how many houses (households) can one windmill power???

Answer 1

I live near a big Windmill park on the island named Smøla in Western Norway. Each mill produce ca 2MW. The production depend on the strength of the wind and the amount of time giving wind. It is an estimate that 68 mills support 25000 inhabitants with electric energy.
With average 2 persons in a household, the production gives enogh electric energy for ca 12000 households.

Each mill then supports about 200 households.

Answer 2

Household Windmill

Answer 3

While I am a huge proponent of any renewable energy, the amount of power you use can offset any benefits. The first step in planning any system is to determine how much power you actually use. Most electric utilities will provide you with a history. The most cost effective measures you can take involve conserving and using less, while maintaining your current lifestyle. (Pun intended). Have you switched to compact florescent lamps, would replacing old appliances with Energy Star Ratings reduce usage? Don't forget heating and air-conditioning. Would insulation be worthwhile?
Many installations I have seen use a combination of technologies, i.e. wind and solar, or geothermal. Your geographic location will affect how each will perform.
Re: your question, most residential turbines are rated about 1KW, (1,000W), and some as high as 5KW. If the wind is blowing at a usable rate, for 1 hour, you have 1 KWhr. Compare this to your electric bill, or graph provided by the utility. Now you'll need to determine wind patterns @ your location. Height is an important factor. The most important factor is how many hours per day, or month, is there sufficient wind.
Usually there is not enough power from a 1 KW turbine to supply all the needs of a modern house. However, it takes a big chunk out of the total used. Some utilities provide net metering, where they buy your excess power when your usage is low, and subtract that amount from the times your demand is higher. Here are some sites that may answer more of your question. Don't forget to check resources, and small wind sections.

Answer 4

The kind of windmills used for commercial power are in the 1 to 10 MegaWatt class (depending on the area and prevailing winds). They estimate about 2 kW per household (average), so 1 small commercial windmill can handle about 500 homes.

And that's the kind of number I usually hear 'thrown around' by the power companies when they talk about this sort of thing.

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Answer 5

If by "windmill" you mean a 2.5MW wind turbine running at 20% load factor and average household consumption in the US... somewhere between 500 and 1000 (more in California where people conserve energy than elsewhere).

Answer 6

Probably only 1, if that, depending on a LOT of factors, like windspeed, size of blades, etc.:
"If the speed of the wind is 1 m/s then these huge modern windmills, produce only about 1 kW of power (1000 times less than when the wind is blowing at 10 m/s), not even enough power for a single clothes-washing or drying machine."
http://www.ecolo.org/documents/documents_in_english/WindmillFormula.htm

Also:
"Southwest recommends that you own an acre of land in an area that averages 10MPH wind speeds, and of course, that not-unobtrusive tower needs to comply with local zoning laws "
http://www.engadget.com/2006/07/05/residential-windmill-saves-money-the-environment/

Answer 7

on calm days, or very gusty days, the answer is NONE. wind power is very inconsistant. For home generators, you can compensate by having storage (such as batteries). For the big units, they vary their connection to the power grid. If there is power demand at the same time as the wind is available, then they provide. At other times, homes get their power needs from conventional generators on the grid.