Reap the Advantages of Wind Power With a DIY Wind Generator
The advantages of wind power are well documented. It is a cheap, renewable, and clean source of alternative energy. In many ways, it is superior to fossil fuels.
But wind power requires equipment to harness it. This equipment commonly comes in the form of wind turbines. However, wind turbines are costly to construct, install, run, and maintain. Furthermore, they are hundreds of meters tall and weigh hundreds of kilograms.
Basically, wind turbines are a community investment and not a personal one. Yet those individuals who want to harness the power of the wind for personal energy use can do so with a DIY wind generator. Though one of these wind generators won't cover all of your electricity needs, they can certainly lower monthly utilities costs.
Building a DIY wind power generator along with their specific benefits is discussed in greater detail below.
1. Materials
The most important part of any construction project is the materials used and this concept holds true when building a DIY wind generator.
You should focus a lot of your initial attention on gathering the right material for your generator's blades. As the blades are what actually make first contact with the wind, it is essential that they are good in quality.
Cedar or spruce woods are great bets. They are both strong yet they will bend slightly in high winds. PVC blades can also work well but they can oftentimes fracture in very cold weather.
To determine the size of the motor that you need for your DIY wind generator you should take the length of your blades into consideration. A larger motor will be needed for larger blades. A 40 volt motor with an elevated direct current generally does the trick.
Your generator is also going to need a solid and durable core. Stainless steel piping works wonders here. This piece will be used for the tail of your wind turbine.
A round piece of steel, such as a carpenter's saw blade, is needed to act as a pivot so that the turbine can shift into the proper position while in use.
Next you need something to hold your wind turbine up, to be its support. Any sort of spire or tower will do the trick. TV towers are commonly used.
A battery and a monitoring device are needed to make your wind generator work like a champ. A car battery will work great while a diode will be perfect for monitoring.
While the DIY construction process allows for a cheaper, more hands-on finished product, you can also buy hard-to-find materials online or in a construction shop. Due to the popularity of personal wind generators, it is relatively easy to find individual parts with a little hunting around.
Finally, you are going to need a handful of basic construction tools and implements to construct your device. Screws, bolts, copper wiring, glue, and a band saw will get you started.
2. Building Your DIY Wind Generator
One of the advantages of wind power is that the generators/turbines themselves have so few moving parts. This makes them very effective, reliable, and easy to construct.
The first step to building your very own DIY wind generator is to use a band saw to cut your wood or PVC into the shape of blades. The shape of fan blades will work well. Make sure that they are small enough to be powered by the motor you have chosen and to be reliably supported by the core and tower that you have picked out.
Next you should attach the blades to the blade pivot (the circular item) with bolts or screws. This should then be attached to the metal tubing that you chose to use for your core.
The next step is a little trickier. You need to test each individual blade to make sure that their weight is individually distributed. If their weight is unequally distributed, your DIY wind generator's rotation could be thrown off, causing you to lose power.
Copper wire should be strung around the base of your metal core and attached to the battery that you have chosen. You need to absolutely make sure that you cover your battery to protect it from any and all natural elements. It should also be in an easily accessible place and stored off the ground.
Attach your battery to the diode that you have selected. Once this is done, you can hoist your core onto the top of your TV tower. The more elevated a wind generator is, the more wind it will catch and the more electricity it will generate.
Building a home DIY wind generator is realistically a fairly simple and affordable project. However, it does not come without its risks. Though it can provide many of the advantages of wind power, it is a project that should only be attempted by those comfortable with power tools, knowledgeable about electrical wiring, and aware of the other risks and hazards posed.
Sam Jones the author wanted some info about the advantages of wind power so went to uSwitch.com a comparison website full of helpful advice.
But wind power requires equipment to harness it. This equipment commonly comes in the form of wind turbines. However, wind turbines are costly to construct, install, run, and maintain. Furthermore, they are hundreds of meters tall and weigh hundreds of kilograms.
Basically, wind turbines are a community investment and not a personal one. Yet those individuals who want to harness the power of the wind for personal energy use can do so with a DIY wind generator. Though one of these wind generators won't cover all of your electricity needs, they can certainly lower monthly utilities costs.
Building a DIY wind power generator along with their specific benefits is discussed in greater detail below.
1. Materials
The most important part of any construction project is the materials used and this concept holds true when building a DIY wind generator.
You should focus a lot of your initial attention on gathering the right material for your generator's blades. As the blades are what actually make first contact with the wind, it is essential that they are good in quality.
Cedar or spruce woods are great bets. They are both strong yet they will bend slightly in high winds. PVC blades can also work well but they can oftentimes fracture in very cold weather.
To determine the size of the motor that you need for your DIY wind generator you should take the length of your blades into consideration. A larger motor will be needed for larger blades. A 40 volt motor with an elevated direct current generally does the trick.
Your generator is also going to need a solid and durable core. Stainless steel piping works wonders here. This piece will be used for the tail of your wind turbine.
A round piece of steel, such as a carpenter's saw blade, is needed to act as a pivot so that the turbine can shift into the proper position while in use.
Next you need something to hold your wind turbine up, to be its support. Any sort of spire or tower will do the trick. TV towers are commonly used.
A battery and a monitoring device are needed to make your wind generator work like a champ. A car battery will work great while a diode will be perfect for monitoring.
While the DIY construction process allows for a cheaper, more hands-on finished product, you can also buy hard-to-find materials online or in a construction shop. Due to the popularity of personal wind generators, it is relatively easy to find individual parts with a little hunting around.
Finally, you are going to need a handful of basic construction tools and implements to construct your device. Screws, bolts, copper wiring, glue, and a band saw will get you started.
2. Building Your DIY Wind Generator
One of the advantages of wind power is that the generators/turbines themselves have so few moving parts. This makes them very effective, reliable, and easy to construct.
The first step to building your very own DIY wind generator is to use a band saw to cut your wood or PVC into the shape of blades. The shape of fan blades will work well. Make sure that they are small enough to be powered by the motor you have chosen and to be reliably supported by the core and tower that you have picked out.
Next you should attach the blades to the blade pivot (the circular item) with bolts or screws. This should then be attached to the metal tubing that you chose to use for your core.
The next step is a little trickier. You need to test each individual blade to make sure that their weight is individually distributed. If their weight is unequally distributed, your DIY wind generator's rotation could be thrown off, causing you to lose power.
Copper wire should be strung around the base of your metal core and attached to the battery that you have chosen. You need to absolutely make sure that you cover your battery to protect it from any and all natural elements. It should also be in an easily accessible place and stored off the ground.
Attach your battery to the diode that you have selected. Once this is done, you can hoist your core onto the top of your TV tower. The more elevated a wind generator is, the more wind it will catch and the more electricity it will generate.
Building a home DIY wind generator is realistically a fairly simple and affordable project. However, it does not come without its risks. Though it can provide many of the advantages of wind power, it is a project that should only be attempted by those comfortable with power tools, knowledgeable about electrical wiring, and aware of the other risks and hazards posed.
Sam Jones the author wanted some info about the advantages of wind power so went to uSwitch.com a comparison website full of helpful advice.
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