"Natural Energy"- Solar Power vs. Windmills?

Question

I have recently heard about several people close to me building, buying, using, etc. their own forms of power. My father built his own windmill and several others have bought large (about 10 foot by 20 foot) solar installments for their houses. What are the pros and cons of each? I am a bored college student and assuming it's not crazy hard, I was thinking of making a mini version of one or the other as a fun summer DIY project.

Thanks
Ben

Answer 1

Well Ben a small wind mill would probably be easier to build but I don't know every thing about them. A solar one would probably get your more energy(depending on where you are).

Answer 2

pros and cons .?

well, solar PV just costs too darn much. I'm installing a 3.6kw panel on a new home. (charity build). If not for the government rebates it would be insane to even consider. Even with the rebates, it is really close a to whether you could ever break even. (one repair bill would set you back all the money you could save.) If you did all the labor yourself you could see results, however, there are certainly better ways to save money. Big con .... you can't make them yourself .... and they are going for 4-5 buck a watt to buy. (And to really use them you need an inverter... more bucks)
Using solar to heat water is a really good thing to try. Easy and cheap to make yourself .... and could actually pay for itself. Heat your pool or hot water or one room in the house. Even a small "toy" system will feel like it is doing something. ( A mini PV system or mill that lights a night light just doesn't seem as rewarding)
As for wind .... yup, good bang for the buck if you go big. If you don't go big it becomes more of a hobby than an energy saver. You can do it alot cheaper than solar PV. Only problem is ..... the cheaper it is , the less efficient it tends to be. Put your energy into a well built mill and you can actually have it pay for it self and then some. Plenty of good kits and DIY instructions out on the net. not something you get to stick out the dorm window though.. lol

Answer 3

That would be a very fun DIY project. Do a quick search for "the evil genius guide to solar power". This book has alot of good projects.

As for pros and cons of each, the first pro is that neither produces pollution as a direct result of power generation. Granted, there are the environmental costs of producing the units, but as the impact can be centralized, it can be monitored and controlled.

Cost wise, the wind power units are much more cost effective, producing power at a fraction of the cost of the solar units. However, the wind does not always blow. Solar costs more, but in many areas you have a more regular supply of sunlight than you do of wind.

The most effective technology for you will most definitely depend on your area in the world.

But both wind turbines and solar panels can be made on a small scale as a fun project. You could even use your project to charge small electronics like an ipod.

Answer 4

I thought wind and solar could be combined in a unit that ulilizes both wind and sun(heat). I saw that heliogenerator on the disc. science channel, and I thought that a reflector placed under the windgenerator could be made in such a way as to concentrate heat that travelled upwards and thus make the windgenerator move when there's little or no wind. Just a theory on my part, but I'd like to experiment with that one. And how about windmill blades made of photovoltaic material?
And I apologize to Woodconstux for my insult. Sorry, didn't read your entire answer right away. I have little tolerance for cynisism, or negativity, and am all to ready to tell people that seemingly are looking for excuses not to do anything we can to help what's wrong, and give ever more people excuses to continue to not care! But, I feel that every effort that we are capable of making, should not go unexplored or unutilized.
I know that it's not easy for all people right away to go green, 'cause there's a lot of opposition, and people out there trapping us in a system, hard to break out of. Start anywhere you can, on any level. It's all worth it, even if it might seem like only one drop in the great big ocean. the ocean is made up of many tiny little drops, and every drop is needed.

Answer 5

i think the pros and cons of each balances out.
there are some out there that came up with the idea and using this right now and that is a solar windmill which is a hybrid of a windmill with a solar panel attached to it. I thought it was a really good idea.

Answer 6

Pros of solar are that it can be sit pretty unobtrusively on your roof. And in cities with hot weather, they make the most power when you need it the most, in the sunny afternoon when you are running your air conditioner. But they make no power at night and less on cloudy days.

Wind can blow any time, day or night, although most locations are not windy all the time. But the windmill must stand up really high to catch the wind well and most neighborhoods won't allow them.

Answer 7

Both are "green" renewable ways of generating power. With solar panels, you need storage for power generated while the sun shines, for use when it does not.

To use a windmill, you need to build it in an area that has enough airflow to keep it turning. Humans have used windmills for centuries. Totally renewable, clean, quiet energy production may be the answer for our future needs.

Answer 8

well, solar is not very efficient, so you need alot of surface area. and wind farms chop birds to pieces. But if you are doing it as a DIY project, not a mass wind farm, im sure the birds can just look out.

But try this. Make a windmill. but cover the turbines in solar panels too. this increases the amount of energy you can produce. wind and solar combined.

Answer 9

I have some pics in my blog in my 360 showing how I'm making solar panels from broken cells that i get off eBay really cheap . You don't have to build them as big as i do you can get small frames at the dollar store cheap . Each frame with the cells in them is like one 1/2 volt battery .

The smaller the frame the easier it is to build the size i build takes a long time but im getting allot of amp off of them

Answer 10

I would suggest that you research these ideas thoroughly. I have heard NASA representatives discuss the high price of creating electricity with solar power and suggested this technology would not be cost effective for many years. Enron claimed wind is a cost effective power source ..... hopefully it will be one day.

Your most cost effective step maybe to install more insulation in your home.

Cheers !