Grid tie-in Home Wind Generator, have you any knowledge of this?

Question

I'm investigating the feasability of installing a grid tie-in home wind generator. Has anyone here installed one of these systems into their home's power system?

It's my understanding that you can install a new power meter to allow for "net metering" or reversing of the numbers by the created power from the generator, thereby saving money or reducing your monthly power bill.

Answer 1

There is lots of information on the Internet. In California, you can get net metering. There are some sticking points. The tower has to be at least 60 feet tall. My neighbors would not like that at all.

It is true that you probably will not get a big enough unit to supply all your power, with a surplus.

Think twice about batteries. If one has net metering, the only value of batteries is during power outages. Batteries cost a bundle, need to be maintained, need occasional replacement, and eat up part of the power you produce. I elected not to have batteries on my photovoltaic solar system

Answer 2

There is a lot of information that you need to check out before doing this. First of all, unless you have a couple very large wind turbines, you will not be selling any energy back. Check with the state that you are located in to see if they even have an energy buy-back program, some states do not. You will save a little on electricity with this system. Also go to the wind-energy sites and use the calculators to find out how many KWH of power you can expect from a certain turbine in a certain zone. You can get average wind charts on-line also. This will give you a number to compare to you energy bill to find out exactly how much savings you will realistically have and how long it will take the turbine to pay for itself. I found that with the turbine, plus the batteries, plus the invertor and the grid tie-in I was looking at around $5000-$10000 to save a few dollars a month. Dollar for dollar, solar will still give you the best ROI.

Answer 3

Go to this forum: http://ourmass.org.uk/ - read the posts under the heading "Our Earth Matters" they have tonns of info about solar energy and home-built wind turbines!