Residential Wind Workshop
This class is an overview of how wind systems work and how their basic components interrelate. In this all-day session, you will learn how to size a wind system, how to identify wind quality and quantity, and to conduct further research from a set of provided resources. Other topics include electrical loads, system and tower types, wind measurement, and data collection.
Course Agenda
| 9:00 - 9:15 | Introductions, course overview |
| 9:15 - 9:30 | Resources: books, websites, magazines |
| 9:30 - 9:45 | Definitions and terms: utility grid; rated output; watts; kilowatts; kilowatt hours; average annual wind speed; net metering; net metering limits/states |
| 9:45 - 10:00 | Wind history |
| 10:00 - 10:40 | Size categories, residential wind defined, rotor comparison, size rotor for the job; cabin sizes and examples- capacity, weight, rpm and $ Home size- examples, capacity, weight, rpm and $ All electric size, examples, capacity, weight, rpm and $ |
| 10:40 - 11:00 | Applications of wind systems; Quick sizing exercise |
| 11:00 - 11:10 | Break |
| 11:10 - 11:35 | Energy efficiency - reducing the load, fuel switching, phantom loads |
| 11:35 - Noon | Rotor types- drag device: how they work, examples, best uses. Lift devices - how they work, parts, twist & taper, materials, examples, 2 blade vs 3 blade |
| Noon - 12:30 | Lunch |
| 12:30 - 1:00 | System types: utility intertie w/o batteries, utility intertie w/batteries, stand alone, PV/Wind hybrid, wind/solar resources, examples |
| 1:00 - 2:00 | Tower types: why tall towers, resources; freestanding-construction, things to consider, advantages/disadvantages, cost. Guyed lattice- construction, things to consider, advantages/disadvantages, cost. TUT: construction, things to consider, advantages/disadvantages, cost. FAA; ginning a tower; foundations |
| 2:00 - 2:10 | Break |
| 2:10 - 2:45 | Wind Resources: Quantity - how wind is made, prevailing winds and variations. Power equation; Comparison of output/P at various wind speeds; evidence of wind resource, environmental, Griggs Putnam; snow fence, shelter belts, snow drifts, dirt drifts, dirty snow, flags; wind maps; airport data; skewed data collection. Wind Quality- How wind acts: wind profile, turbulence, affects of shelterbelts, affects of hills, affects of terrain Overcoming effects of turbulence and ground drag; Tower height vs production; cost difference short vs tall. Power equation and resource; rules of thumb; siting; examples of good and bad; measuring turbulence and objects |
| 2:45 - 3:10 | Measuring objects (2 groups) - measure tallest objects using at least one method explained, determine minimum tower height for site, evaluate the 2 sites pro’s and con’s |
| 3:15- 4:00 | Parts of a turbine - rated output/rated wind speed, distribution of wind speeds. Generators: Parts, axial design, low speed vs high speed, advantages/disadvantages, speed control. Passive: tilt back, side facing, fold, spoilers, examples; Active: flyball, blade activated, examples. |
| 4:00 - 4:30 | Wind turbine sizing |
| 4:30 - 4:45 | The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: What’s out there, rumor on the street; good news, questionable, just doesn’t work |
| 4:45 - 5:00 | Wrap-up, Q&A |
| 5:00 | Evaluations, certificates |