A British study warns that home wind turbines are only generating a fraction of electricity promised by the manufacturers while some even fail to provide enough energy to run the turbine’s electronics.
The survey conducted by consultant engineers Encraft said that despite claims that micro-turbines can provide up to 30 percent of households’ electricity needs, on average some only generate 214 watts hours per day. Less than a 5 percent of the electricity a household requires.
However, engineers did find that wind turbines installed on buildings in exposed positions, or high up away from obstructions, generated significant amounts of energy.
Matthew Rhodes, Encraft’s managing director said that turbines if put up in the right place can achieve the desired results. But he added, “Sadly, an average semi-detached house, like the areas where most people live, where there are obstructions like trees and buildings, are poor locations”.
The “vast majority” of customers had been poorly advised. “There’s a risk they will go off the whole agenda,” he said.
The study was funded by the British Wind Energy Association and the government which inspected turbines in four rural, 10 suburban and 12 urban sites for a year.
Reacting to the report Alex Murley of the British Wind Energy Association said. “Sited correctly, small and micro wind turbines have the capability to provide more than 10% of Britain’s electricity needs.”
So it is clear that small wind turbines do not work everywhere, with correct sighting they can still produce enough power to make a significant contribution to a homes energy requirements. The report highlights the need for every micro-turbine installation to be preceded by a thorough report on suitable placement. The UK is one of the windiest countries in Europe and there are many excellent locations for this renewable energy solution.
Thank you for this post, it was really interesting to read. I have a residential wind turbine and I love to read and write about this kind of energy.
Question For People In Australia ONLY!?I have spent the last two years designing a elmetcroagnetic generator that with no input could power a house.To my indescribable dismay, there exists a video of a scientists named John Christy who has done just that. Since I began my research I’ve found several missing topics. The information I was researching was either classified or no existing record anywhere. In light of Christy’s invention, I have to ask. First, is it true that John Christy has successfully designed a magnetic generator, is it for sale? Also, how much information and news is guarded from ever reaching American’ internet and news.The idea that these machines generate energy without input is misleading. In nature, magnetic materials emit a force towards certain materials. If you have two bar magnets you can witness how this works. Drill a hole in the middle of one of the bar magnets and mark what side is north and south. Take a thick sheet of bulsa wood and as straight as possible drive a nail through it (Make sure the nail can fit in the hole you drilled). Place the magnet on the nail and grab the other. When the North and South get close enough they will attract and move towards one another. This is Pull. When a North and North or South and South get close they push. This push and pull can be oscilatted to create rotative motion. Transpose design to a generator > outcomes Kinetic Energy= supposedly impossible energy that defies all physics and laws of nature. Remember, there are no gears turning the universre, only a natural force we call gravity which works simularly to magnetic fields .