Small wind is fatally flawed
When it comes to wind power, size matters. Small wind turbines just don't make the cut.
Photo credit: Flickr user Ideonexus Wind power rules, but small windmills are a swindle. Bigger is, in this case, better.
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Comments
I'm coming in late to this article but I've been using your program for years and just found this link. I'm not sure if anyone still reads the comments on this but I just wanted to say how much I support your program. It seems like there has been a lot of talk about switching to less energy using sources in your home or monitoring your energy usage by kill-a-watt monitors.... More
Maybe you've seen this and just don't think it's feasible, but these guys claim they can fill the small scale void left by turbines. http://www.humdingerwind.com/#/home/
While I agree that smaller wind turbines are less efficient at producing electricity than larger turbines, power output is only one part of the picture. If you took a holistic look at the other environmental and social factors related to energy production (for example, the loss of ecosystem services provided by migratory bats who are killed by large, ridge-top wind turbines) - perhaps it is worth compromising a bit on efficiency. This holistic approach to analyzing solutions is how we approach.... More
The article seems to show that really small cheap ones are useless, but you want to just give up on the idea? The Montana and Skystream performed significantly better than the rest, though it is true the industrial size one does produce significantly more power. But doesn't the same logic go for large industrial farming operations? The amount of food produced per acre is greater, but is that the end of the analysis?
