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WIND POWER
Please note: We do off grid stand alone wind systems. When we do grid tied wind systems we prefer to work with either small systems that do not require government financing or to work with clients who don't need government financing.
Important info Before You Request a Site Survey!
Comparing wind, solar, micro-hydro power sources
Solar and wind can compliment each other very well because often it is sunny when it is not windy and visa versa. Wind power is an extremely variable power source in eastern and central New York State. Sunlight is available everywhere that is not shaded. Wind power resource varies much more with location than does solar. It is, therefore, necessary to carefully study any potential wind power site to be certain that a minimum average annual wind speed of 10-12 mph exists before one invests in larger wind turbines ( 9 to 10 mph for may be sufficient for smaller and off grid hybrid solar PV/ wind systems). A wind resource study involves looking at several things. First the site terrain and surrounding trees are looked at. Permanently "flagged" (bent or deformed) trees all leaning in the same direction may be a sign of a good wind site. Nature records the long term average wind speed. The more deformed the trees the higher than annual average wind speed. It takes a 10 mph or greater wind to make a flag fly straight out. Flying a flag and watching and recording its flight habits over time can offer incite into the wind resource at your site. If the flag flies out straight more than 50% of the time you may have a good hybrid solar/ wind site and if it flies out more than 80% of the time you might have enough wind to justify near total dependence on wind power, given enough financial resource. Monitoring with a recording anemometer may be justified if there are microclimate phenomenon at your site. Given the latest widely available wind resource maps monitoring at the site may no longer be necessary. Check out For clickable NY wind resource maps. Navigate to wind maps, USA, NY. Locate your site on the map and study the wind speed for 30 meters height. If you know your site's latitude and longitude from a GPS or USGS map you can more easily find your location on the wind map. If this seems too involved we can visit your site and do the study for you. We can also determine if further monitoring is justified.
Our initial site assessment service is $150 within 2 hours drive time of our location. $250 up to 3 hours away. We do not usually travel beyond 3 hours. If government financing is required approvals must be obtained. We must charge up to $5,000 for the administrative time to obtain these approvals. This fee will be due even if approval is denied. If approvals all can be obtained the fee goes towards system price.
Before you invest in our site survey:
- Check to be sure you have proper clearances: You need at least 300 feet between any human occupied building (your home) and the wind turbine tower. The tower also needs to be at least 100 feet from a property line, power lines and unoccupied buildings.
- Be sure the site is open away from ground features that might cause turbulence in the air such as buildings and trees.
- you should consider your town and county ordinances concerning wind turbines and towers to ensure your site will comply. NYSERDA has available for download an 80 page guide for Towns and Counties on Wind Power to download the Wind Energy Guide for Towns and Counties. It contains items that your Town or County may require of your wind project. If your site complies with the requirements in this document and you are not intimidated by it then you are ready to consider a wind energy project in NY. It may also be useful to talk with your local town or county board about your desire to install a wind energy project. They may have additional requirements not contained in the above document. They might have fewer or even no requirements. This is all extremely helpful information to have when we arrive for your site survey. At a minimum we will need to know the names and phone numbers of contact people for your town officials. Our company desires to follow all rules and ordinances in order to maintain our good reputation.
Smaller (400, 500, 900 and 1000 watt) wind turbines may make sense for use in hybrid off grid wind/ solar systems where wind resource is somewhat limited (9 to 11 mph annual average wind speed) or is highly seasonal. They can be mounted on a pipe tilt-up type tower instead of an expensive lattice tower. These turbines are smaller are much less expensive. Larger turbines generally even though they are more expensive are often more cost effective. By this we mean they are less expensive per output watt of rated capacity. Larger residential turbines (1000 watt and up) can make a whirling sound that sounds sort of like a flock of geese flying overhead.
Beware of new flashy technology that makes claims of ability to power your whole house with a small swept area and attached to your roof with no sound. These claims are most likely too good to be true. Ask for third party independent verification and proven track record of these technologies before investing in it.
Comparing wind, solar and hydro power sources.
Wind
- Advantages: It is often windy when it is not sunny such as during storms and at night. Wind can supplement a solar power system very nicely.
- Disadvantages: Wind is the most variable and, therefore, the least reliable of all the renewable energy sources. Wind turbines are machines with moving parts and subject to ware and significant stress and damage in high winds.Incentives from NY State are available for small wind, however, the process is so time consuming that we have to charge $5,000 for the administrative time to follow all the steps to obtain.To make this investment worthwhile you need a minimum of 12 mph annual average wind speed.
Solar
- Advantages: More reliable and predictable than wind power. PV modules produce power in daylight IE in cloudy weather (though somewhat reduced over what is possible in bright sun) which means you can get at least 20% output from your panels through less dense clouds. Clouds so dense to produce rain or snow will reduce output to near zero (a small percentage of the time). PV panels are modular which means the system is easy to add onto as your budget or power needs increase. Batteries can be eliminated by tying directly into the power line and using it as your energy storage instead of batteries . In New York State the power companies are now required to pay you the same rate you pay them for power you feed into the grid. It is called "net metering" . There is also a New York State income tax credit of 25% of the system cost for line tied PV systems. These tax credits took effect January 1, 1998. Systems that are tied into the utility grid may qualify for financial incentives from NYSERDA if installed by an eligible installer like Dave Austin, our chief installer. Consult www.powernaturally.org for more info on NY State incentive programs.
- Disadvantages: Sometimes slightly higher initial system price than wind or micro-hydro if you are NOT taking advantage of NY State incentive programs.
Micro hydro
- Advantages: Often less costly than solar or wind. On a daily basis less variable than either solar or wind. power source is constant 24 hours per day.
- Disadvantages: Often water flow is seasonal. Sometimes water dries up completely in late summer requiring a backup source such as solar PV. Hydro Turbines involve moving parts and like wind power require regular maintenance. Amount of maintenance depends on water quality at the site. Debre removal from filters after storms is often required. Sandy materials in the water can erode the turbine blades and nozzles making them subject to frequent replacement. These things are considered normal ware and tear and are therefore not covered by warranty. Freezing and icing can be common and needs to be considered in the system design to minimize system damage.
Why not contact Great Brook Solar NRG LLC to help you with
your project. We have been selling and installing all types of renewable
energy systems since 1978.
For more free information contact us via our E-mail.. The first e-mail consultation is FREE. so let us know a little about your project.
Click here to surf back to awesomesonsolar.com home page .
Click here to go see our Industry Association page, New York Solar Energy Industries Association.
Refer to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and The Source for Renewable Energy.
Northeast Sustainable Energy http://www.nesea.org/
Great Brook Solar NRG LLC, 819 County Rd 28, South New Berlin, NY 13843 Phone: 607-847-6366 by Dave Austin, CEO.