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Anyone tested multiple small wind turbines together? | 18 comments (18 topical, editorial)

Re: multiple small wind turbines together? (3.00 / 0) (#5)
by JW1111 on Fri May 23rd, 2008 at 05:38:16 PM MST
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You also have to consider the labor costs, shipping costs, or warranty lag time involved in having one large turbine raised, lowered, and serviced. It is the burden of heavy equipment and involves labor input. Where with several smaller turbines you can do it your self. And if your one large turbine goes down, you are dead in the water. But with multiple machines you still have several others working if one needs service. And around here most of the larger turbines spend much time in regulation so as not to destroy themselves in a heavy wind, while the little ones like mine are shining like a star. IN addition, with several turbines, you can design each individual turbines' blades to take advantage of different wind speeds, so you have them functioning at full capacity at every possible wind speed. With one turbine you are stuck with what you got. It cost me $225 including tower to get 2 amps per turbine in 14 mph with a crappy motor.

[ Parent ]

Re: multiple small wind turbines together? (3.00 / 0) (#6)
by Flux on Sat May 24th, 2008 at 12:53:51 AM MST
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Multiple small turbines are not going to be as efficient as one big one.

Within reason you can put forward some case for several smaller ones compared with a big one, but that is questionable when you start mounting them on a common tower.

When you start crowding together large numbers of them then it becomes very doubtful. The efficiency will be low and the mounting will be a mess and you start to have to seriously think about how to control them in high wind.

There have been attempts to use the little Marlec machines mounted like a tree on a common tower with turbines on the branches, but they all steer and act individually. Doing as you suggest is not going to catch on soon.

Flux

[ Parent ]

Re: multiple small wind turbines together? (3.00 / 0) (#10)
by electrondady1 on Sat May 24th, 2008 at 06:15:21 AM MST
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bigger is always better
the only reason to consider multiple small mills is if it is impractical to build a large one .
so then the question becomes the method of combining there outputs.

[ Parent ]

Anyone tested multiple small wind turbines together? | 18 comments (18 topical, 0 editorial)

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