEO) charts. Always derate that chart by at least 50% when attempting to weigh the economics of the purchase. IE: If the chart says 200 kWH's/month would the purchase still make sense if it made 100kWh/month? Keep in mind that most sites will be able produce ~100 kWh's per month with 900 watts of solar.

Another thread here said Primus and Bergey were the only two good manufacturers and the rest lie about specs etc.

Primus and Bergey lie about their specs terribly but only by factor a 2 to 4 but generally speaking thier turbines do work for a few years.

 

[Stewfish]

IMHO, 98% of sites aren't not suitable for small wind and the most common small wind mistake people make is assuming they're in the 2%.

Quite naturally people get caught up in a wind turbines wattage but energy is all that matters. Below is the energy chart published by Primus for thier turbine which from a fair of experience I can say over stated by a factor of at least 2. At least they have the decency to not publish energy for wind speeds above 6.5 m/s.


Primus and Bergey lie about thier specs terribly but only by factor a 2 to 4 but generally speaking thier turbines do work for a few years.

View attachment 105465

Man thats so bad. 2500wh a month from 10mph, so I could maybe charge my phone or something stupid. And those things spin pretty good it seems at that speed. Must be similar to just a car alternator, but I think a car alternator would make more power than that actually.

Thanks for the info on those two companies also.

 

[Hedges]

A lighter shade of bad?

Do this first before getting a wind turbine.

Get a weather station. It's not the peak wind, it's the AVERAGE wind that you have to know before a turbine is a good option for your location. I'm in Kansas, we have about the most abundant amount of wind on the planet. However, when measured at my particular location, my wind average is...

diysolarforum.com

Small wind turbines no longer worth it?

or just by some Chinese junk to experiment. did you see my thread already about cheap chinese junk? If you just wnat to tinker with it then sure go ahead. it's cheap after all. Just do not buy it as an actual power source

diysolarforum.com

Newb to wind

So I'm looking at the 1600w $1200-ish kits from missouri wind and solar that a friend has. They have a 600w divert load looks like a heater coil. I assume it just produces heat. What happens to the other 1000w if my batteries are full but its 20mph outside? Is it as easy as solar? Just put it...

diysolarforum.com

Small wind turbines no longer worth it?

or just by some Chinese junk to experiment. did you see my thread already about cheap chinese junk? If you just wnat to tinker with it then sure go ahead. it's cheap after all. Just do not buy it as an actual power source

diysolarforum.com

 

[OzSolar]

Man thats so bad. 2500wh a month from 10mph, so I could maybe charge my phone or something stupid. And those things spin pretty good it seems at that speed. Must be similar to just a car alternator, but I think a car alternator would make more power than that actually.

Thanks for the info on those two companies also.

It is so bad! For some reason I've appointed myself "the deliverer of bad news about small wind turbines". I guess it's because I've been burned a few times and have seen a few dozen others get burned as well. If I can save one person it will be worth it. Ha

To be fair I've not been around the Primus turbine since they bought out the original manufacturer from bankruptcy but it's still the same turbine. Yet even if we assume they are telling the truth about thier energy output it's a fraction of the energy compared to the same money and effort spent on solar.

The other problem with small wind that you can't reliably predict when the wind is going to blow. If you have access to the daily data for a month you'll see that a wind turbine makes most of its energy in few days then the other 27 days of the month it makes almost nothing.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see small wind work as advertised but as far as I know there's never been one.

One of the uglier thing I've learned recently is manufacturers are allowed to self certify thier energy production and still earn the "prestigious" SWCC certification that people hold up as what you need to look for. I can personally attest the Bergey turbine will only make 1/3 of less of the energy it's certified to make.

SWCC Certified Wind Turbines - Be Careful

So I went down a road today. SWCC lets manufacturers self certify. The FAA let Boeing self certify the 737 Max and we all know how that turned out. If you're one of the folks that throws out the SWCC certification as something to look for please do some more research before you inadvertently...

diysolarforum.com

 

[brandnewb]

Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see small wind work as advertised but as far as I know there's never been one.

I am sad to have to confirm that there is to date no small wind turbine yet, except 2, that does what it is advertised to do.

The 2 exeptions are the 3.7 skystream (now defucnt) and the montana (so huge no local code will ever allow for it in urban areas)

 

[brandnewb]

It is so bad! For some reason I've appointed myself "the deliverer of bad news about small wind turbines".

I love you

 

[cs1234]

It always seems to come down to energy storage on renewables. If you don't have a cost efficient means to store the collected energy, you are back to fossil fuels / coal and nuclear again. Technically, those are also forms of energy storage, we just didn't actively play a part in storing them.

 

[Rednecktek]

So just as a thought experiment, assuming someone were to buy/inherit/"Acquire off the Back of a Truck" a 48v turbine, the 3 wires come in to a rectifier, the rectifier turns it to 48v DC...

Can you dump that 48v into a MPPT controller's PV Input ports and use it for a 12v or 24v system?

Some people have more wind than sunlight for months at a time.

Just curious...

 

[Hedges]

Yes, some MPPT have profile for Turbine. Including Midnight Classic an older Sunny Boy.
You need some sort of a clipper to prevent voltage spikes, and a dump load as brake.

 

[wshankmo]

So I'm looking at the 1600w $1200-ish kits from missouri wind and solar that a friend has.

They have a 600w divert load looks like a heater coil. I assume it just produces heat. What happens to the other 1000w if my batteries are full but its 20mph outside? Is it as easy as solar? Just put it up and the controller chargers the batteries no issues like more panels? If so why the divert load?

I just don't want to over charge my batteries. I thought I remember reading you can't stop the power thats being produced if the wind is blowing thats why super high end windmills can disengage the gears or something to the "generator"

Is this a good kit and do I need anything else?

1600 Watt | Freedom™ Wind Turbine Kit

A home wind turbine kit from Missouri Wind and Solar brings clean, efficient power to your house. Our 1600-watt kit is easy-to-use no matter your skill level.

windandsolar.com

I know this is an old post but feel free to reach out to our sales team. We are very serious about not placing a wind turbine in a situation that will fail. It just doesn't do us any good to have angry customers.