The Technology
In the UK we have 40% of Europe's total wind energy. But it's still largely untapped and only 0.5% of our electricity requirements are currently generated by wind power. Small medium wind turbines are either inverter controlled or asynchronously connected (directly) to the grid.
Is my property suitable?
Modern wind turbines efficiently convert wind power directly into electricity even at quite low wind speeds.
You will probably already have a good idea of how windy it is at your own property but as wind speed increases with height so it's best to have the turbine high either mounted on the building or on its own mast. Knowledge of the local wind is critical to designing a wind energy system and predicting output. For domestic installations a good source of information on local wind speeds is the Energy Savings Trust database which can be accessed from here
Planning issues such as visual impact, noise and conservation issues also have to be considered. System installation normally requires permission from the local authorities
Wind power is proportional to the cube of the wind's speed, so relatively minor increases in speed result in large changes in potential output. Individual turbines vary in size and power output from a few hundred watts to two or three megawatts (as a guide, a typical domestic system would be 2.5 - 6 kilowatts, depending on the location and size of the home).
Ardenham Energy Ltd is an MCS approved installer of wind turbine technology, and can provide a full turnkey solution to meet your needs.
