I decided to try out a windmill costing ca 180.- USD that will arrive any day soon. It is quite windy here I live, so I should get a decent 500-1000W out of this and with a decent battery bank I should be able to drive a lot of out-door electricity – not connected to the grid. This is actually part of a larger project because I want to monitor the effect I get from this small windmill. It is 130cm in diameter, and I can hide quite a few of these in my garden if they give the expected effect.
We are offered contracts in this area meaning that you can sell electricity back to the power company. In my case I would save 120 ore (ca 0,20 USD) per KWH – so assuming this windmill generate between 500-1000W in average that is 8760 KWH per year. The actual rating is 1500W, but I hope for 500W in average which is 4380 KWH/year – so I could save from 500.- to 1000.- USD a year from an investment costing me 180.- USD. My yearly consumption is ca 20KWH, so that is 25% of my electricity bill. Basically with a few of these I could be selling electricity to the power company – what is not to like?
It is two numbers that I need – one is the average effect I get out of this windmill and two is the noise-levels. The windmill is stated to be noiseless, so lets see – or more correctly hear! The later is important because I can get away with a noiseless windmill, but if this generate noise the project is dead. To put up several of these I will need to get permission.