Will your wind turbine work?
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - Before buying a wind turbine, a homeowner should learn how much electricity he uses (utility companies can provide a usage history), and assess local wind speeds.
For most states, wind speed information can be found at www.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/windpoweringamerica/wind_maps.asp.
The maps donÂ’t account for variations due to altitude, tree lines and ground-level brush. While itÂ’s possible to measure a propertyÂ’s winds more precisely with an anemometer, most wind-turbine dealers donÂ’t require that level of precision to recommend a turbine size.
At awea.org/smallwind, the American Wind Energy Association has guides to selecting and installing turbines, and lists of manufacturers and state incentives. The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority lists rebate amounts and eligible wind installers at www.powernaturally.org. Information for New Jersey residents is available at njcleanenergy.com.
A national list can be found at dsireusa.org.
Related News
U.S. Electricity Sales Projections Continue to Fall
NEW YORK - Electricity producers and distributors are in an unusual business. The product they provide is available to all customers instantaneously, literally at the flip of a switch. But the large amount of equipment, both hardware and software to do this takes years to design, site and install.
From a long range planning perspective, just as important as a good engineering design is an accurate sales projections. For the US electric utility industry the most authoritative electricity demand projec-tions come from the Department of Energy’s Energy Information Administration (EIA). EIA's compre-hensive reports combine econometric analysis with judgment calls on…