Wind generator July 13, 2003, 09:30:10 pm Yahoo Message Number: 24446Now here's a thought I'll bet someone will weigh in on. Has anyone thought of using a wind generator instead of a solar panel generator? Those of us who live someplace other than California have many cloudy days. The wind blows every day across the frozen tundra and the angle of the sun would make solar panels less than 50% efficient. A marine wind generator is light, cheaper than a panel and a small one can produce 5 amps in as little as a 6 mph wind. It will also work at night. Your thoughts?Tim M. waiting for #8005
Re: Wind generator Reply #1 – July 14, 2003, 01:39:57 am Yahoo Message Number: 24459Quotethought of using a wind generator instead of a solar panel generator? Interesting thought. I imagine the storage issue would make it a little tough. Where you gonna put the wind vanes? Also probably very expensive. Most marine stuff is. Out there in the middle of the ocean. A person can't just go find a gas station for their generator.There are people who play around with alternators from cars as wind generators. They actually produce 120 AC. Just have to tap in front of the rectifier. I think they're mostly toys though.On the humorous side. You could mount it on top of your RV. Should eliminate the need to run the gas generator for AC. Wonder how much it would pump out at 65 mph?RonP
Re: Wind generator Reply #2 – July 14, 2003, 11:45:47 am Yahoo Message Number: 24464I think the escapee's magazine had a short article on using a marine wind generator, maybe a year or so ago. Had a photo and showed it mounted on a mast above the RV. Haven't taken the time to look for it again.Ken, Patty, and little Stephanie in San Diego
Re: Wind generator Reply #3 – July 14, 2003, 03:16:50 pm Yahoo Message Number: 24471"Has anyone thought of using a wind generator instead of a solar panel generator?"TimCheck to following for a wind generator widely used in the boating world. http://makeashorterlink.com/?Y1F532345It's a great idea. I wonder how much power you can make cruising down the road? J. It could be mounted on the rear of the MH and have a telescoping mast for campsite deployment.Larry
Wind generator Reply #4 – July 14, 2003, 11:23:21 am Yahoo Message Number: 24461Cost is about $500 for a 5 amp/60 watt unit including controls. Diameter of the turbine is 24" and VERY quiet. Could mount pole on ladder. Light, only about 12 pounds. Looked into car alternators but RPMs have to be much higher to produce anything. Thanks for you input . . . Tim M. in Minnesota[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: [Life With A Lazy Daze RV] Re: Wind generator Reply #5 – July 14, 2003, 11:53:27 am Yahoo Message Number: 24465So, somebody has already thought of doing it. Great, I'll try and dredge up a copy of the Escapee's mag and see what they had to say.Thanks . .Tim M. In Minnesota[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Re: Wind generator Reply #6 – July 14, 2003, 03:22:59 pm Yahoo Message Number: 24475"Cost is about $500 for a 5 amp/60 watt unit including controls." Compared with a solar panel, that's not a very attractive price...a 64W (US-64) solar panel goes for $310-$350, and has the advantages of being maintenance-free (no bearings to lubricate) and of not requiring any setup. I'm not saying wind power for RVs is a bad idea under *all* circumstances...but it appears that solar power is generally more economical. And solar is certainly more reliable, due to having no moving parts.Andy Baird :-)
Re: Wind generator Reply #7 – July 14, 2003, 04:48:58 pm Yahoo Message Number: 24481"Cost is about $500 for a 5 amp/60 watt unit including controls." Tim M, What wind generator are you looking at getting? The newer Air X has improved output over the older Air 403 and an output of 400w and cost just about $50 more than the older model. You don't need the marine version for RVs, the standard land version is fine and cheaper by a few hundred dollars. They do require 300-400 amp hour battery banks to store all the power they'll make though so you will need to increase your battery bank substancially. They very light also and unlike solar will make power at night and can begin making power in only 7 mph winds. http://www.windenergy.com/PRODUCTS/airxland.html http://www.solar-electric.com/soutwinair40.htmlThere are other places to buy these than Northern Arizona Wind & Sun and possibly at a better cost. The links above give the specs and info on them.There was a previous discussion of these back in Jan, look at mesg# 18224 and 18230.Mike R.
Re: Wind generator Reply #8 – July 14, 2003, 05:34:07 pm Yahoo Message Number: 24482"Compared with a solar panel, that's not a very attractive price...a 64W (US-64) solar panel goes for $310-$350, and has the advantages of being maintenance-free (no bearings to lubricate) and of not requiring any setup."Andy, To get the most of the panels you do need to tilt them and track the sun. In the normal mounting mode on RVs a 64w panel will produce far less than the rated wattage! Most panels never produce nearly the rated wattage. The Air-X in a 10-15mph wind will produce more power than even the 85w panel LD uses without it tracking the sun. They also produce power rain or shine and even at night. Although the solar panel will produce some power as long as there is light it can't produce nearly as much on average as an Air-X wind generator in only a 7-10mph breeze. The stronger the breeze the more power until you get up to around 35mph. Here in Fl that means I can make power most of the time even at night when most of it gets used, with a solar panel I could only do that during the daytime.Solar is a far better choice for most people but wind also has advantages and the cost per watt is cheaper. The ultimate set-up is to have both and enough battery storage to store all the power for when it's needed.Mike R.
Re: [Life With A Lazy Daze RV] Re: Wind generator Reply #9 – July 14, 2003, 08:00:26 pm Yahoo Message Number: 24495There are also a couple of British made units that have less capacity and accordingly less cost. Just thinking about this, not actually doing. Thanks for all the input.Tim M.[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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