Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Home Built Wind Generator - Roll Your Own And Reduce Your Bills

By Adrian Fletcher

It may seem implausible to you to dispense with your utility company, but for many people this is becoming a reality. And the motivation is many fold. however, top of the reasons is that it can save money.

Electricity bills go up and the rate at which they inflate seems to be breaking all previous records. Whether there are genuine supply and demand reasons for this increase or other factors like greed or politics behind it all, the truth remains that people are warming to alternatives. One such alternative is a home built wind generator

Why a Home Built Wind Generator ?

Well, why not is the best possible answer.

Upon installing your wind generator, you have a pretty much maintenance free source of free energy. Sounds like a good reason to me, however there are a few caveats. You need to be situated in an area that gets an adequate amount of wind. You also need a plot of spare land on your property to locate the turbine.

Kits Versus Home Grown

The increased awareness of alternative energy has spawned many products in the home built wind generator field. Some are good and some not so, but basically you have two options - buy a kit or you can buy plans and build the generator from scratch. The kit is easy to install and is aimed at people without much DIY knowledge or expertise. A DIY solution require a bit or experience but gives you more flexibility in design and implementation.

If you are handy around the house and can follow instructions but dont have enough electrical or mechanical know-how, the do-it-yourself kits to create your own home built wind generator are the best option. Pricing will vary depending on the materials used but if you are up to a challenge, you can definitely build a wind turbine generator from scratch at a fraction of the price.

For the home built wind generator made from scratch, there are a number of books as well as websites which feature schematics for different models and sizes. The rotor blades can be fashioned out of wood, metal and even PVC and the motors can be found in a variety of places.

It boils down to your mechanical and electrical abilities in the end (and maybe a little canniness in locating parts). But the end result should be a home built wind generator that produces electricity.

The average system will not power your home completely but rather be another energy source to be used in conjunction with your existing grid electricity. Basically, it may power a few of your kitchen appliances each month. This will help to lower your electricity bills and as they say, when you are on a budget, every little bit helps.

A home built wind generator will not only save you a few dollar on your bills, it will help the environment and diminish your carbon footprint. Every little bit helps..everyone has a part to play.

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