Solar panels and energy crunch forum

Why don't you promote wind turbines? The power of the wind can help in saving us loads of fossil fuel energy and the planet itself. With the world demand for fuel energy on the rise, there is a slow shift towards green energy. Green Energy is the renewable energy that does not lead to environmental hazards like global warming and greenhouse effect. The renewable sources of energy include the wind, water and the earth.

The wind energy can be converted into electricity using a wind turbine. A wind turbine is rotated using the blowing wind, created by uneven heating of the earth surface. The blowing wind flows over the air foil blades of the turbine and drives the shaft connected to the generator. This leads to the starting up of the electric generator and production of electricity.

The wind energy industry is growing at the rate of 28% a year. If the wind power investment, the wind capacity will double in every three or four years. Being the cleanest and cheapest source of energy, wind energy has found many takers in recent times.

I first began researching renewable energy technologies back in 2004 to begin working on this Heat my Home project. One of the things that quickly became apparent when dealing with wind turbines on a domestic installation, was that very few homes were suitable for a wind turbine.

Wind is fantastic on larger scale installations or on coastal areas or wind swept hill sides, but your average urban location will mean performance and efficiency will be very low. You need a very large turbine to make a sizeable dent in most domestic energy bill, which has been confirmed by government testing.

Another issue wind turbines have are correct wind speeds and vibration problems could lead to structural building damage to your home.

The output of a domestic wind turbine on a pitched roof house in a large city such as Manchester would be less than 150kw h a year. This is why Heat my Home promotes solar panels with a much larger energy output at 1,000kw h for the same geographical location.

Until wind can overcome these main factors, then solar or heat pumps will be the best renewable energy technologies for homes in the UK.

Wind turbines are an great way of harnessing the wind and transferring it into a clean, free source of power. There are a range of different turbines which can suit both domestic and commercial purposes. The key to ensuring a wind turbine works for you is that the correct turbine size is installed in the right location.