wind power

arthur daly · 28-03-2015 1:21pm #1

Hi guys anyone had any experience using wind turbines?
I'm going to be doing a new build soon and would like to invest in something like this but is it going to keep the costs of electricity down or is it a false economy investing in this to save in the ling run or if I take maintenance etc in

quentingargan · 29-03-2015 1:22am

I have two turbines, and once ran a business designing and selling them. Unless there are financial supports, I don't think they are viable. A 3kw turbine might cost about €15K or €20K installed and even on a good site will produce at most about 5,000 KwHrs per year because of turbulence on sites. You would get the same amount of electricity from a 6kw solar photovoltaic array for less than half that price, with no maintenance.

For domestic production, PV fell in price so much that it passed out small wind. The exception is off-grid sites where wind and solar combined may reduce battery cycling and generator run time, but if you have the grid, I think photovoltaic panels are a lot more economical and less troublesome.

nokia69 · 29-03-2015 4:22am

the best thing to do is plan ahead for PV, you don't need to install it now but maybe build your house with a PV installation in mind, the price of PV will keep on falling so factor it into your build

quentingargan · 29-03-2015 11:10am

nokia69 wrote: »

the best thing to do is plan ahead for PV, you don't need to install it now but maybe build your house with a PV installation in mind, the price of PV will keep on falling so factor it into your build

I'm not so sure that the prices will keep falling. It is widely expected that the minimum import price for PVs into Europe will rise by 8% next week. That's largely rate of exchange driven, but there is a floor under the price of manufacturing and companies were selling below cost a few years ago and that has now stopped.

freddyuk · 29-03-2015 5:28pm

Indeed import prices already being based on higher euro cost per watt but also remember that reducing a cost below what is viable means the quality must suffer. PV production is very expensive to set up and to produce quality panels that need to withstand years of life in the worst weather means quality controls are strict and certifications important. However if a panel is not perfect it will not be put in the skip but sold as a second 'B' rated or worse. There are plenty of these in the market but once the moisture gets into the panel it will fail and not last the 30 - 40 years we expect. The UK MCS system monitors factory production with regular production audits so you know the quality is maintained. Having a CE mark or TUV means the panel complies with a standard based on a perfect panel when it was tested but it is only renewable every few years. Quality control is down to the manufacturer. If it is very cheap then I suggest it was meant for the scrap market.
I see plenty of poor quality panels being sold with 'AAA' rated solar cells etc. !! It is complete nonsense as there is no such thing.
As above there is a manufacturing cost and no more government support as there was in China so costs must rise in my view.
Building a house now without a south facing roof (without roof lights and services sticking up) would be a big mistake if you do not have room for ground mounted PV.

djpbarry · 30-03-2015 12:23pm

Moved from S&EI.

wind power

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