Wind generators not common?

You don't see many wind generators because the solar options are dramatically better. Compare a calm sunny day vs. the number of windy cloudy days where RVers like to spend their time and you will have an instant epiphany.

I saw a wind turbine set up in Quartzsite, and it was LOUD! Probably not as loud as a contractor generator, but maybe if the wind was blowing a little harder?

One problem with a wind generator is they tend to make a lot of electricity when it is windy, and most RV's don't have a 500+ pound battery pack to store all that energy. . .

Many home wind generators have a 400 watt electric element going to the water heater, and have a 50 gallon (400 pound) water heater to store the excess energy as heat.

It is much easier and quieter to run a 500 watt solar system, that will produce the energy that you need, any excess will not have to be saved or used, and the cost is now very reasonable.

SunElec.com

Fred.

The real sticking point is that you need fairly large props to harvest significant amounts.
FWIW, I have a 74" prop set on my backyard experimental wind set up. The mast is 15'. I have used it for battery charging and not much else. Average wind speed at my location is 10 mph.

Monaco Montclair wrote:
well I have seen the wind turbines on sail boats, so why not. now its all happy-camping

Correct me if I am wrong but doesn't sail boats DEPEND on wind?

If my understanding is correct Sailboats ARE designed for WIND, to be USED in wind and even parked in wind.. A 15MPH - 20 MPH wind across a sailboat would be nothing to worry about..

RVs, not so much..

Not to mention if you can afford a big enough sail boat to put a wind gen on you could afford to buy a wind gen.. Price them, they are not cheap for the measily few watts of power you might get out of them..

Height is the needed element for a good wind turbine. A permanent setup should be 120' above the ground to work efficiently. That's to get above the drag caused by the objects on the ground. Do not mount one to a structure or vehicle because the noise will drive you nuts, it will resonate through the whole place.

Like anything else, if they were cost effective, you would see them all over.


The unvarnished truth is....... they are not.

well I have seen the wind turbines on sail boats, so why not. now its all happy-camping

Main issue is there is NO "power" able to be harvested in wind speeds BELOW 7 MPH, very little can be harvested at 10 MPH and to really get any meaning full harvest 15-20 MPH winds are needed.

You also need CONSTANT winds to really get any meaning full harvest.

I don't know about you, but I am heading for SAFER shelter if I have constant wind speeds of 15MPH or better!

You also need to have an open unobstructed area around the wind gen, that means no trees, buildings or other objects near the wind gen..

Wind speeds tend to be slower near the ground also so that requires a pretty sturdy tower along with some sort of base that is not going to tip over in high wind gusts..

Most of those small wind gen manufacturers tend to way overstate the output and often in small print the full output won't be achieved until you get to 20MPH + wind speeds..

In a nutshell, to expensive, very little output at windspeeds below 20 MPH and to much hassle..

I've read here about members seeing some down in Quartzsite. The smaller one's are pretty loud though. That would be my guess on the lack of use.