How to Build Your Own Small Scale Wind Turbine at Home

Introduction

Building your own small scale wind turbine at home can be an extremely rewarding project. Not only can it help reduce your electricity bills, it also allows you to take part in renewable energy generation.

In this comprehensive guide, I will walk through all the steps required to build a fully functioning wind turbine from parts sourced locally. I will cover aspects like turbine sizing, sourcing components, tower construction, as well as maintenance and safety considerations.

Follow along as I detail my journey building a 500 watt turbine capable of providing supplemental power for a small household. With some care and patience, you can build an efficient and cost-effective renewable energy solution.

Determining Power Requirements and Turbine Size

The first step is determining the appropriate size for your wind turbine based on your energy needs. Below are some key factors to consider:

Average household electricity usage - Assess your average kWh electricity usage per month. This helps estimate the turbine capacity required. For a household using 500 kWh per month, a 500 watt turbine would be a good size.
Wind resource - Evaluate wind speeds in your area using wind maps. Areas with average annual wind speeds of at least 11 mph at a height of 30 feet are generally viable. Higher wind speeds allow smaller turbines.
Turbine height - A minimum height of 30 feet is recommended. Taller towers access faster wind speeds that improve turbine output. However, towers above 100 feet require expert installation.
Future expansion - Consider sizing your turbine to allow for future energy needs or storage options like batteries. This provides room to grow your renewable energy system.

With these key factors in mind, I determined a 500 watt turbine on a 50 foot tower would suit my needs and resources well. This would provide supplemental power for my household's usage.

Sourcing Turbine Components

The next crucial task is finding the right components for your wind turbine build. Here are the main parts I sourced for my 500 watt system:

Blades - Opted for a 3-blade setup with a 5 foot diameter using lightweight wood. This offers good power generation from modest wind speeds.
Generator - Chose a permanent magnet alternator rated for 500 watts at my desired turbine rpm range. Ensures efficient power generation.
Tower - Sourced galvanized steel tubing to construct a 50 foot guyed lattice tower. This height maximizes wind speeds.
Inverter - Picked a 600 watt grid-tie inverter to convert turbine power from DC to usable AC. Grid-tie allows power export.
Controller - Bought a charge controller to regulate turbine output to batteries when needed. Prevents overcharging.
Batteries - Acquired two 6 volt 225 amp-hour deep cycle batteries for energy storage. Gives me off-grid capacity.

I was able to source these components online and from local shops for under $1,000 total. Shopping around is key to getting good deals on quality turbine parts. Don't compromise on the generator, inverter and batteries as those are vital for harvesting power efficiently.

Constructing the Turbine Tower

Now that I had all the components, it was time to build the turbine tower. For my 50 foot tower, I constructed a guyed lattice design using metal tubing.

Dug 4 foot foundations and set the concrete tower base. This anchors the structure solidly.
Assembled 10 foot tubing sections using metal joints to form the triangular lattice. Makes a lightweight but sturdy tower.
Erected the tower in sections using a gin pole and pulley system. This allowed me to lift it safely while guying it every 10 feet.
Secured the guys tightly using turnbuckles and guy strainers. This makes the tower rigid enough to withstand heavy winds.
Added a pivoting turret on top to allow the turbine to face the wind. Lubed the pivot to ensure smooth rotation.

The end result is a robust tower design optimized for my small wind turbine that can handle winds exceeding 100 mph. Having a solid foundation and proper guying is critical for keeping your turbine secure.

Mounting and Wiring the Turbine System

With the tower complete, it was time for the exciting part - mounting and wiring the turbine system!

Bolted the 3 bladed rotor onto the generator shaft. Made sure both were balanced and oriented correctly.
Secured the generator to the top turret using sturdy steel mounts and anti-vibration pads. This reduces stress on components.
Installed an anemometer and wind vane to provide wind speed and direction data to the controller.
Added a braking system using a disc brake to stop the turbine in high winds if needed. Prevents damage.
Ran electrical cables neatly down the interior of the tower housing to the bottom. Used proper gauges for each connection.
Connected all components - turbine, batteries, controller, inverter - to form a complete working system. Double checked all terminations.

With everything wired up successfully, it was time to test my hand-built wind turbine! I was thrilled when the blades started spinning steadily in response to wind.

Operation, Maintenance and Safety Tips

To keep your turbine running safely and efficiently for years, proper operation and maintenance is crucial:

Monitor electric output, wind speeds, braking, temperatures and vibration. This allows you to catch any issues early.
Inspect blades, bolts, cables and moving parts regularly for damage or wear. Replace components as needed.
Check guy wires and connections monthly for proper tension and corrosion. Tighten and replace as required.
Clean debris and dirt buildup from blades. Debris can reduce power generation substantially.
Have the tower and anchor points examined by an expert every 5 years as fatigue can occur over time.
Implement both automatic and manual braking features for overspeed protection in high winds.
Adhere to all zoning regulations and ordinances related to installing home wind turbines in your area.

With proper care and maintenance, a home built wind turbine can provide clean, renewable energy for decades. While requiring patience and effort, the return on investment from reduced electricity expenses makes small scale wind a very rewarding DIY renewable energy project.

Conclusion

Building my own 500 watt wind turbine has been an invaluable learning experience. While requiring careful planning and effort, the process was very manageable with the right research and components. I am thrilled to now have a functioning renewable energy system providing supplemental power for my home.

I highly recommend small scale wind projects to any homeowners with sufficient wind resources looking to reduce their energy bills and carbon footprint. The ability to build it yourself using local components makes wind energy affordable and accessible. With this comprehensive guide, you now have all the knowledge needed to harvest clean wind power on your own property!