Spoetry - Submit your own Spoems

JamboyStu (Thursday 20th of November 2008 12:53:39 PM)

Hi, I'm building my own wind turbine and need to know more about what type of alternator to use. Baring in mind that I'm a student and poor, so if possible could you recommend a cheap alternator. Would a solenoid work to generate a voltage? Thanks for any tips!

HiTekVagabond (Saturday 22nd of November 2008 06:35:52 AM)

Look on e-bay for a Wind Turbine Alternator Generator or go to a junk yard and get an upgrade kit for it. A solenoid is not going to work.

eltechno (Sunday 23rd of November 2008 10:19:22 AM)

If you really are a poor student who wants to build windmills, you might want to skip the build-it-yourself stage. What you will discover is that building a wind turbine that works is a LOT harder than it looks. What you should do is look at a well-run company like Vestas. Find out what kinds of workers they want to hire and change your major to match. Being an expert in wind technology has a bright future. But if you don't know what a solenoid does, you aren't ready for it.

patio87 (Thursday 30th of October 2008 04:41:07 PM)

Why don't aren't we just filling up the american plains with these things?!?!

JamboyStu (Thursday 20th of November 2008 12:53:30 PM)

some environmentalists think that birds would get killed by them. I wish we'd all use at least one of these in our houses though. I'm designing a wind turbine at the moment for domestic use.

Regalcourt101 (Sunday 12th of October 2008 12:47:13 AM)

Thanks for posting. I enjoyed your video. They sure look huge when up close like that. Looks like it was a very long day!

marginallymental (Saturday 11th of October 2008 12:25:42 PM)

I agree-he's exhausted. Two questions: are those blades actually flexing a little, or is that an optical illusion? And how much does one of these behemoths COST?? I suppose that's relative to local energy prices, but I'm curious.

eltechno (Saturday 11th of October 2008 07:01:16 PM)

The blade do flex a bit. That is why the nacelle has a nose-up attitude. But mostly it is optics fooling us. This Vestas v82 cost about $2 million when it was erected. This includes the parts of the construction I captured on video plus the foundation (a BIG project) and the hook-up to the grid. To give you an idea of why everyone now wants to build wind turbines, this Vestas saved St. Olaf College over $300,000 the first year.

timmunozlasvegas (Monday 20th of October 2008 03:41:38 PM)

I was amazed as to the scale of the turbine. It's huge! I just have a question, seems $2,000,000.00 is not a lot for a project of this size, but are you sure that it actually saved the school $300,000.00 the first year? If that's the case, then this is a gold mine. Also, in comparison, what is the ratio of homes powered by this one turbine (if you know) I'm very interested in this due to the potential of property I have in California that's been preposed for such use. I thank you.

eltechno (Wednesday 22nd of October 2008 02:34:41 PM)

That $2 million is an old figure, remember--ask your local Vestas dealer for more current info. The St. Olaf figures come straight from the head of plant services at the school. The school had built their own power plant in the 1930s and had installed a 440v 3-phase loop they could now hook into their windmill. So St. Olaf never sells its power--they substitute it for power they would otherwise buy. And that's where they get their figures. St. Olaf LOVES its wind turbine.