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Thoughts on wind turbines?


Alexis Gkantiragas

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Hi all, 

 

I'm wondering whether to use a combination of solar and wind systems for my boat. The rationale is basically that in winter solar is rarely enough (while in summer a good system will produce more than can be used!) and so wind should make up the shortfall. 

 

Does anybody have any thoughts on using wind turbines/any recommendations? Also I was worried they might get loud and bother neighbouring boats. 

 

Thanks in advance!
Alexis

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There are / have been several threads on wind turbines here over the years and the consensus was that they are:-

  • expensive
  • noisy
  • not very efficient  - low output
  • bukky
  • (intrusive - noisy ugly lump up a tall pole)
  • need a fait bit of wind to generate anything

(sorry)

 

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13 minutes ago, Alexis Gkantiragas said:

Hi all, 

 

I'm wondering whether to use a combination of solar and wind systems for my boat. The rationale is basically that in winter solar is rarely enough (while in summer a good system will produce more than can be used!) and so wind should make up the shortfall. 

 

Does anybody have any thoughts on using wind turbines/any recommendations? Also I was worried they might get loud and bother neighbouring boats. 

 

Thanks in advance!
Alexis

The traditional types can be.

 

But I have a family member that uses one of the newer 'vertical' types when he goes off grid in his MH and I have heard his running and it is definitely a lot quieter.

 

I can't advise on the output though but somebody on here will definitely be able to.

 

 

Edited by The Happy Nomad
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Be very wary about the outputs quoted on the blurb. Take note of the steady wind speed required to get that output. you will notice I said steady wind speed, you rarely get that for inland boating. Fir all but the most exposed moorings the wind will be very fluky, that is it keeps eddying about so the turbine wastes energy swinging from side to side and inland wind is rarely strong enough to reach the quoted output.

 

In my view the money spend on a turbine and long pole (stowage problem when not in use) would be better spent on more solar. Also in winter you probably do not need a fridge if you keep the fridge type food in a cabinet under the cratch or even down a hole in the floor so its sitting on the base plate. That will save 30 to 50 Ah per day assuming an electric fridge and far more if you are running an old three way fridge on 12V.

 

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13 minutes ago, The Happy Nomad said:

The traditional types can be.

 

But I have a family member that uses one of the newer 'vertical' types when he goes off grid in his MH and I have heard his running and it is definitely a lot quieter.

 

I can't advise on the output though but somebody on here will definitely be able to.

 

 

Something like this.     https://www.amazon.co.uk/Generator-Vertical-Windmill-Controller-Supplementation/dp/B07P9Q9493

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Ah yes the vertical ones look quite good! From what I understand average windspeed in the uk is roughly 8 knots. Not all actually start working at this speed so I guess its a matter of doing some rough calculations on how useful it would actually be. 

 

The noise wouldn't bother me but I would be worried about annoying other boaters (same goes with using a generator). 

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Although wind might be blowing from the west or southwest or from any direction it doesn't blow in a straight line, it blows in wavy wriggles. A competant racing sailing dinghy helmsman constantly alters his sails every few seconds following the wriggles, if he doesn't he'll come last. I suppose a wind turbine with a wind vane might work fast enough to do this.

Edited by bizzard
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Nearly 30 years ago, before the common availability of solar panels, I recall a scientific type who lived aboard almost writing a white paper on the subject.

To summarise his findings he concluded it would take him 5 years to recoup the cost of his windmill against the fuel and servicing costs of running his boat engine to charge his batteries.

 

I've never bothered with either wind or solar.  Personally I like the vertical ones and would get a pleasurable glow from hearing it rumbling away as it basically gave me something for nothing, I'd get a kick out of that.

As for "OldGoat's" claim that they're "bukky", well as my old great grandad always used to say: -

"Bukky is as bukky does!"

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21 minutes ago, Flyboy said:

That is one type yes, and appears to be the most common design.

 

His is more like this one. (Though I don't think he paid that much.)

 

https://tinyurl.com/y6dc82s3

 

He is happy with it and uses it in conjunction with a 100W solar panel on the roof. He only has a single leisure battery though with it being a MH.

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The pole it is mounted on tends to be noisy as well as the actual charger itself -apparently it resonates somehow, don't know the theory behind it, but can confirm it IS noisy. However, fill it with expanding foam and it goes silent! The vanes rotating are a bit noisy, but not excessive and soon got used to.

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34 minutes ago, zenataomm said:

Nearly 30 years ago, before the common availability of solar panels, I recall a scientific type who lived aboard almost writing a white paper on the subject.

To summarise his findings he concluded it would take him 5 years to recoup the cost of his windmill against the fuel and servicing costs of running his boat engine to charge his batteries.

 

I've never bothered with either wind or solar.  Personally I like the vertical ones and would get a pleasurable glow from hearing it rumbling away as it basically gave me something for nothing, I'd get a kick out of that.

As for "OldGoat's" claim that they're "bukky", well as my old great grandad always used to say: -

"Bukky is as bukky does!"

But that is true (to a degree) of any source of renewable energy whether it be solar or wind. They require an initial investment. But and it's an important but, you also have the benefit of an environmentally friendly source of energy and the peace and quiet of not having to repeatedly run one's engine. (or even worse a generator)  Win win

 

edit to add - if you choose a quiet type of wind generator which I thought went without saying but clearly not. ?

 

 

Edited by The Happy Nomad
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1 minute ago, The Happy Nomad said:

environmentally friendly source of energy and the peace and quiet of not having to repeatedly run one's engine.

The 'old' Rutland 913's that are in our marina rarely work and when they do they make a 'hummy', rattly. 'vibrationary' sort of noise that is far worse and more 'penetrating' than an engine running.

 

Sort of like a cross between a dentists drill and finger nails dragged across a blackboard.

 

 

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26 minutes ago, Alexis Gkantiragas said:

Good point!

It is perfectly true that if you moor in some of the more sheltered locations you will often struggle to see sufficient wind strength, but to a degree that can be true with solar being fully/partially shaded in such locations too.

 

However with a bit of planning you can ensure you end up in a suitable location that will provide solar and some wind. (subject to weather before somebody picks up on that).

 

Some boaters are quite adept at learning where the good locations are with a bit of experience (and if heading for an unfamiliar spot a bit of judicious use of Google Earth).

Edited by The Happy Nomad
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The power that can be extracted is proportional to the cube of the wind speed. This is why turbine manufacturers headline figures are at high wind speeds you'll rarely see. If one says 600W at 30mph, then at 15mph it might only be producing 75W and at 7.5mph, 9W. The drop off is dramatic.

Jen

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1 hour ago, The Happy Nomad said:

 

His is more like this one. (Though I don't think he paid that much.)

 

https://tinyurl.com/y6dc82s3

 

He is happy with it and uses it in conjunction with a 100W solar panel on the roof. He only has a single leisure battery though with it being a MH.

 

That one appears to come with a motor rather than a generator!

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A friend has a yacht with a  wind turbine.

We went sailing which is  nice and peaceful (mostly) . I kept looking for  a motorboat I could hear approaching  but  realised it was the bloody wind turbine. 

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As there is generally very little wind on canals,trees,bushes buildings tend to block whatever wind there is. Perhaps cruising on a more open river will get the thing turning.

I think money would be better spent on solar.

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1 hour ago, MartynG said:

A friend has a yacht with a  wind turbine.

We went sailing which is  nice and peaceful (mostly) . I kept looking for  a motorboat I could hear approaching  but  realised it was the bloody wind turbine. 

I think these wind turbines are best suited to lumpy water boats where you get more wind. Solar is the way to go.

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For many years we have had a (Rutland 913) wind turbine and a 100w solar panel. In that time, my experience as follows:

 

Noisy, not a problem during the day but too noisy to leave running during the night (it was above our bed. Tried various methods of trying to make it quieter - nothing worked. In the end, bought a new controller from Rutland which allowed you to switch it off (which in effect applied a brake) - this saved having to lower it every night. Don’t worry about the noise for other boats - no real noise outside, it is inside where you hear it.

 

we are just holiday boaters (and cruised most days when on the boat, so this was really just a top-up rather than main charge), so no real experience of performance during the winter, but otherwise the solar panel always outperformed the turbine - we found you need a howling gale to get more than a couple of amps....

 

ruined the paint - the turbine was left down most of the time (shoreline when in the marina) and this eventually resulted in a large rust patch

 

dont fit under all bridges - adapted ours so that you could easily remove the ‘fin’. While few and far between there are bridges that it wouldn’t fit under otherwise.

 

in summary, if you don’t have a turbine- in my view - dont (on the inland canals) - invest in solar instead. For next year, will be removing ours and replacing with a larger solar panel.

 

And just for reference, if you see a 913 doing very little in a strong wind - this can happen if the batteries are full  - on ours, the controller applies an electronic brake to reduce the current, in effect stopping/slowing the fan when not needed - for a long time I thought it was faulty until I realised this!

 

just my thoughts..

Edited by boots
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