Top Five Micro Wind Turbines
2. Southwest Windpower Air X
The AIR is the world’s number one selling small wind turbine. The redesigned Air X incorporates a new microprocessor-based technology that results in increased performance, improved battery charging capability, greater reliability and the reduction of “flutter” noise from the machine.
The Air X is ideally designed for powering small appliances in off-grid installations, remote communications facilities, marine applications, and communities in the developing world.
Cost: $600
Rated Capacity:400 watts
Startup Windspeed:8mph
Rotor: 46 inches (1.14 m)
Interconnection: Battery charging
Voltage Output: 12, 24, 48 VDC
Estimated Energy Production: 38 kw per month @ 12 MPH (5.4 m/s)
3. AeroVironment Architectural Wind
Architectural Wind is a small, modular wind turbine system designed for installation on buildings in urban and suburban areas. This is done by eliminating the support tower, reducing noise and vibration, and creating a modular housing that installs quickly and easily onto buildings, without penetrating the roof.
The turbine design has received critical praise for a while now, receiving the Red Dot International Design award and a 2007 Annual Design Review award. With a sleek, color-matched series of specially designed, highly efficient and low profile wind turbines, property owners can integrate Architectural Wind systems easily into new and existing buildings. As Preston at Jetson Green pointed out, the AeroVironment turbines have been installed at the new Kettle Chip facility in Beloit, WI that can produce roughly 28,000 kilowatt hours of power per year under normal wind conditions.
Architectural Wind is scalable and works very well in urban environments. The price and output of the machines will vary because of the drastically different requirements of individual installations. If you need more information on cost and specs, you can contact AeroVironment through their website.
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What about the larger blades on the turbins?
would it b better or would it cause to rotate slower?
and what size of power out put would I need to help out
on my electric bill?
I guess I should have read the comments first - You are right Todd Cesere - the spec given in the article is off by 3 times.
Timothy - I am actually surprised at the other accurate numbers though. Usually the rated power is given with no explanation which makes the outputs looks unrealistically very much higher.
About the AVX1000 - The only unit not on a tower - I seriously doubt the output - there is no way for it to be believable without independent testing. None of the reputable suppliers make any such claims for rooftop units.
1. Southwest Windpower Skystream 3.7 at 400 kWh/month and 10 cents per unit returns 480.00 USD per year for an investment of 5,400 USD plus tower
2. Southwest Windpower Air X at 38 kWh/month and 10 cents - return of 45 USD per year - investment of 600 USD plus tower - a roof top unit but probably rated correctly
3. AeroVironment Architectural Wind - no output and no return without independent confirmation - the specs given on their site are nothing
4. Southwest Windpower Whisper 500 - 500 kWh/month and 10 cents - return of 600 USD per year - investment of 7.100 USD plus tower
5. Bergey Excel - 1500 kWh/month and 10 cents - return of 1,800 USD - investment of 22,000 USD plus
Attractive to you and I am not sure that is all the costs.
Commercial wind - OK it fits but residential wind is not there.
If you’re intending on buying a Skystream 3.7, you’d better do your research on the product. I’m running across a LOT of information from numerous buyers who are NOT satisfied with their approx. $12K investment. Poor unit design, atrocious customer service, and lack of timely shipping on replacement parts are high among the list of complaints against the producer. I was seriously considering on buying one of these units until my research into the product started yielding too many customer complaints about several defects, too much downtime due to electronics failures, delamination of blades, etc.
non capisco perchè cleantechnica non da la possibilità di contatare il costruttore o l’inventore per poter fare
business
There are numerous problems with Skystream. You should check this website:
http://www.windenergytruth.com
Educate yourself before you fall victim to this defect-riddled product. It will never pay for itself and the problems with it are numerous.
@Charles - “what size of power out put would I need to help out on my electric bill?”
Look at your bill: see how many kwh per month your usage is now. Then see what the manufacturer lists as the expected kwh per month that each size generates.
You can decide how much of your total usage you want to offset with a turbine.
Very inspiring article. Helpful for everyone looking for a reliable micro wind turbine. Thanks.