Adding Wind Generator to 12V Solar

[TXbound]

We have a 300 watt solar system with solar controller connected a single 12 volt house Battery , we would like to add a 1200 watt wind generator with its own controller to the existing 12 volt house battery and inverter, can we do that if so how do we.do it? Thanks

 

[Kevin D Pem]

Yes you can!!

But consider the requirements. The power offered on small units offer very little unless the comfort in the rv is almost unbearable.

Consider this chart

In a 12 mph wind (I would say the start of something uncomfortable), you are talking about 20kwh. How many watts of solar for 8 hours a day would equal 20 kwh of power monthly? Well that would be a 150 watt panel!

The wind generator makes noise, needs to be setup and stored. The panel can be mounted or setup quickly in comparison.

That is the reason most stick with solar!!! Oh! The argument that the generator will produce around the clock fails to hold water, due to the chart above that takes into account wind all the time over a month!

For the record, I am not just reading charts and drawing a conclusion as an engineer would! I did the generator thing and talk with experience!

 

[TXbound]

Yes you can!!

But consider the requirements. The power offered on small units offer very little unless the comfort in the rv is almost unbearable.

Consider this chart
View attachment 19154View attachment 19154

In a 12 mph wind (I would say the start of something uncomfortable), you are talking about 20kwh. How many watts of solar for 8 hours a day would equal 20 kwh of power monthly? Well that would be a 150 watt panel!

The wind generator makes noise, needs to be setup and stored. The panel can be mounted or setup quickly in comparison.

That is the reason most stick with solar!!! Oh! The argument that the generator will produce around the clock fails to hold water, due to the chart above that takes into account wind all the time over a month!

For the record, I am not just reading charts and drawing a conclusion as an engineer would! I did the generator thing and talk with experience!

 

[TXbound]

Hello again, I think I get what your saying, we are thinking of in terms of when there are days when either we have very little sunlight or at night when winds tend to be more consistent and stronger, and running the gas generator is too noisy not to mention costly. I guess my question is what's involved in tapping into the existing 12 volt and inverter and can they run simultaneously with separate controllers? Do you run the wiring under your rig like the solar? Thanks

 

[TheLooks]

I think he is telling you that the ROI is telling you to get more solar and more storage. I grew up in a prime wind area in coastal Maine. The generation just is not there for the cost.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

Hello again, I think I get what your saying, we are thinking of in terms of when there are days when either we have very little sunlight or at night when winds tend to be more consistent and stronger, and running the gas generator is too noisy not to mention costly. I guess my question is what's involved in tapping into the existing 12 volt and inverter and can they run simultaneously with separate controllers? Do you run the wiring under your rig like the solar? Thanks

I know!
My problem is I think others should understand me .

So one panel will produce what the x-air I used as an example. When I tried the generator I had the wize idea of strapping the blades to the back of the rv as I traveled about, so I wouldn't have to disassemble the turbine. First stop I found the tips of the blades had fractured because they caught wind on the tips and vibrated.

Further I found that I will choose a location out of the wind if I have my druthers. Even the forest trees reduce the output.

The x-air has a built-in regulator. Other schemes sink the power to a water tank to slow the turbine to maintain the charging voltage. You can compare it to any other charger. The output is charging voltage, so will work in parallel to your existing system.

And yes as thelooks said, I am suggesting another panel, it will serve you much better.

 

[TXbound]

While we can certainly appreciate what you are saying, adding another panel is not an option since we already have 3 100 watt panels on the roof and there is no room for another one, we would have to go to a whole new system also another panel is not going to provide us power when there is no sun or at night, we are in a very wind prone area 40 miles from the Gulf as the crow flies, average wind speeds 10-20 MPH and we don't have a day or night that we don't have wind gusts sometimes as high as 35mph at present we have 15mph gusts so lack of wind is the least of our problems. By the way we are full time stuck here and not planning on going back on the road anytime soon. This is for emergency power only not boondocking as we are on the power grid. So if you can appreciate what we are saying can you please answer the questions and help us figure this out? Thanks

 

[TXbound]

I think he is telling you that the ROI is telling you to get more solar and more storage. I grew up in a prime wind area in coastal Maine. The generation just is not there for the cost.

ROI is important but we don't have room for anymore panels we already have 3 100 watt panels and it's not going to solve our need for power on cloudy rainy days and at night we only need 300-400 watts anyway.

 

[Kevin D Pem]

OK! You have made up your mind. The most productive small machines have 6 or more blades. The literature will say differently, as the disk has less disturbance with three.
However torque is higher at lower wind speeds. Most all small units should be turned out of the wind around 40mph (Below I will explain what I did to improve output).

Let this link be a guide for your purchase. I don't know if your project already has a generator you are using, if not use the article as a guide.

Marine Wind Generator Test - Practical Sailor

Since 1974, Practical Sailor’s independent testing has taken the guesswork out of boat and gear buying.

www.practical-sailor.com

I used my generator for an anchor watch alarm. No way would I attach one to the rig. Two basic charge controllers are available. One sinks extra current to a heating element (think water heater). The other shorts out the rotor ( think motor regen). Both do the same thing. As you see in the article, some have the regulator built-in others have a separate controller.

Remember the mast and guys, as part of the cost.

As promised:


I discovered that changes in wind speed gave the gyro effects of the turbine opportunity to turn out of the wind. I built a servo system that would turn the turbine into the wind at a predetermined wind speed (used a paddle switch for wind speed sensor) the sensor was mounted to a wind vain, used for wind direction. The servo would serve to overcome the gyro action of the turbine...


With the right wind speed sensor, you could also have the servo turn the turbine out of the wind enough to slow the blades enough to keep them from auto distruct mode, and still have the generator produce.

 

[TheLooks]

Your out of my realm now, but I think Kevin has it in hand. My life experience says the cost is not worth the return. YMMV. Best of luck.