| By :
Roger Brown
The wind power costs associated with wind turbines are driven by several key elements: 1. What you make them out of 2. Total amount of electricity you want to create 3. The variety of windmill While there are a lot of smaller wind turbines on the market available in the $600-$800 range, they are made of inexpensive materials like plastics and might not have the resiliency that is required in stronger wind conditions. Bigger wind turbines however, are usually made of a metal exterior and therefore a lot more resistant to the fast and turbulent wind speeds one finds in many open spaces. What that typically means for you is you need to gauge the strength of the materials in light of the wind environment you will be placing the turbine in. If you are putting one on the roof of your house where the air is chaotic, then very lightweight materials probably won't be your ticket. While larger turbines can cost millions, their cost on a per kilowatt basis is quite low when compared to their smaller cousins. As an example, small wind turbines can cost upwards of $3,000 - $5,000 per kilowatt to install. If you are interested in providing power for a small business or a large home, a windmill that size may cost $40,000-$50,000, for instance. You also need to make sure you don't just include the turbine you are buying in your analysis. In many cases, you will need a tower on which to mount the turbine high enough in the atmosphere to take advantage of the best wind. The larger the bank of batteries you have to charge, the smaller the wind turbine - usually. The kind of windmill you pick also makes a big difference in determining wind power costs. The 2 kinds you can buy are vertical-axis and horizontal-axis. Horizontals are a lot cheaper because there are more of them sold and there are a lot more of them out there at this point. Also, the vertical wind turbine is more expensive because they typically operate in more chaotic wind areas where that environment can be a lot more damaging to a windmill. Vertical-axis turbines are all the rage now. They look very sleek and have a small footprint. If you have limited space this type of turbine is just what the doctor ordered. But, because of these factors they are currently WAY more expense. Summarizing, wind turbine costs are driven by a huge number of design and style elements. Thus, you need to be very careful to make sure you are sizing a turbine that meets your requirements and not just buying a nice new shiny decoration for your property.
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