Home Solar Power, Wind Energy - Windmill Design

What is the makeup of a windmill?

Yes, a big trend today is in home solar power, but let's not forget about the ol' windmill. In essence, a windmill is a device that transfers wind energy into mechanical energy which then is converted into electrical energy. A typical windmill consists of a few main components:

Base: the component that keeps the windmill grounded to the earth.

Tower - The tower holds the blades in the air so that the winds can rotate them.

Blades - windmills typically consist of any number of blades from 4 to 20 or even more for some specially-designed windmills.

Shaft - The shaft joins the blades with the tower and is responsible for the smooth rotation of the blades.

Generator - this device actually generates electricity from the mechanical energy. It also stores this power for later use.

Factors affecting windmill design

Several factors influence the design of a windmill, the major ones being:

Wind speed: wind speed can be measured with the use of an anemometer. It is difficult to determine the correct windmill design without knowing the wind speed.

Wind direction: for windmill design, it is obviously important to know the direction from which the wind typically travels.

Change in wind speed: besides the constant speed in mind, it is required to know how the wind changes its speed.

Change of wind direction: the wind direction is not consistent, making it important to note the way wind changes direction.

Site obstructions: It's best to install a windmill at a place without too many obstructions to block the wind. Check for any existing or future possible structures that may affect the windmill performance.

Wind turbulence: although movement of wind is not always predictable, it is a good idea to understand the general wind pattern of turbulence for your area.

Distance of wind activity from the ground: height of the tower depends on the height at which the wind is most active.

Possible Windmill Designs

Aerodynamics plays a major role in the design of a windmill, based on the factors mentioned in the above sections. Windmill designs vary in:

Blade number

blade shape

Tower height

Type of generators

Distance from blade to the ground

Distance from tower and generator

The best way to help our planet with today's energy crisis is to invest and install a windmill and/or a home solar power system.

Charles Jameson's has a story posted that describes his story of how he easily produced his own home solar power and wind energy to cut his power bill forever. See his post at home solar power and his full story at home solar power to discover his exact steps you too can easily follow.

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