What Is the Difference Between Horizontal and Vertical Wind Generators?

Wind generator designs are often determined by the axis upon which the shaft of the wind generator is mounted, horizontally or vertically. The mounting of the shaft also determines the direction and shape of the propeller blades, which means that horizontal and vertical wind turbines can often vary in appearance.

A basic definition of a wind generator is to describe it as a mechanical construction that uses the wind to create kinetic energy, which is converted into electricity. The power of the wind is used to turn the propeller blades, which is how the kinetic energy is created. This kinetic energy is then distributed in a rotating motion through the shaft of the generator and fed into a generator connected to end of the shaft. The generator then converts the kinetic energy an electrical current.

The differences in the design of the horizontal and vertical wind generators accounts for differing efficiency, size and suitability issues, thus offering more options to those who chose to utilize wind power to generate electricity. It can be quite confusing when comparing horizontal and vertical generators as the terms refer to the mounting of the shaft rather than the appearance of the wind generator.

The horizontal axis wind turbine is the most common design used for generating wind power. This is where the main shaft and generator are mounted at the top of a tower. The propeller blades are mounted perpendicular to the ground so the main rotor shaft can run horizontally to the generator. All of the mechanical components are mounted at the top of the tower, which essentially acts as a stand to hold these materials in optimal position to capture the wind.

The vertical axis wind generator design is less common and often more difficult to construct and utilize efficiently. In a vertical axis wind turbine the shaft vertically runs the length of the structure with the mechanical components mounted at the base of the shaft, often at ground level. The rotor blades take on more of an eggbeater like appearance (like the Darrieus wind turbine design) and differ significantly the propeller blades of a horizontal wind generator design. The shape of the generators blades is evidence of differing vertical axis wind turbine designs.

Both designs have their advantages and disadvantages. Historically, horizontal axis wind turbines have been more popular and widely used which means its design and technologies are more widely understood and developed. Vertical axis wind turbines are still a large unknown to many wind power users and technicians. Its technologies and designs are still in the process of being more widely understood.

As a basic overview here are some of the main advantages and disadvantages of each design.

Advantages
Horizontal Axis Wind Generator

• An easier design to construct and install
• Efficient in capturing and converting wind energy (generates electricity from smaller amounts of wind)

Vertical Axis Wind Generator

• Doesn't need to be repositioned to capture wind energy
• Easy to maintain and repair as the mechanical components are mounted on or close to ground level

Disadvantages
Horizontal Axis Wind Generator 

• Needs to be adjusted realign towards the wind direction
• Difficult to maintain and repair as the mechanical components are mounted at height

Vertical Axis Wind Generator

• A more difficult design to construct and install
• Inefficient in capturing and converting wind energy (requires large amounts of wind power to generate electricity

This is a simple overview of a wind generator design and the comparison of vertical and horizontal generator designs. This article was intended to serve as a basic introductory overview of the design and utilization of wind generators. The technological aspects as well as the advantages and disadvantages of horizontal and vertical wind turbine designs are much more intricate than how they have been outlined in this article.

To find out more about how to construct and utilize wind generators for personal use a great online resource can be found at http://howtobuildawindgeneratorstepbystep.com

Finding the Right Windmill Plans to Generate Your Own Power Source - Off the Grid

Let’s face it, there are a lot of windmill plans out there, but how do you find the right windmill plans to achieve a supplement to your current power usage? We’re being realistic here, there is very little chance that you will find windmill plans for a windmill generator that will supply all power usage to your household - unless you live alone and consume very little amounts of power!

With raw material supplies diminishing that power our current main electricity sources (think of those heavy polluting coal power stations), the cost of running electricity to our homes is soaring. And just when you think you’ll do the right thing and switch to the ‘green’ electricity option your provider offers, you’re charged at an even higher rate! This all seems absolutely ludicrous, especially when you can create for yourself a clean green source of energy that will continue to produce energy for you, all for under $100 USD in easily accessible materials and two weekends work!

Which brings us back to our initial issue of finding the right windmill plans to create an affordable windmill generator that is also durable enough to continue to supply power to your household for an average of 10-15 years. Now of course the simple idea is the bigger the windmill generator the more complicated and harder to build the windmill plans will be. However, the bigger more complicated windmill plans will also yield a higher capacity of energy. There is actually one more thing I forgot to mention - the success of your windmill generator also relies on the amount and intensity of the winds that grace your property. So while it may be all well and good to build a large and powerful windmill generator, the windmill may not necessarily yield the energy levels you were expecting if there isn’t enough wind to drive it. So regardless of the effectiveness and durability of the windmill plans you may have in hand, its success lies with the amount of wind your property receives. Make sure you check these stats out first!

Now that you’ve established the wind capacity your property receives on average, you are able to start searching for and reviewing windmill plans more effectively. If you receive a good amount of wind, you can search for larger windmill plans. If you receive a small amount of wind, your safer bet is to seek out the smaller windmill plans. As mentioned before, the energy capacity your windmill plans will generate is influenced by the size of the final windmill. So as you established earlier, if you’re seeking a larger windmill generator you can expect to generate a good amount of power to supplement your current energy usage. If you’re seeking the smaller windmill generator, you will only generate a small amount of extra energy to supplement your current usage - in this case, you may want to explore the possibility of constructing additional windmill generators in order to supply more energy to your home.

Build your own windmill power generator with an easy and easy-to-implement guidebook of windmill plans and other advice on renewable energy sources http://howtobuildawindgeneratorstepbystep.com

How to Build Your Own Wind Generator Power Source for Your Home

How impressed would you be if someone you knew told you they were going to build their own wind generator for their home? Pretty impressed I bet. But the truth is it’s not that difficult to build your own wind generator. And you would be surprised to know that more and more homeowners are taking up the opportunity to build their own wind generator to supplement their power usage.

It isn’t exactly snap-of-your-fingers easy to build your own wind generator, but with a good design, complete plans and easy to follow instructions it almost can be! Of course it will help immensely to start out building your wind generator with a good instruction guide or manual to follow. A manual with plenty of diagrams and detailed instructions that are easy to read will go a long way in helping you to build a successful wind generator for your home.

Before you get stuck into your guide and the construction process, it will help to familiarise yourself with the basic components to creating your own wind generator. To build a wind generator you need to be aware of the towers, batteries, turbines and tail and propeller assembly. The tools generally required to construct your wind generator are simple too, you’ll need wrenches, a saw and a drill. There may also be a need for additional tools depending on how much of the structure and components you will be building yourself.

The first and foremost component you will need to purchase to construct your wind generator source will be the motor. It’s important to note that the motors do require regular maintenance and oiling to ensure continued efficiency. Your wind generator isn’t a construct-and-forget kind of project. But maintenance is a small price to pay for the outcomes your wind generator will provide.

When constructing the motor and propellers for your wind generator, you need to ensure you have a good-sized workspace. Depending on the size of your wind generator and your targeted output, the propeller blades could be as large as 8-feet in diameter (4 ft blades).

It will take a little effort and work to construct your first wind generator, but it really is nothing overly complicated. The process can be fairly simple and inexpensive. Your wind generator could pay for itself in energy savings within one to two months of usage!

As the number of constructed and used of home a wind generators increase, technicians can be hard to find or extremely expensive to employ. Learning how to construct your own wind generator source will enable you to take advantages of the opportunities of free electricity as well as create a greater understanding of renewable wind generator energy first hand.

To learn more on how you can build your own home wind generator the best place to start is http://howtobuildawindgeneratorstepbystep.com

Utilizing Renewable Energy Wind Power to Reduce Your Power Bills

Wind power has been largely overlooked as a residential energy source, usually losing out to the highly publicised (and expensive) solar panel option. However, as more commercial entities pick up on the viability of wind power, we are beginning to see how it can be applied at home. Renewable energy wind power is something I predict we will see more of in the home.

Increasing concern is being raised about the traditional, natural resource guzzling forms of power generation. In order to continue to power our homes and look after ourselves, we are also looking to care more for our environment. Renewable energy wind power can be implemented in the home by the addition of a simple windmill generator or wind turbine.

What a lot of people may be surprised about is the amount renewable energy wind power can supplement into the home and how easy it can be to integrate into your home power grid. Initially, you may be discouraged from installing any kind of renewable energy source into your home because of perceived costs and ongoing expenses. These can be quite high when looking at purchasing, installing and maintaining solar panels, but can be significantly more affordable when comparing wind power sources.

Installing your own renewable energy wind power source can be made simple with the right wind power plans. These should enable you to identify the type of wind power suitable for your site, how much renewable energy you will be able to generate and provide step by step instructions on constructing and installing your own renewable energy wind power source.

Another thing to keep in mind when reviewing renewable energy wind power options are the materials used, consider reliability, durability and ease of access. Wind turbines constructed with simple designs and readily available materials will be easier and more cost effective to maintain.

So if you’re interested in finding out more about how you can utilities renewable energy wind power in your home, I have supplied a list of resources. The double benefit of any form of renewable energy in the home is that you not only will be able to reduce your bills and expenses, you’ll also be reducing your reliance on environmentally polluting forms of power generation.

For more information on renewable energy windpower check out http://howtobuildawindgeneratorstepbystep.com