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Residential Wind Power.
For centuries, the term residential wind power would have been a meaningless one. In fact, for the vast majority of man's history, we have used the wind as a means of propulsion and little else. The evidence for this is incontrovertible: sailing was being used back into the time of the ancient Greeks, even the Egyptians. The first windmills didn't show up until the second millennium AD. Even the first windmills wouldn't have made sense of the term residential wind power. They were used to grind grain, or pump water. Neither was a particularly residential application of power. Agricultural would have been a better fit.
But with the invention of wind turbines, and the creation of the electric home, residential wind power began to have a palpable meaning. The wind turbine is impressive because it is so scalable. If enough force exists to spin the turbine, there are very few limitations on exactly how large the power output could be. That in itself isn't the novelty however. After all, hydroelectric power is easily scaled up, just look at the three gorges plant in china. Hydroelectric power however doesn't scale down very well.
Wind power is special in that it scales down as well as it scales up. A 5 megawatt wind turbine can be installed at sea… but turbines as small as 5 kilowatts can be installed for residential wind power. This is something that hydroelectric power cannot boast. Oh, you could make a 5 kilowatt turbine that runs on water pressure, but how many home owners have the water available to run it? Unless you happen to own land on a stream, as well as water rights to the stream, odds are good that you wouldn't be able to run a turbine on water even if you had one.
Nearly everyone is exposed to wind on the other hand. From rural farming communities to skyscraper condos, the wind is everywhere. Harnessing it poses different challenges depending on where you live. For example, in an urban environment, skyscrapers to an excellent job of channeling wind; but leave you with very little space to put a turbine. The best option, the roof, is often occupied by other equipment. In a suburban setting, zoning requirements often stand in the way of certain types of residential wind power. The most common zoning requirement prohibits structures in excess of a certain height. Wind turbines, on the whole, function at their best higher up. This means that it is in your best interest as a homeowner to find out exactly how tall your structure can be, and build a turbine that meets but doesn't exceed that height.The other zoning requirement for residential wind power is usually a noise requirement. Believe it or not wind turbines are not silent. In fact, they could be likened to an un-muffled car engine. Wind farms are placed far away from residences just so that they can operate at optimal efficiency. You see, the wind turning the blades of the windmill creates vibrations, and those vibrations create noise. Making a structure that reduces vibrations will inhibit the free movement of the windmill, creating a resistance to motion, which lowers the output of the turbine. In an idealized setting it is forgotten, but in a residential one, it is best to ensure that your turbine will comply with your noise requirements.
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