As the prices of oil and other fossil fuels continue to rise, and as environmental damage grows from the increasingly arcane and intrusive techniques needed to recover these fuels from their ever-shrinking deposits, the attractiveness of green energy also grows. A lot of the new attention being given to domestic wind power and other renewable energy forms consists of research and large-scale investment, but in addition, you’ll find opportunities to produce your own power for use at home. Here’s one way to do that: windmills for sale. If you have winds on your property that average 9.8 mph or more at 50 meters above ground level, then wind power may be a viable green-energy alternative for you.
Let’s examine the economics of electricity from windmills in three U.S. states with very different on-the-ground conditions (Texas, California, and Colorado) before considering what may be the best option of all: building your own! Wind turbine cost, at the cheaper end, runs about $2,000 per kilowatt of capacity, with $4,000 to $8,000 per kilowatt being more usual, subject to rebates and other government incentive programs, but constructing your own windmill can greatly reduce this cost. The federal government also offers a 30% tax credit for installation of renewable energy systems, including wind.
Windmills For Sale In Texas
Texas produces more wind power than any other U.S. state, with more than 10,000 megawatts from over 40 large-scale projects. Because of its favorable conditions with lots of open plains and high, reliable winds, many parts of the state are especially good for wind power. While Chicago has the nickname, Dallas, Amarillo, Austin, and many other Texas cities could also be known as “the windy city.”
Windmills for homes either linked to the commercial grid or supplied with a battery for use when the wind isn’t blowing can be a very good investment if you have a home in one of the windier parts of Texas. The Federal Production Tax Credit (PTC) can help defray the cost of windmills for sale for home energy generation. However, Texas has no significant assistance program of its own for home wind energy production.
Windmills For Sale In California
Many parts of the Golden State experience strong and reliable winds blowing from the Pacific Ocean, particularly in Northern California, where winds typically blow from 11-14 mph. Even stronger winds (above 14 mph) are available in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Wind energy supplied about 2.3 percent of California’s total electricity production in 2007.
Prior to April of 2011, California had in place the Emerging Renewables Program, which offered rebates of $3 per watt for the installation of small wind turbines (10 kilowatt or smaller), which could in some cases pay for the entire cost of the windmill. However, that program was suspended as of April of this year due to California’s state budget problems.
Windmills For Sale in Colorado
Colorado ranks third in the nation in wind power as of 2010. With high elevation and high winds as a result of that, the potential for generation of wind power is very high. Colorado produces a substantial and growing proportion of its electricity from wind.
Colorado has a “net-metering law”, which requires electric utilities to connect homes and commercial customers up to a certain size to the grid. Power generated above use at any time results in a credit with the utility for purchase of electricity for times when the wind isn’t blowing. At the end of the year, any power produced in excess of use is sold to the utility, although the rate is not high. This arrangement can eliminate the need for battery systems for storage, since the utility itself “stores” the power.
Building Your Own Turbine
The cost of a wind turbine system for your home can be reduced dramatically by using a DIY wind turbine, dropping it as low as $200.
