| RSS Web Feed for Renewable Energy UK |  | REUK Shop | Directory | Bookmark Site | About Us  

How I Built A Wind Turbine



How I Built A Wind Turbine

Read how a wind turbine was built for under US$150

wind | education
Printer Friendly Version Print Article     

Here is the story of how Mike Davis, an astronomer in Arizona, designed and built his own wind turbine generator spending less than US$150 and utlilising some scrap parts and items he already had.

His location is very remote and so there was no grid electricity available. With a bit of ingenuity and technical know-how he managed to put together a wind turbine generator to charge a 12 Volt leisure battery and give him power to run his laptop computer, shaver, to charge AA batteries etc.


Rather than trying to build his own alternator / generator, he chose to use a 30 Volt DC Ametek PM motor purchased for just $26 from eBay (eBay UK, eBay USA). Such a motor can easily put out a couple of hundred watts when used as a generator.

30 Volt DC Ametek Motor used as Generator

Just the cost of the magnets for a home made 200+ Watt alternator would have cost far in excess of $26, and it is also far cheaper than purchasing a ready made permanent magnet alternator, so using such a motor is a great way to get started generating electricity from the wind.

His turbine blades were home made from 6 inch PVC pipe. Again, PVC wind turbine blades are the quickest and cheapest way to get started. He made them 24 inches long giving an overall wind turbine diameter of over four feet.

Homemade 24 inch PVC wind turbine blades

He gives full details of the electronics he used to make his own DIY controller. Read the full article by clicking the link below:

How I Home-Built an Electricity Producing Wind Turbine
"It was easy. You can do it too".
Article Last Modified: 15:16, 19th Aug 2008

Comment on this Article

If you have any comments on this article, please email them to neil@reuk.co.uk.


Recommended Related Articles

People who read this article also enjoyed the following articles:

PVC Wind Turbine Blades
Learn how to make your own PVC wind turbine blades
Article Last Modified: 15:16, 19th Aug 2008
wind

DIY 2kW Wind Turbine
Read about a home built 2kW wind turbine constructed from scrap
Article Last Modified: 08:46, 4th Oct 2007
wind | recycling

Photos of PVC Wind Turbine Blades
Photographs of PVC wind turbine blades
Article Last Modified: 13:09, 22nd Dec 2006
wind

Permanent Magnet Generator
Build a wind or water power system with around a PM Generator
Article Last Modified: 16:43, 6th Apr 2010
wind | hydro

Free VAWT Wind Turbine Plans
Make your own 250 Watt vertical axis wind turbine (VAWT)
Article Last Modified: 14:47, 17th Feb 2009
wind | education

VAWT Vertical Axis Wind Turbine
Understand the advantages and disadvantages of VAWTs
Article Last Modified: 15:35, 30th Jan 2007
wind

Ametek PM Motors
Use an Ametek PM Motor as a DC Generator for Wind or Hydro Power
Article Last Modified: 09:14, 22nd Jul 2008
wind | hydro

Enamelled Magnet Wire
Find out more about the wire used to wind coils for generators and alternators
Article Last Modified: 14:34, 5th Apr 2007
general | shopping

Electricity with Stepper Motors
Find out the basics of generating electricity with stepper motors
Article Last Modified: 17:07, 10th Jun 2008
wind

Buying Neodymium Magnets
Buying neodymium magnets in the UK
Article Last Modified: 10:15, 23rd Jul 2008
general | wind | wave

© 2006-2010 REUK - All Rights Reserved
Page Last Updated on 2nd September 2010 at 02:24:32pm

Latest
Articles


Eco Kettle 2 Chrome
Save electricity with an efficient eco kettle - new improved chrome version
energy efficiency
15:25, 18th Aug 2010

OWL CM119 Wireless Energy Monitor
Find out more about the new OWL CM119 wireless electricity monitor
shopping
15:23, 18th Aug 2010

KC7783R PIR Module
Find out more about the economical and easy to use KC7783R PIR motion sensor module
electronics
15:16, 18th Aug 2010

PIR Sensors
Find out how to integrate PIR (passive infra red) sensors into renewable energy applications
electronics
15:16, 18th Aug 2010

LM317 High Current Voltage Regulator
Find out how to build an LM317T based high current voltage regulator
electric circuit
12:29, 17th Aug 2010

LM317 Voltage Calculator
A handy online output voltage calculator for the LM317, LM338, and other linear voltage regulators
electric circuit
12:29, 17th Aug 2010

Optocouplers
Find out more about optocouplers/optoisolators and their uses
electronics
13:33, 14th Aug 2010

Relays and Renewable Energy
Find out more about relays and their uses in renewable energy applications
electric circuit
13:33, 14th Aug 2010



REUK Shop

Popular Items


REUK SUPER TIMER
User programmable 12V powered 10A rated repeating relay timer. 1 second to 99 hours ON and OFF times
£19.99 each.
Complete Circuits



SOLAR PUMP CONTROLLER WITH RELAY
Solar water heating system microprocessor controlled circuit with fitted 10A relay
£25.99 each.
Complete Circuits



12 VOLT 5 WATT SOLAR PANEL
Waterproof 12 Volt 5 Watt Solar Panel with aluminium frame - 290mm x 205mm x 17mm with fitted 5m leads
£33.99 each.
Solar Power



300 WATT POWER INVERTER
Convert 12V DC battery power into 230 AC to power portable televisions, computers, video recorders etc. 300 Watt power rating - peak power 600 Watts
£29.99 each.
Renewable Energy System Parts



CONVERTED PROGRAMMABLE DIGITAL TIMER RELAY
Mains powered programmable timer converted to low voltage with relay board
£21.99 each.
Renewable Energy System Parts



12 VOLT REGULATOR
Supply a fixed 12.0 Volt DC to your devices (up to 1 Amp output)
£4.99 each.
Complete Circuits



MR16 CERAMIC BULB HOLDER
Bulb holder for 12 Volt LED spotlight bulbs
£1.39 each.
Energy Efficient Lighting