Wind power is an individual, alternative source of energy that is growing in popularity.

You do need to check and make sure it is allowed in your area, but if it is, making your own wind turbine is one way of harnessing the incredible power of wind; here are some things to consider.

Wind speed

In order to be able to determine what type and size of wind turbine you need, you would first need to determine the average wind speed in the place where you live. To do that you will just need to do a research on the wind speed and other factors in the town you live. Every country has several different areas where the weather is completely different or slightly different from one area to another.

To make sure you are on the right track, it is better to check the wind speed specifically for the place you live in rather than checking the average speed for the entire country. To be sure you are able to collect electricity with your wind turbines, you need to at least have an average wind speed of 12 to 16 kilometers per hour.

That means that your wind turbines will be cost-effective and collect energy more efficiently.

The ideal wind speed would be somewhere in between 20 and 32 kilometers per hour where you would be able to really take advantage of wind turbines and get the most out of its purpose.

You can easily measure the speed of the wind by using anemometer, a handy device often used for measuring the speed of the wind. You can easily purchase it online or ask someone you know to lend you one. You can also find several websites where there is a live tracking of wind speed across the globe. However, our advice is to measure the wind speed by yourself and find out the average speed from the first hand.

Rules and laws

Before you start purchasing parts and tools you need to make your own DIY wind turbine(s), it would be for the best to first have an overview of all the building rules and laws in your state/city/neighborhood. It is pretty easy if you live on a countryside where your property and house are settled miles away from your first neighbor, but if you live in a thick neighborhood when noise can become a big problem, you first need to consult with your neighbors and also check with local authorities whether or not you are allowed to even set a wind turbine in your backyard.

Space

You would also need to determine whether there is enough space for the turbine to be properly working. If there are lots of houses and trees around, even though turbines don’t require much free space on the ground, it won’t be able to collect the amount of energy you need if there are other objects and trees blocking the impact of the wind.

You would need to build it above the line of the height of other objects and trees, but then again you would need to check if you are allowed to set up objects of that height in your backyard – there is always a problem if your neighbors and regulations in your city/town/state don’t agree with it.

Wind turbine blades

Determine how big you want your turbine to be and then choose the length for designing blades proportionally to the height of the turbine you are constructing. Choose the appropriate pipe size by following: if you are planning on having 50 cm long blades, you would need to pick a pipe with diameter of 10 cm. Adjust the proportions for smaller or larger blades.

Generator

To get your wind turbine working, you will need to use and purchase a generator. Generally observed, generators usually use direct current and this is the type of the current (DC) that can’t make your home appliances working. In order to be able to transfer DC into the alternate current, that is AC, you will need to use the inverter. If you don’t want to buy an inverter as well, you can use an alternate current motor instead of a generator.

However, if you decide to use a DC generator regardless, you need to make sure you are buying the right one. For starters, you need at least 12 volts of constant current. You will also need to take care and buy a generator that has lower rotation, so instead of buying the one with thousands of rpm, it is better to have the one with a couple of hundred revolutions per minute. Higher current and voltage in a generator is a better option than having high rotation speed.

Besides from a low rotation and high voltage and current generator and a current inverter, you will also need to have a charge controller and a deep-cycle battery bank. You need this in between the inverter and generator. Charge controller and the deep-cycle battery will protect the generator and inverter from electricity spikes and help save and collect energy when the wind speed goes low.

Connecting parts: wind turbine head

First you will need to make a hub or have on premade. You need a hub to be able to connect the blades with the generator you’ve chosen. If you want to make your own hub rather than have it bought, you can just go ahead and have the metal parts bolted. One side of the hub should be made to be suitable for slipping the shaft of the generator you have and the other side of the hub should be suitable for the blades. Have it done properly so you would be able to attach the blades.

Wind turbine base

Obviously, you need to build the base and the way you build it will certainly reflect on the functionality of your DIY wind turbine. The main catch with the wind turbine base is that this part exists to make sure the wind turbine is well secured and that it won’t be blown away or broken if the wind speed is higher and the wind consequently stronger.

You can have the base made for purposes of moving the turbine, making it portable so you can move it easily from one place to another or you can have the base made for permanently installing the wind turbine in one place. Whatever the case is, you need to make sure that the base is strong enough to support the wind turbine body.

In order to have the turbine permanently installed, you will need to have a solid strong construction that is able to support the weight of the turbine and hold it within one place. You can use concrete for that purpose and make a concrete base for it by pouring the concrete solution into a hole in the ground. If the height of your wind turbine is over 1 meter, let’s say 1.5, you need to have the base that is about 50 centimeters, weighing 45 kilograms.

If you are using the concrete, measure carefully and set the pipe in the middle of the base to be secured while the concrete is slowly drying. You don’t want your turbine crooked, so be careful and set it straight.

In an effort to cut energy costs or to prepare for a survival situation, more and more people are relying on alternative sources to harness naturally occurring energy.

While you do need space and laws vary, building your own wind turbine is one alternative and if it works out logistically it can provide you with a consistent source of energy for years come.

For step-by-step instructions on how to build your own wind turbine, please visit Survival Mastery.