• Wind Turbines

    Forty percent of all the wind energy in Europe blows over the UK, making it an ideal country for domestic turbines (known as ‘microwind’ or ‘small-wind’ turbines).

    A typical system in an exposed site could easily generate more power than your lights and electrical appliances use.

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  • Home integration

    Most wind turbines Generate Direct current (DC) electricity. A converter changes it to Alternating current (AC) so it can be used in the home. Wind turbine systems can be either connected to the national electricity grid, or connected to a battery.

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  • Wind Turbine Types

    Pole mounted turbines are free standing and are erected in a suitably exposed position, often around 5kW to 6kW.

    Building mounted turbines are smaller than mast mounted systems and can be installed on the roof of a home. Often these are around 1kW to 2kW in size.

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The benefits of wind turbines

The wind cools us on a summer day, moves our sailboats, flies our kites and helps grow our gardens. It can also enhance our world’s security, help protect its beauty and improve the quality of air we breathe when used to power our homes and businesses.

Wind energy is clean. Electricity generated by wind turbines won’t dirty the air we breathe or emit pollutants like other energy sources—that means less smog, less acid rain and fewer greenhouse gas emissions. Power plants are the largest stationary source of air pollution in the United kindom, emitting millions of tons of sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides and carbon dioxide each year. These pollutants are believed to be the cause of global warming.

Running a single 1-MW wind turbine can displace 2,000 tons of carbon dioxide in one year (equivalent to planting one square mile of forest).

  • Cut your electricity bills

    Wind is free, so once you’ve paid for the initial installation your electricity costs will be reduced.

  • Get paid for what you generate

    Through Feed-in-Tariffs, you get paid for the electricity you generate even if you use it. What you don’t use, you can export to the local grid – and get paid for that too.

  • Cut your carbon footprint

    Wind electricity is green, renewable energy and doesn’t release any harmful carbon dioxide or other pollutants.

  • Store electricity for a calm day

    If your home isn’t connected to the national grid you can store excess electricity in batteries and use it when there is no wind.

Costs, savings & earnings

  • 1kW System

    A roof-mounted 1kW micro-wind system costs around £2,000

  • 2.5kW System

    A 2.5kW pole-mounted system costs around £15,000.

  • 6kW System

    A 6kW pole-mounted system costs around £22,500.

Costs

The cost of a system will depend on the size and the mounting method: building-mounted turbines cost less to install than pole-mounted ones. For equipment and installation, with VAT at 5%.

Maintenance checks are necessary every few years, and will generally cost around £100 to £200 per year depending on turbine size. A well-maintained turbine should last more than 20 years, but you may need to replace the inverter at some stage during this time, at a cost of £1,000 to £2,000 for a large system.

For off-grid systems, batteries will also need replacing, typically every six to ten years. The cost of replacing batteries varies depending on the design and scale of the system. Any back-up generator will also have its own fuel and maintenance costs.

Savings & income

Building-mounted turbines tend to produce less electricity per kW than pole-mounted ones. A well-sited 6kW turbine can generate around 10,000kWh and the equivalent of around 5.2 tonnes of carbon dioxide a year.

Wind turbines are eligible for Feed-in Tariffs and you will earn a tariff for each kWh of electricity generated by your system. You will also receive another tariff for each kWh of electricity you export. Please note that the Feed In Tariff is not available in Northern Ireland.

Green Deal finance & renewables

This technology is an eligible measure under the UK government’s Green Deal which is a financing mechanism that lets people pay for energy-efficiency improvements through savings on their energy bills.

Further information on Green Deal.

How do wind turbines work?

Wind turbines use large blades to catch the wind. When the wind blows, the blades are forced round, driving a turbine which generates electricity. The stronger the wind, the more electricity produced.

There are two types of domestic-sized wind turbine:

  • Pole mounted: these are free standing and are erected in a suitably exposed position, often around 5kW to 6kW.
  • Building mounted: these are smaller than mast mounted systems and can be installed on the roof of a home where there is a suitable wind resource. Often these are around 1kW to 2kW in size.

Wind turbines are eligible for the UK government’s Feed-in-Tariffs which means you can earn money from the electricity generated by your turbine. You can also receive payments for the electricity you don’t use and export to the local grid.

To be eligible, the installer and wind turbine product must be certified under the Micro-generation Certification Scheme (MCS). If your turbine is not connected to the local electricity grid (known as off grid), unused electricity can be stored in a battery for use when there is no wind.

Please note that the Feed-in Tariffs scheme is not available in Northern Ireland.

Purchasing & Installation

Carbeth Eco offer free advice on purchasing and renewable installation using ISO 9000 certified trades people.

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