# Wind Generator



## joseph97297 (Nov 20, 2007)

Hello all....finally moving out to the property next June for good and trying to line my ducks up in a row so to speak.

While we are going to have Grid Hook-up while we build, I estimate around 4-6 months of build time (so realistically around 12-14 months) afterward, want to be completely "off-grid". Looking at towers for a wind generator and came across two that my uncle has a inside line on (he is the City Garage Supervisor, so lots of contacts). One is a 95 foot tower with lines and all, the other is two 65 foot towers.....my question is would it be better to get one tower with one large wind gennie or two towers with two smaller gennies? The property will have no trees or anything within 500-700 yards of either tower sites.

Just wondering if I should go with the two or just the one?

The towers are in great shape and I can have the "City Labor Force" (prisoners) take them down if I supply the food for them, Uncle set that up with the TCCI office......just in case.

So any opinions, suggestions or anything?

Thanks

joseph


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## NorthCountryWd (Oct 17, 2008)

No suggestions on the wind gen, but why not get a diesel gen for the initial build? You don't have to pay for the temporary grid hookup and you can use it as back up later when there's no wind.


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Can you find out what the 95' tower was used for . .??
How many sets of guy wires does it have . .??

If its sturdy enough I'd go with the 95.

Jail birds taking down a 95 footer . . . .???????????
And who in the slammer knows anything about towers . . ??
Thats kinda shakey..............
pardon the pun


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## bloogrssgrl (Jan 20, 2008)

Isn't the usual approach "the higher, the better"? You might want to approach the manufacturer of whatever wind turbine you are thinking of buying and run it by them.

Also, check with your zoning people!!!


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## farminghandyman (Mar 4, 2005)

the normal on wind generators is you can up size the generator for very little money, in other words is it cost very little to get more POWER.

the other thing to examine is the reliability issue, if there failure rate is more than desired, (which any failure rate is more than desired), but if two are up hopefully one can keep one functioning all the time), if you have one large unit, and it goes down you jsut plain out, until repair is made, 

normally tho your tower is a large expense of the the systems, 1/3 to 1/5 of the costs, 

some of it would be your site as well, if you have any trees or interference, the high may be the better, if your flat and open the shorter may be jsut as good and if you have to climb (yes nearly any thing over 20' will kill one on a fall), but what or where do you feel comfortable in the height, may be once one is over 40 to 60 feet may be the rest does not matter.


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## Jim-mi (May 15, 2002)

Always . . . . . ."The higher the better" . . . . .period.

If ya got zoning . .then ya don't wanna live there. . . . . . . .


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## WisJim (Jan 14, 2004)

Installed at the same site, the same generator installed on a 95 foot tower would give you about a third MORE power in a year as the same generator on a 65 foot tower. For example, if your area has 10mph winds at 40 meteres (131 feet, a common height for wind speed and power measurements), at 65 feet the average wind speed would be 8.1mph, and at 95 feet it would be 9.1mph. Calculating output for a common and reliable generator, the ARE 110 (rated at 2.5kw output), I get 1549 kWhr/year at 65 feet and 2046 kWhr/year at 95 feet. Of course this will vary due to lots of variables. The thing to remember is that the POWER in the wind varies with the CUBE of the wind speed, so that if you have double (2x) the wind speed, you get 8 times the power (2 cubed is 8). It is ALWAYS better to have a taller tower!!! You not only get stronger wind, but it is less turbulent higher up, so the wear and tear on the generator is less. Of course it is a longer climb to the top of the tower. By the way, in Wisconsin you can't even get a renewable energy rebate on a generator with a tower less than 60 feet tall, and most of them that I see are on 100 to 120 foot towers, with some even taller.


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## unioncreek (Jun 18, 2002)

Make sure if you get either of the towers that you have a structural engineer OK them. We had a neighbor who put up a tower that was built about 10 years ago and the county planning commission made him take it down because it didn't meet code.

Bob


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