small rooftop wind turbine [RE-wrenches]
Matt Tritt
solarone at charter.net
Wed Jun 2 08:32:18 PDT 2004
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Gary,
I agree with Ian completely about "small" wind turbines when actually
attached to a house. However, there actually is one small turbine available
(750 Watts) that is both "silent" and will survive winds > 130 MPH. They
claim that they will soon have a vibration dampened version able to be
mounted on a house, but I wouldn't suggest it until I've seen the test
results. These units have been made and successfully flown in some of the
most challenging wind regimes on the planet for about 6 years. Since we are
distributors for these turbines, which are available in 750, 3000 and 6000
Watts, I can't go blabbing about them on the list (or did I already?), but
feel free to contact me off-list.
Matt T
----- Original Message -----
From: "Gary Higbee" <gary at windstreamsolar.com>
To: <RE-wrenches at topica.com>; <RE-wrenches at topica.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 02, 2004 12:33 AM
Subject: Re: small rooftop wind turbine [RE-wrenches]
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Tom and Wrenches,
Well, at least they show a picture of the turbine.
Though I have no experience with the Swift turbine, I advise extreme caution
regarding manufacturers claims. After experimenting with numerous turbines
at a residence in a windy Oregon Coast location I can say the following:
Air-X: After being duped by a SWWP tech into trying an Air-X ("Oh, it is so
much more quiet than the earlier units") this machine lasted only a few days
before there were stirrings of a neighborhood rebellion. It came down fast.
OK if your neighbor is in the next county (did I say COUNTRY?).
Rutland/Marlec 503: Nice hood ornament. Nice design and VERY quiet, but no
power other than a trickle charge into your flashlight.
Ampair Pacific: Very solid machine, low power output, and reasonably quiet.
It seems that this small turbine would go for a long time, and would be OK
for maintaining a float charge on a few deep cycle batteries. I can see why
they are used (for low power requirements) in harsh climates.
Proven WT600: Manufacturers claims suggested that this turbine produced
reasonable power and was very quiet. The machine did produce reasonable
power, yet was fairly loud. Numerous experiments did not yield a reduction
in high-pitch noise (heard directly upwind and downwind, regardless of the
wind direction--which likely ruled out roof resonance issues). The WT600
seems like a very solid machine (try lifting the thing), respectable power,
and fine if your neighbor is a block away or more. The manufacturer assumed
no responsibility, and accepted the full profit for the two units. The local
U.S. distributor (to their credit) did accept the units back as "used--" a
decent offer considering they went it alone. Proven should have done much
better, though.
Rutland/Marlec 913: Mediocre power output for a little turbine, quiet, and
VERY poorly constructed. Two of these units disintegrated in a modest Oregon
coast blow. Instrumentation recorded only about 65 m.p.h. when the turbines
flew apart, shattering eight PV modules, ripping numerous holes in a copper
roof, flinging hot parts several houses away, and ultimately causing damage
in the high thousands of dollars--maybe 10K or more. The manufacturer
refuses to accept any responsibility as of this date, and makes up stories,
rather than paying attention to the information provided. I'd like to report
a success story in the future--at least pay back the cost of the things,
folks, and we'll send you back a box of the parts we were able to recover
and say something good about accepting a little responsibility.
The story of these modest wind experiments is that I wouldn't touch any
turbine that I had not personally worked with, or that someone I deeply
trusted did not have personal experience with--and that I knew was a good
match for the particular place the turbine was to be located. Additionally,
if noise is any issue (and check this out very carefully) I do not believe
there exists a turbine in the 300-1500 watt range that is acceptable in a
residential neighborhood--YET. Come on manufacturers, I really think this is
possible. How about a large, multi-bladed, well-made unit. Can't a 1kW,
solidly-built, quiet turbine be constructed?
As well, vibration is a serious issue, even with very small turbines--so I
don't suggest mounting ANY turbine on the roof unless it is the roof of the
outhouse and you want to encourage short visits. I am not aware of any
vibration-dampening system that renders a wind turbine noiseless in the
house. If the house is only occasionally occupied (and I'd say regardless)
make sure there is a stop system that works well so folks can sleep at night
or the turbine can be stopped if things get intense.
Most of all, be very wary of manufacturers claims (hence the second
paragraph above). I think that wind turbine manufacturers need to be very
careful of their claims, and that we need (to at least attempt) to hold them
accountable, and blow the whistle when we feel they are out of bounds (OK,
whistle off).
Please let us know of any tests you conduct.
Take care,
Gary
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~ Windstream Solar ~
Gary Higbee (gary at windstreamsolar.com)
(541 ) 607-1818 (Eugene)
(541) 954-3881 (Cell)
Solar, wind, and hydro site analysis and system design
Components dealer and installation assistance
Energy Trust of Oregon contracted system inspector
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tom Elliot, Guffey Energy Works" <telliot at wagonmaker.com>
To: <RE-wrenches at topica.com>; <RE-wrenches at topica.com>
Sent: Tuesday, June 01, 2004 7:54 PM
Subject: small rooftop wind turbine [RE-wrenches]
Hey all,
Anyone familiar with this product?
http://www.renewabledevices.com/swift.htm
The website is lacking in technical details, to say the least. It sounds a
lot like the press for the Air line of turbines.
Tom
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