So, we’ve all seen the wind turbines that are slowly but surely creeping out across the English countryside…not to mention out to sea…but what about the idea of wind turbines at home? Admittedly, it wasn’t long ago that to see a wind turbine on a standard home or office was a bit unusual to say the least, but over recent years they’ve been springing up all over the place.
Which begs the obvious question – can any homeowner make use of wind energy? And if they can, is it a good idea?
Domestic Wind Turbines
Well, the answer to the first question is a very big yes – domestic wind turbines exist, they’re easy to get hold of and they’re becoming more and more affordable all the time. Generally speaking there are two primary specifications to choose from, which are:
- Pole Mounted Turbines – As the name suggests these are the turbines that are fitted to a pole and can thus be placed anywhere around the property and its gardens. These usually produce 5kW to 6kW.
- Building Mounted Turbines – The alternative being the turbine you fit directly to the property itself, which usually means a lower output of around 2kW.
In terms of whether or not you should buy one, it’s worth considering that in many cases you might find yourself qualifying for a governmental initiative wherein you actually get paid for using this kind of renewable energy – more information can be found here:
http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/Generating-energy/Getting-money-back/Feed-In-Tariffs-scheme-FITs
Wind Turbine Benefits
So they’re on the market, they’re affordable and they’re really quite simple to install to, but what are the primary benefits of having a wind turbine at home?
- Lower Energy Bill – The first and most obvious benefit of all is that of a marked reduction in energy bills. You’ll be generating your own electricity using the wind, and as wind is available to anyone free of charge, you won’t be paying for this power at all.
- Government Incentives – As mentioned above, you might find the deal being sweetened even further by a governmental incentive where you yourself actually get paid for the energy you produce. This often reduces the costs of the installation itself many times over.
- Lower CO2 Output – To use this kind of electricity means to genuinely help the UK’s commitment to cutting its carbon footprint. It’s really a great way of doing more than the average ‘bit’ for the environment.
- Perfect for Power Outages – And what’s more, the energy you produce on the days you don’t really need to use a great deal can be stored using batteries. So not only can you build a stockpile of the stuff over time, but you have also an extra energy source to use if ever there’s a power cut.
All Pros, No Cons
The fact that the money you spend on getting a turbine installed in the first place will be paid back in savings and contributions technically makes the idea one that has a ton of positives and no negatives at all. So while it might seem like taking the plunge and jumping into domestic wind energy production is something of complicated and risky process, there’s actually nothing at all to lose and so much to gain.