Homemade Wind Turbine Very Popular
Homemade Wind Turbine Very Popular
The homemade wind turbine or diy (do it yourself) wind turbine has become very popular as the number of large industrial sized wind turbines as spread across the country.
A homemade wind turbine comes in one of two basic formats; horizontal axis wind turbine hawt, or vertical axis wind turbine vawt. The hawt is more popular and can generally produce more power or electricity. The vawt on the other hand, works very well in confined areas or urban settings, running very quietly and works well in rough air currents. Both models are easy for the do it yourself-er or handyman to put together.
Homemade Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine - HAWT
6 foot homemade wind turbine
Usually running in the 4 to 6 foot diameter range, these units produce around 100 watts of power and can be built for under $100, plus tower costs. For someone with the space, 10 to 14 foot wind turbines can produce 1 kilowatt of power per hour in steady winds. The tower is a very important componet of the hawt. These units need access to “clean” air (no turbulence) and therefore need a rather tall and sturdy tower. Of course, a large tower can take up a fair bit of space, if guyed for support. These smaller wind turbines also have a very fast rpm rate, as they usually don’t use a gearing-up system for turning the DC Generator. Fast spinning blades can cause a bit of noise.
Link to step-by-step instructions to make a horizontal axis wind turbine
Homemade Vertical Axis Wind Turbine - VAWT
- Homemade vertical axis wind turbine
A homemade vertical axis wind turbine can be put together in an afternoon, once you have assembled the parts. These homemade wind turbines are often made from 5 gallon plastic pails, up to 55 gallon plastic drums. Of course the larger the surface area of the wind turbine, the more potential power it can produce. Larger VAWT’s, those made with 55 gallon drums, often use a gearing or pulley system to increase the rpm’s that power the generator. A simple vertical axis wind turbine, made from pails or drums, can not rotate faster then the speed of the wind. More complex vawt’s, can be made that produce lift and can exceed the speed of the breeze that powers it.
As more and more homemade wind turbines appear in people’s backyards, we can expect this trend to really take off!
Link to homemade VAWT wind turbines
Link to DC motors used to make both turbines
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