Is This 💰Cheap Turbine💰 Really 400 Watts? Best Value for 2020?

[@harrybrown4815]

I have a version of this it has been aloft for 2 years and 5 months with no issues in the 12 volt charging configuration which produces 200watt from 10mph constance breeze. I have yet to have it in the 24volt config 400watt The only part of the system I would do different is... invest in deep cycle 2 volt batteries

[@EyeAmAwakeEyeAmAware]

Why 2 volt?

[@dougselsam]

It is physically impossible for a turbine of that tiny diameter to make 200 Watts in a 10 MPH wind as any wind turbine person can tell you. There is very little power in a 10 MPH wind. :)

[@harrybrown4815]

@@EyeAmAwakeEyeAmAware 6 x 2 volt = 12 volt array deep cycle batteries like those found in fork lifts and the like if one 2 volt cell goes down or goes bad it is easily replaced rather then the whole array.

[@xxshevilxx]

4:54 You didn't just put the unprotected wires through an unprotected freshly drilled hole in a metal pipe, did you? Shocking.

[@neilgarvie3887]

@@EyeAmAwakeEyeAmAware rrr

[@Retiredkiwi]

Researching blade diameter for the output you want, is the best way to spot the lies in ads, but my one even lied there too, claiming 1.5m diameter, but also claimed it was double its actual true weight. Forgotten now, but think 1.2kw in moderate wind, would need something like 4m diameter minimum, and a big copper wound generator will not be light. Mine is still running, with 2 equally cheap car wide angle led spot lights mounted on its pole, and max's at 8.4 amps at 12 volts in a gale, which light up the backyard nicely on such occasions, which is all its good for(garden ornament) .

[@davefroman4700]

I Skipped the toys and went for real power. Twin 2kw turbines and 8kw of solar. It was cheaper than getting a line installed.

[@humbleevidenceaccepter7712]

I installed a similar 400W model from another mfr at an off grid cabin. I used a guyed pole attached to a large hinge at the base. I can lower and raise the pole with a winch. Took about 6 months for the turbine to break in. In strong gusts, I will briefly get 2-300 watts, but usually get around 50 watts in a moderate breeze. Works great at night when no power is coming in from solar panels.

[@t.h.o.r.]

My small turbine lost a blade in a storm- We never -ever found it!

[@Retiredkiwi]

i bought a 6 blade 1.5 meter dia unit, claimed to be 1400 watts. But on unpacking was only 1.1m diameter, and a fraction of the weight i expected. So spun it up with an allen key in its shaft (no blades) with a 1100 watt power drill on high speed. Best loaded reading i got was 9.7 amps at 13..8 volts.(supplied controller, and halogen lamps as load) In actual use even in a storm, it never turns that fast, mostly in a good wind, the best it ever steady outputs is 3- 4 amps(peak gusts 6amps) I Would never buy anything without an output warranty now. (if its cheap, its unlikely to be good) Read up about diameter actually needed for a given output, you need big blades for any useful amount of power.

[@RichardSMaloney]

i saw your two videos with windmills and thank you for such indepth and accurate videos.

[@Blu3duk]

We ran the old Airex 40 watt alternators 17 years ago on our remote broadband towers, what a waste of money at that time for the power generated. And noisy, similar size blades and folks could hear them running a mile and a half away [of course we were on top of hill above everyone] one thing about wind power, it needs to be 20 to 30 feet ABOVE any obstacles within 200 meters, preferably gr8r distance, which is why the old timers towers were often 85 to 100 feet tall on the plains states. For warming AND cooling year round, dig into the earth about 3 meters deep you will find a constant temperature, using PVC drain pipe in trenches [providing enough land to lay several pipes side by side 400 plus feet] and a blower, the constant temperature will allow for tropical fruit to be grown in the northern climates! Yes more spendy than a wind generator, but it works well. Have an awesome time with experimenting, it is how we all learn!!

[@razony]

I tried something similar a year ago. While setting up, I realized something. 'A breeze way.' That walk way in between a building that catches the wind and compresses the wind out the back end. Breeze Way! Now take a 4-6 Foot diameter PVC tubbing around 40' long elevate it off the ground with some baffling and air break and you can control some of the outake air flow. I'm working on this and the airflow is insane consistent even when you feel no wind. I'm gathering the wind and forcing it through the pipe, turning the fan that turns the motor that powers...It freaking works!

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Cool. Let me know when you have it finished, I would love to see it.

[@CanonFirefly]

The battery is the load for the windmill as it's effectively a battery charger. When you turn on the the lamps you are putting load on the battery, not the windmill. You can't measure amperage without a load. The current you're measuring is the load, the work being done is the charging of the battery.

[@pietperske3583]

I was going to point this out as well.

[@Ezzell_]

Yes...and since the battery is almost charged fully...your current load decreases.

[@thonatim5321]

I like to explain it this way. The energy has nowhere to go if the batteries are full and there is nothing to consume the power: hence no load. If there is no load, there is no wattage because V * I = W. So voltage can be present without load and current will not be flowing.

[@joshblick]

Get some locktite instead of lock washers. You don't have to worry about sizing and you can use for more applications.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Good tip! appreciate it!

[@Back2SquareOne]

I have known several people who have tried to make use of low end (

[@ghostridergale]

I retired at 40 years old too, but not cause I wanted to. Unfortunately my health failed me at 40 and couldn’t work any longer and had to go on disability as much as I hated to! Regardless I’m still trying to live life as easily and cheaply as possible. Where I live it’s windy most often then not. So wind power be a great option here too. I do have a 100 watt solar system on my chicken coop for power that does a alright job during the summer. Not too great during our short daylight winters though! Adding a wind power system probably do the job when the winter sun not long enough to keep battery charged!

[@ramanasei421]

I use to work in the Solar Industry. If I use to use any Chinese equipment, I use to assume that it will perform only 50% from it rated capacity. e.g. if I had a 200 watts Solar Panel, I use to consider that I should be happy if it gave me 100 watts. That way I was never felt disappointed!

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

I completely agree. It's not just solar panels, it's that way with most everything chinese made!

[@sbkenn1]

There was a new material invented about 30 years ago called Chinesium. It is only slightly different from pure shite.

[@oldmanriver1057]

The 400 watt wind generator that I have uses heavier whire ( 10 gage ) and the nose contrast a nut holding in place!

[@What_Its_All_About]

Wind turbines for full output are rated from 65 ft for straight line winds with no rotor thats why it says up to 400 watts. Poor placement will effect the output.

[@techlab-gi1uz]

Each wind gen should have a mount height requirement. Mine says in the manual 4.5 to 6m, which is 15 to 20 Feet.

[@revanmandalore4407]

@@techlab-gi1uz rule of thumb with wind turbines: 4.5-6m means from peak of home NOT the ground. Lol Amateur mistake. Ex: if u have a 2 story house ur windmill needs to be 4.5-6m above ur 2nd story to catch prevailing winds.

[@PipeManPeep]

@kcotte59 that is true, but HAWTs don't work well in turbulent air. In order to catch a nice smooth stream of air, you need to get up above anything that might create turbulence, such as a house. If you can get a steady 10MPH at 4ft. great! No need for a huge pole. You'll greatly increase your chances at 4.5-6m above the house though.

[@ramzy1013]

In my my neighbors backyard she installed a 12x10 shed two years ago with that shed now in the backyard. The turbulence of the wind is much greater. We now hear howling and get snow drifts we never had before. So I can see why you would want the turbine up above the structures in that area

[@bitteroldman3151]

@@revanmandalore4407 The gobment has a map showing the average wind speeds/direction in your area. They also specify clear air, meaning no ground obstructions that create turbulence, reducing wind turbine life and efficiency.

[@surfjerr]

If you have a good battery bank and some solar the wind mill would just be a special treat keeping those battery's fed and toped off !

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

yes!

[@DavidLang1975]

If you want to heat something, use solar thermal. basically lots of black rubber garden hose and a water tank. much more efficient than solar panel or wind.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

cool thanks for the tip. I'll check it out!

[@71160000]

I built a beer can heater years ago. It has rows of cans painted black with a hole down the middle of each row. Built as a thermoplane it raises inside temp. by fifty degrees on a sunny day and creates it's own airflow so no fan required. It fits in one of the windows to my den and slopes outside at an angle perpendicular to the height of the sun for maximum efficiency. Each fall I put it in the window and remove it each spring. It likely provides a good portion of my day time heating in my home and only blocks the lower ten inches of the window. Cost around fifty dollars to build and I've used it year after year. For a greenhouse it would be a good heating addition during the daytime.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Very cool! I will see what i can come up. I guess i'll have to come up with a way to empty some beer cans🤣

[@71160000]

@@thefreezedryingcommunity Invite a bunch of friends over or a few construction workers. Mine uses around 120 cans. It's made from foil faced styrofoam with a greenhouse corrugated panel to hold in the heat. It's a double layer with the lower layer pulling in indoor air and the upper layer returned the heated air into the house.

[@willdwyer6782]

I wouldn't use anything with a built-in charge controller. I'd want a dual use controller that can use solar and wind input to charge the battery because it's often windy when it's not sunny and it's often sunny when it's not windy.

[@FixitMyWay]

In my experience with wind vane self-steering sailboat units, I learned that a wedge shaped (v-shaped) tail fin is much more stable than a flat tail fin. The wedge prevents hunting while pointing directly into the wind because there is pressure on both sides of the wedge which keeps the wedge from wandering. Place a tab on one side of the wedge fin to achieve torque speed control. This reduced hunting will reduce gyroscopic precession stress on the bearings and on the blades. It should also increase the average power produced because of reduced hunting. What say you to that?

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

All great ideas. I appreciate the tips!

[@ruthcostea5633]

Thank you

[@chriscodrington5464]

Arf?

[@bicanoo_magic3452]

Hey,nice tip.thanks.

[@dysfunctional_vet]

were you able to do any smoke studies on the wedge to see how far back the turbulence starts? you can see it on flag poles (wind speed factors) usually around the end of the 3 foot flag. i ask this as that turbulence will also affect the (apparent wind in sailing) but also the self seeking wind vane. i appreciate that observation of yours. my degree is in green energy and the wind turbines i know are all computer controlled and turned, held in place by brakes if needed. i kayak, but i would love to have a 30 foot off shore brig

[@dalemurray4083]

From the height of those trees you are down in the turbulence from them.. The wind speed will be deceptive in that the turbulence doesn't deliver its power in one direction. You need to put it up above those wind breaks to get full efficiency. Among those trees you need solar panels or a higher tower.

[@MrSummitville]

It is still an over-priced piece of junk ...

[@Wildcat5181]

How about an automotive alternator with the diode bridge altered to flow only AC? The average alternator peaks at ~1700 RPM, and you can install an external voltage regulator to boost the voltage up to around 17 volts. An alternator can pump out 130 Amps.

[@carlcox7332]

Thats why welders and jumper cables have such thick cable. Some welding machines are only around 12v but theyre at least 90 amps or more and using 14 gauge extension cord will burn in half in less than a couple seconds or catch on fire if you try to jump your car off with it

[@peterfitzpatrick7032]

Why would you want ro take the diodes out and produce AC only to have to rectify it again to DC to charge a battery ? And whats with the 17volts ? 🤔 BTW an alternator produces 3 phase AC before being rectified & regulated... 🙄

[@peterfitzpatrick7032]

@@carlcox7332 nope... 🙄

[@Wildcat5181]

@@peterfitzpatrick7032 Not to convert to DC, but use the AC.

[@Wildcat5181]

@@peterfitzpatrick7032 An automotive alternator can only produce ~ 17 volts.

[@bernardlash4169]

Bought a air 400 20 years ago still works. But it usually puts out between 50 to 150.watts. but have seen 30 amps on many.storms. but screams when to much wind.

[@ibenripped]

To see 400 watts you need to have a 20 amp load. Watts are a product of amps load times volts. No load = no watts. Amps aren't pushed, amps are drawn by load creating watts.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Thanks for the info!

[@kenbarnett9415]

Great point! I never even thought about that, but my charge controller only shows the amps as they are drawn(on the battery amps), not what is in the batteries. This is after the batteries are full of course.

[@PHPRunnerTipsAndTricks]

Exactly. Amps are drawn by the load. No load, No amps.

[@Claymore1977]

@@kenbarnett9415 lol batteries don't have amps "in" them per se. what the actual fuck are you talking about?

[@oldbatwit5102]

@@Claymore1977 I broke open a car battery the other day and all the amps fell out.

[@glenn9892]

I appreciate the review of the wind turbine. I am running 8 100 watt solar panels and I have been thing about adding two wind turbines. I quit buying anything from amazon. They will sell you anything to make money.

[@vtorsi610]

Do you live where it is very WINDY?

[@glenn9892]

@@vtorsi610 Not the majority of time. I have one wind turbine and now I am adding to my solar panels.

[@LiezerZero]

I myself would parallel the break switch with a electronic relay (inside the break switch housing case) controlled by a micro controller with sensors tapped into the AMP reader, So it would switch on/off the breaks for me depending on my logic.

[@manolisgledsodakis873]

And also the brake?

[@willysigei4414]

What's the price I need one

[@kirkalbright7933]

@@willysigei4414 0

[@jimholmes2555]

I had the Southwest Wind Air 303 many years ago. When it burned up, I sent it in for repair. At no charge to me, they upgraded it to the Air 403. After about 4 years it failed, I called Southwest Wind, They told me they would repair the 403 for free or for $100 they would upgrade it to the new Air X. I was a little strapped for money at the time so I just went for the free 403 repair. After I got it back, The work order showed that they upgraded it to the new Air X.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Sounds like great customer service!

[@mr.janhe_10]

Thanks for the tips! I really liked the vid: good speed, clear voice, straight to the point...that's what vids should be like. Good job!

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

thanks for watching

[@artsmith103]

If you test again, think about the SOC of the battery. Maybe your relatively smell battery was mostly full thus reducing rotor speed and wattage.

[@colconn57]

The Controller is built into the unit. 15 volts is the nominal output on the load side of the controller and 19 volts is probably no load maximum as set in the controller. Its more than possible for the wattage output to continue climbing while maintaining 15 v output since the unit was just not going fast enough you probably be able to get 400 watts out of it in perfect conditions (constant 50mph winds I guess)

[@gilroyjones4601]

Just use black duck industrial grade duct tape and maybe strengthen the whole thing with a metal exoskeleton and to put a little solar panel somewhere on there... To power a camera & light combo perhaps, to keep an independently powered eye on the whole affair.

[@conmcgrath7502]

I have had an unfortunate relationship with a German supplier of these EXACT LOOKING and RATED wind gens. The ones I purchased were rated for Marine applications and all had the internal 'brake' to prevent burnouts etc (yes, rated 400W). Professionally installed with the test brake proven, they burnt out within weeks, replaced under warranty, they burnt out within six weeks( at 0.2 miles offshore) again...the company admitted there was a problem and supplied a diverting 'dump load' which was professionally installed and indeed the excess power was diverted until the battery bank was depleted and the generators burned out AGAIN in moderate/high winds...these gens cannot handle the power they are made to generate....I have seen a documentary about people living 'off-grid' in the Shetlands, talking about the storm that blew their generator up, guess which gen it was and where it comes from?. Be wary, be told! Conor, Marine Navigational Aids Engineer

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Do you know the name of the mother company?

[@conmcgrath7502]

@@thefreezedryingcommunity I believe the product was called Air X Marine 24v also referred to as the Air Breeze, they were supplied by Sky Stream Energy (.eu) and appear (to me) to be identical to the one you show above...is there a LED in the tail that flashes to indicate the unit operating mode? I don't know the mother company but I suspect a strong composition of 'chinesium' in it's manufacture.... Your question caused me to go through my records and I WAS WRONG to suggest they burned out supplying power (they are actually pretty good at that), the problem is when they go into self regulating mode either because the upper volt limit is reached OR because the wind exceeds a certain speed. We fitted a diverting 'Dump Load' (Morning Star?) but that could never solve the internal 'high wind speed' brake and the generators burned out again...not a pretty situation; customer p'eed off, me p'eed off, local agent p...etc etc. This was circa 2010/2011 and maybe the problem has since been solved (might be a good idea to establish date of manufacture for your unit)? I would DEF recommend a dump load (Morning Star?) and that needn't be wasted energy either; consider a low voltage element to heat a water tank? THEN thermostat THEN Dump Load...... I hope this info is useful to you. I attach below one of many emails regarding the problems we had, absolutely no reason that you might want or need to read it ....unless you're very bored! Regards, Con In all it's glory... from me; Hello xxxx, further to our recent phone conversation and discussion of the provision of external Load Dumps /regulator circuits for the Wind Generator sites in xxxx Port, I can add the following....... Initial reports (and events) suggest the failure of one or both Wind gen units (again). I will visit and inspect both sites to confirm, hopefully this Thur/Fri 13-14 Jan 2011 or very soon thereafter. My initial reaction to fitting external Dump/Regulator is positive BUT I have a very genuine concern that this WILL NOT provide a complete solution for the following reason; The unit as described in the Product Sheets and Product Manual not only 'Brakes' or Regulates at the upper voltage levels but it ALSO 'Brakes' in high wind speeds. IF the unit failures are due to the inability of the Internal Regulation Circuitry to withstand/short the Coil output over time (which is a design error, lets face it) then a carefully selected and set external regulator can indeed 'dump' the excess power BEFORE the internal circuitry is engaged at close to battery capacity levels.... HOWEVER, this does not account for the 'High Wind Speed' regulation, which I am reasonably sure may persist for prolonged periods on any site; As described, the Wind Speed Regulation SHOULD be a 'separate mechanism' from the high voltage threshold, (this is presented as an ABSOLUTE, ie. the unit 'brakes' above a certain wind speed, the implication is that it hasn't necessarily approached High Voltage Levels), therefore, an external Reg/Dump will not be engaged and the initial problem will persist.....and the units will fail again............. The above is reasoned speculation balanced with observation and experience......I would hope to eliminate the speculation and propose a way forward...... Firstly; I will copy this e-mail to Port of xxxx Authority. Secondly; I will attend on site, report findings and/or remove the Gens for return as appropriate. Meanwhile, I would hope that you will address the issues raised with the Manufacturer and also review the previous failures on site against any 'other' known issues. Thirdly; I will await your input and discuss with Port of xxxx. I cannot speak for the customer, but for myself I would say the choices are twofold; either accept that a properly engineered solution is probable, practical and provided in a timely fashion, OR.... .........Reject the Wind Gen units as 'unsuitable to purpose'......such subsequent actions as they may take, given the recorded failures and investment of 'man-hours' to attend......one can only speculate...... That's it, we are all 'sick of' the failures in xxxx and a solution is required; we had one, if only the Wind Gens performed as specified. Regards (more like regrets), Connor Mc Grath Principal Engineer ATON Services Ireland

[@Inflec]

+Con McGrath - The idea of shorting the generator's output in high winds to "brake" the turbine is crazy on its face. It is a sure guarantee to burn out the generator windings. It reminds me of a comment I once read in a DIY wind power book about the old Wincharger units that used an airbrake mechanism attached to the rotor which would deploy by having two revolving flaps mush into the airstream, slowing the rotor by aerodynamic drag. The author compared it to applying the brakes on a car while keeping the accelerator depressed. What is needed is both a manual and automatic means to *furl* the machine--something that is totally missing from these units. Ah, well, nothing like reinventing the wheel.

[@martinsaunders7925]

The heart of a wind generator is the design of the blades followed by the tail.The more power absorbed by the blades the more torque resistance is required of the tail.IN CLEAN AIR.Turbulence,downdrafts and vortexes interfere with output.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

👍

[@jasonhale4639]

I bought one similar to this and had an issue with the slip ring assembly unthreading inside. I ended up drilling a hole in the side of it and threading the hole for a set screw to keep the slip ring assembly from unthreading and it worked fine after that.

[@compjobs518]

Those electric sp breaks will burn out in sustained winds. Better free wheel option for you

[@micheleolson9914]

A short while back, when I was checking into wind turbines, I remember that states can have wind maps. The maps tell you the average wind speeds in a given area, can't remember if it was for each month. Additional helpful information was the suggested height to catch said wind. Most poles should be a minimum of 30 ft, and much taller to capture wind, especially higher than surrounding buildings and trees. Maybe that is a partial reason for it's poor performance? Thank you for the informative video, as always.

[@rackets7991]

For the bolts you can use nail polish to prevent loosening and elastic stop nuts.. They are less likely to loosen up...

[@Undergroundexpedition]

Nylon lock nuts

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

yes!👍

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Yes!👍

[@berryswan8172]

Have had one for 7 years. It has survived so far 4 hurricanes. have had to change the blades twice, but she's still going!

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Good to know! Thanks

[@MrSummitville]

@Berry Swan - Where do live? What is the average wind speed?

[@uglifist309]

Seeing this first time 2021, luv it

[@spockmcoyissmart961]

the problem with wind turbines? You need steady, strong winds. Any turbine I've looked at worth anything needs at least 12mph wind. I don't have that in my area. Not to mention you need a lot of height to maximize any wind effect you have, plus unobstructed 'tower fall' area 360 degrees around tower by many local codes. In plain English, if your tower falls in any direction, it must not be able to hit power lines, structures, roads, etc.

[@georgetucker336]

Great report. I found a lot of things I have bought the out put does not match the advertisement for the item. Last item was a wood stove.

[@headdown1]

A small fan behind a woodstove does an amazing job of spreading the heat and seems to extract more BTUs from the hot metal than if there is no breeze. I probably don't need to tell you to always burn with a flame showing...smouldering a fire is inefficient and turns potential fuel (smoke) into creosote inside your chimney.

[@Cubestone]

I noticed in the video (about a year old now) you said the installation was temporary. Got it. I hope your permanent installation was a good bit further from the house or frequently occupied areas. I've seen a number of turbine blades rapidly disassemble and they are quite dangerous. Brakes can and do fail in high wind. Also, the higher you can mount the better the wind. Hope your machine is doing well.

[@t.h.o.r.]

My turbine lost a blade- We never ever found it! (two years now)

[@gentlelove]

I make lock nuts by putting rubber cement on the inside of the lock nut letting it dry for about a half a minute and then screwing it on to the bolt or threaded rod. It works very well. Shalom

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Cool! it's similar to lock tite then. Thanks for the tip

[@gentlelove]

@@thefreezedryingcommunity and ounce per ounce it's cheaper shalom

[@chrisw1462]

When choosing a wind turbine, consider three things: The rated wattage, the _rated wind speed_ , and, most important, your local seasonal wind conditions. This model says its rated wind speed is 28 mph, which means it needs 28 mph winds to reach the rated 400 watts. How often do you see 28 mph winds in your area? If the average wind speed in your area is half, you get roughly half the power (it's not really a linear relationship, but it's close enough for guesstimates). In this case, we'd need to know the average wind speed for the winter heating season in his area, and the average wattage needed to heat the greenhouse (harder to calculate than the wind!). If you putt a wattmeter on the heaters on a typical 24 hr period, that's a good number to start. Say the average wind speed is 14 mph - that means under ideal conditions, we'd get about 200 watts, average, from the wind turbine. 200 watts times 24 hrs is 4.8 KW-hrs. Lets say you have a 1000 watt heater. You monitor it for a day and find out it uses 10 KW-hrs. This shows you need at least an 800 watt wind turbine to take over almost all of the heating load during _average_ conditions. A 1000 or 1500 watt unit would be better to compensate for multiple days of slow or no wind. Of course, you'd have to run the same calculations with real numbers to get what you want.

[@realtruth1448]

Chris W facts, so basically if you have low winds say no more than 10 MPH wind just have 2-3 wind turbines that are for low wind so you can get 2-3 times that power, so for low wind speeds 3-10 MPH I’d get 3 200 watt wind turbines that can effectively run at that wind speed and still push in 600 watts of power, combo with solar panels you now have effective offgrid power to watch tv run a fridge washer, etc rtc

[@chrisw1462]

@@realtruth1448 What you're saying is essentially true. The issue is the trade-off for getting power from lower wind speed is size. Sure you can design a turbine to get some power from 5 mph winds, but it's going to be relatively large and costly for the amount of power you get, and it won't work well in higher winds. Those huge wind towers dotting the countryside aren't there to impress - their size is a trade-off of output power versus cost (total cost, including maintenance, transmission lines...). These small wind turbines are great, because you can do your own maintenance for very little cost, and if you can't repair them you don't beggar yourself replacing them. There is an old adage among wind turbine aficionados you might want to keep in mind: Every 10 feet in height adds about 5 mph average wind speed. I'm not sure how accurate it is, number-wise, but it is certainly true that average wind speed increases with altitude. So where five feet off your single-story roof might barely turn the blades, a 30-40 foot tower could give you consistent power. Also, keep the turbine 10 feet (3 meters) above any nearby obstructions. Placing it so close to his house, and apparently lower then the roof peak the way he did, will definitely cut your power output.

[@realtruth1448]

Chris W if you know a certain area rarely or never gets high wind speeds getting a 200 watt turbine, 3-4 of them you’re producing 600-800 watts which in combo with solar panels can more than enough produce power offgrid and live exactly the same as ongrid with lower maintenance also there’s small wind turbines that start turning at 3-5 MPH wind and can handle up to 50-60 MPH and 50-60 MPH would only hit that area if tornado or hurricane hits which you wouldn’t have to worry about if you pick nice area, the trade off is better, just have to know the weather and climate of your area, from my future offgrid home It’s never colder than 20 degrees F and never hotter than 95 degrees F and the winds rarely are over 20 MPH, also it gets cloudy during a 4 month period 75% of the time during that 4 month period that means my solar panels plus 3-4 200 WATT wind turbines can effectively provide me power year round without high maintenance or anything of that sorts, I can watch tv have wifi fridge washer dryer etc etc and still have power left over,

[@realtruth1448]

Chris W building a two story house, the point I will put turbines will be nearly 25ft off the ground which they will catch efficient wind, plus very simple and easy maintenance on a 200 WATT wind turbine because they’re small and low priced you can get an elite 200 WATT wind turbine for a little as 100$ and it works like a charm... if you want top of the line it’s still not running you more than 300$, boom 4 wind turbines 200 watt for 400$-1200$ and they’ll last for decades... simple and effective, going offgrid in Canada because the United States is going to shit

[@chrisw1462]

@@realtruth1448 Nice! Free power is always a good thing! I have a bunch of relatives in northeastern NY, 20 miles from Canada (south of Ogdensburg, if you know it), and that's cold enough for me, thanks! I moved to the southern US for a reason! :-)

[@M13x13M]

Beware of plumbing-fittings !!! They aren’t structural . The cut pipe threads significantly decrease the strength of the pipe. Only use slip fit type pipe joints. (speed rail) . I learned the hard way.

[@M13x13M]

Also wing turbines need to be installed as high as possible .

[@duanenavarre7234]

A semi passive heat method for greenhouses is compost. Some ppl even make wheelie bin water heaters as it can raise water temp to 130 F. Different things make more or less heat, I heard chickens, that will give a boost.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

cool. thanks!

[@vincentconti3633]

That is true and very cool! Well warm! Just for the heck of it I ran a small coil of plastic tubing in a pile of pig manure I collected from my neighbors pigs here in the Peruvian Andes...the water was scalding! PS. This is one of the very few things that they do not use. People with one or two chanchos they feed with potato peels, corn husks and various kitchen scraps. After boiling potatoes or pasta they feed the pigs with carbohydrate filled cooking water,!! That is thrift. Where do we send that water? Just sayin'

[@williamswan9114]

Yes and methane from composting and manure can be trapped inside polyurethane bladder burned off

[@ramzy1013]

My grass clippings if left in the grass catcher bag gets very hot. Never thought of using it for energy source

[@vengeancetechnologies1792]

Easy upgrade path too... Convert to active by better caulking and a match 😂

[@whitetiger432]

You should also add an extra nut with the lock washers a lot of vibrating be going on

[@jbhobbyist9372]

Mine went on really well and it didn't crack because I didn't smack it on with my hand! Sometimes you need to be gentle everything isn't wham bam!

[@BoB4jjjjs]

No, but sometimes they make then just a little to much to the lower end of the scale. But he was a bit rough, but I would have thought it would have stood that without to much trouble.

[@romiadam5697]

Very good video. Thanks. The best way how o measure the power of wind turbine is the same as for solar panel. Wind turbine power output is slightly exponential. To do power review is the best to measure the power at different wind speeds. Thus you must know the wind speed when ou are doing the measurement (at solar panel it is sun light intensity). Then at that specific wind speed, measure the PV characteristic of the wind turbine. Measure voltage at different loads by using two multimeters 0.1A, 0.3A, 0.6A, 1A,....10A, 12A,... these values might be your choice and draw PV characteristic of the wind turbine. Measure it quickly while the wind speed will not significantly change). As a load you can use powerful reostat which will hold 10-20A load or lot of light bulbs, which will be connected parallel to load. Then from your measurement find the peak of the power (current * voltage) at the current wind speed. That is the actual power of you wind turbine at that win speed. As stronger the wind is as more peak power you will measure on PV characteristic, so repeat this measurement at stronger wind or weaker wind. Then you can publish the table of the maximum power of this wind turbine at specific wind speed. That publishes 400W might be output for hurricane wind speed, not for average wind speed in urban or rural are. That is the trick of the manufacturers.

[@MrSummitville]

I calculate ~32 MPH wind for 400 watts output ...

[@soddoffbaldrick2209]

Probably needs to be installed higher up. The Ideal height is at least 65 feet (yes I really mean that 20m/65F) which is terrifically high and you need some serious gear to get it up that high. But you did get some decent speed out of it in the demo. Probably best to track the current with properly configured wind turbine charge controller as it charges into the battery (the battery load will be the load). But you are probably right - the windings and field strength on these cheap things generally are way lower than required to produce the rated capacity at the rated RPM. Keep in mind though that rated capacity is at the MAXIUM recommended speed. So if you know the max RPM you spin it up artificially (with a power drill etc) to the max and then read off the power from the charge controller. You will probably find it is well short of the rated capacity.

[@hillyermom]

If you're old enough to remember the bicycle generators... You'd remember the resistance that it causes. Much like short circuiting a battery, NO LOAD is not the way to test it's capabilities. Especially given that your concern was the speed of the fan. Full load, should act similar to semi-truck using their engine brakes. It is my belief that larger loads, will allow more stability in windy conditions.

[@kenbarnett6706]

Nice! The thing to remember with solar and wind turbines, is that they don't power or want a "load" at all, the ONLY job for them is to charge batteries, you should add several batteries (4 or more), you know you have enough batteries when they barely loose a charge or stay full all of the time with a 24/7 load. The only time you don't need a battery bank with wind & solar is if you are using them to pump water to fill a stock pond or container, in that case the stored water is stored energy that you can use!

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Thanks Ken. What type of solar panels do you use?

[@petezel]

Charging batteries IS A LOAD. Energy being transferred to a storage medium is work being done, that is the very definition of power.

[@oovii808]

so true!

[@richardgross9132]

Poky buildslt

[@buzzsah]

I have been running one for 10 years with 6, 12volt group 31 deep cycle batteries. I bought mine on ebay and made to a sail boat so it holds up to the salt seeing I am 5 blocks from the water.

[@teresaparker9477]

Their information did say UP TO 400 watts. When it's worded that way, it's usually not anywhere close to their number. Good video. Keep them coming.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Oh man. I would not that anywhere near me or anything that has any value. IF it could do that it would be a scary sight. Still a good windmill for the money though.

[@johnward5890]

If you want the watts measure the amp draw in to the battery and multiply it by the Voltage at the same time as you measure the amps and that will give you the watts, like 30 amps X 13.8 volts = 414 watts so if this wind turbine is rated for 400 watts and Battery's like a charge voltage of 13.8 volts like a car battery than the amps should be around 28.99 amps

[@David_Quinn1995]

thank you for the video, I almost bought this to add to my grid but for 190W I might as well spend more for a panel.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

A turbine and solar combo would be best

[@David_Quinn1995]

@@thefreezedryingcommunity will have to look into it

[@rich1879]

Sept 2020 Amazon seller price is 399.00 plus 140.00 for shipping, WHAT A RIP OFF.

[@jimmysparks315]

Yep.. 150watts was my best guess when you unpacked it.. 400watts would need to be a much bigger unit with bigger blades...

[@fishhuntadventure]

If I could get 150W out of that I would be thinking that's great! that would be 10A in other words 10Ah if the winds were steady - that would be a nice addendum to my solar. But I don't think it can do that

[@hassanel-hajj3234]

u need a controller booster to stabilise the output of charger volts

[@Paul-gz5dp]

It looks like it needs a charge controller external so it does not overcharge the battery, and that putting a buck/boost inverter on it with a 14.5v output you would be set.

[@stevelecaz5863]

This is correct, over 13.8v, the battery will eventually sustain damage. Ideally, you need a MPPT charge controller (the most efficient) ***nice location!!!!

[@ExperiencedGhost]

Someone else had done a test with different wind turbines, it was chinese version that could deliver what it had promised. All 3 other American brands couldn't keep up with their promise. The brake is for when you have higher wind speed.

[@PHPRunnerTipsAndTricks]

For me, if the amps were low, it means that the battery was not empty. An empty battery will draw more amps. You can't test it the way you did.

[@carlcox7332]

Amperage has to be tested in series of the circuit with a load on the system. Some meters claim you can test amperage in parallel but it will never be an acurate reading. It'll just show that there are electeons traveling through the wire. If the battery is low then it becomes the load on the system. Amps is the flow of electrons as the name "current" implies

[@mikepruett1745]

up too 400w ............. this is good with solar system too

[@unsilencedman]

Wow this landscape at 3:44 looks like my Albertan backyard!

[@cardobear]

I was about to say, that looks like Calgary.

[@thonatim5321]

.223 for those Coyotes too. One by one.

[@scoutworks]

@@thonatim5321 I had the same thoughts

[@michaelmcclafferty3346]

Very helpful. Thank you. I didn't know how to calculate the wattage until now. You are second person today to say that these mini turbines exaggerate their output wattage. I live in north- east Scotland overlooking the sea and fitted solar panels and an air source heat pump to reduce my fuel bills. I'm wary now about mini wind turbines after your video. Thanks.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

combine solar and a good turbine. they work at night and on bad weather days

[@danielvivian3282]

When I was in my 20s I worked for employers that wanted me to enrich them and wanted to retire. In my 50s as I got closer to real retirement I began to think. What will I do with my time? I can't stay in my house watching the paint dry. Then I found a cause. Move the planet off fossil fuels and onto renewable energy. Now I work away happily on things that matter and could care less about retirement. The key is to do something meaningful that you enjoy. Good luck with your work.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

you are right. sometimes it takes an entire life to figure out what is important (happiness).

[@mattbruns239]

So what is it you do then

[@danielvivian3282]

@@mattbruns239 I have a small consulting business and help people to move their homes and buildings off fossil fules and onto renewable energy. The key is heat pumps and solar panels for space heating and domestic hot water. My website is buildingsciencetrust.com

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

👌

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

happiness is key. glad you found your path

[@acmefixer1]

Open circuit voltage is not meaningful. You have to read the charge current from the ammeter while it's connected to the battery. What would be the maximum is the maximum current rating of the rectifier diode. Typically the alternator puts out AC which is rectified to DC. Could be a bridge rectifier or separate diodes. Cheap plastic nosecone needs to be built less cheaply. 👍 Thanks for the video.

[@jongamez4086]

A dab of lock-tite would also keep the nuts/bolts together.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Yes👍

[@stevelamperta865]

Looks like a rewired ceiling fan motor ! Its identical actually !

[@TehMagilla]

Spring washers are useless. If you don't want the nuts to undo, use nylock nuts.

[@johndoes2434]

I think it'd be interesting idea to put one of these on a van or a box truck if people living out of now and seeing if it would be a good supplement on the days that you don't have Sunshine for the solar panels

[@smilncynic]

I appreciate the work you put into this!

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@QUADBOYification]

There are a few problems that arise if you install a wind turbine. Basically they operate efficiently only on high speed winds. That's why they claim 400 Watt peak. You also have to consider the wiring making up for losses up to more than 10 meters or more because of it's internal resistance. Really heavy Gage is preferred. It drops fast every meter you use with mediocre wires. A load detachment circuit is advised by using a big heavy capacitor and a rectifier bridge letting you charge the capacitor first and that on its turn is feeding the load. The speed of the wind turbine stays high that way because it has no real load. A trick to consider, done in almost all power supplies inside appliances, audio equipment etc. Btw, rectifiers can also be made with 3 Phase generators, just need 2 diodes more in total 6 making good DC. Probably more than 12v. That's why you need to feed the variable DC voltage with a Capacitor into a DC-DC converter (90%) or a solar controller to the battery. It's sounds complicated, it isn't.

[@vdgitaliano]

These can work... If you have several of them like a small wind farm. We did it on a cabin in the middle of nowhere and were able to produce enough power for two large yacht batteries kept fully charged and extra. Granted the wind is necessary, and we also use solar, but between the two we are off grid.

[@norbertwedler6415]

The question is, if you get 10 amp on average strong wind than you have not a bad outcome compared with other expensive generators. But if you would have only like 2 amp on 30 kn than it would be a failure. The problem is, that the seller put 400w on promotion

[@perrymattes4285]

Lock washers don’t work in plastic to well better to use lock tight or nylon locking nuts.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

nylocks!

[@valeriab9735]

Thank you for your review of this product. You save alot if people from wasting their income.

[@dramc-ov3cp]

With the annoying background music, I wasn't able to tell if the noise I was hearing was the turbine. Is it dead silent like it's supposed to be, or is that rubbing noise the turbine?

[@humbertini900]

Great insight into the build just subscribed and it’s a nice compact turbine I also have built a homemade 650 watts wind turbine, a treadmill motor turbine and a little but powerful ametek 30v turbine and built 2 diy solar panels, be careful in high winds one of my first turbines blew up 😕and now have only 2 wonderful turbines working daily 😊it’s very satisfying watching those things working, keep up the good work buddy 👍

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

I used an ametek motor on a garden windmill until my neighbors tree tore it down. What style is yours?

[@eagle-t4g]

If you plot wind speed versus power output, you will likely see 400 watts at a maximum wind speed. Would be interesting to see such a plot.

[@vtorsi610]

Steady 31 MPH is the rated wind speed. Who has that ?

[@techlab-gi1uz]

You can't discount or qualify any wind generator if you cannot understand, mount correctly or interpret the data. X MPH of wind applied to wind blades = X Watts of output through the motor and regulator; as measured at the battery where the energy is delivered. That's what matters.

[@ratumanoasuguta1038]

Thank you for your story about the wind turbine,I'm in fiji,please what the cost.Please.

[@bradleydonaldson6642]

How do you get Amps (current) without a load when current = voltage divided by resistance (load)?

[@kyleo1236]

The meter is the load

[@Monkeysic]

If the windmill is rated to 50mph thats were your 400 watt rating cones from. You would need to mount a wind speed monitor to your pole and watch the moh and amp output and get an idea of what 10mph gives and so on. Thank you for the video!

[@vtorsi610]

The box states ... Rated at 31 MPH.

[@rd-tb1uw]

Like the name " retired at 40". Your video was very hands on and informative. Thank you. Subscribed.

[@SiBex_ovh]

Next move about turbine with out Watt meter who show how many Watts are generate per day/week !

[@matthewkleinmann]

FYI, and I am not saying this in a down on you way, if you have a12V lead acid battery and you have discharged it down to 9.2V, you have taken a good amount of the life out of the battery. That is a very deep discharge and deep discharges damage the battery. After a few cycles like that the battery will lose a significant amount of its charge holding capacity. It may have a good open terminal voltage, but if you will find you can not pull any current out of it. A good analogy is an ideal battery with a resistor in series with it, and with use the value of the series resistor slowly gets larger. Deep discharges cause it to get much larger much faster. Many people put 80% of the rated terminal voltage, which is 10.5V as the most you ever want to discharge to. For long life people try and stay above 11V. This is a big issue with lead acid batteries. Given you can not deeply discharge them, in effect you need a significantly bigger battery than a quick back of the envelope calculation gives you.

[@stevioAda]

spring washers and the notches in the nose cone have square corners which will be a stress point for cracks

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Got it! I'll look and see what i need to change out.

[@bmw7z]

It's now $400 on amazon, People must have bought it cause they always jack up the price when something gets popular. Supply and Demand.

[@colinboniface194]

I have an Air Breeze, or now called Air X wind turbine. 12 volt marine. It trips my amp meter out at 17 amps. That is genuine. I have a lot of other test reading equipment to verify each other. That's a genuine 204 watts. I've lived off grid on my boat and had this turbine for 12 years. That is how much genuine power measured going into the batteries while my system is under load... Best available and probably the most expensive too...

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Thanks for the info Colin

[@rockstreetstudiosinc2071]

Truly good review, you went through a lot of work to bring this to us, thank you!! Excellent review.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Thanks for your feedback. Much appreciated

[@calvincarter5024]

Thank you for info.

[@kuzadupa185]

You have an awesome guard dog!

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

He was incredible. Sadly, he just passed a couple months ago from cancer. He is irreplaceable

[@PeterSedesse]

It would have been useful ifyou had posted the wind speed from a weather report. It probably is that the 400 watts comes at the maximum wind speed which I believe you said was 50mph. But even at 100 watts, that is still useful at $250 vs a 100 watt solar panel which produces for 10 hours a day. I really like to use both since in stormy weather the solar would be decreased while the wind would pick up. You can also keep your batteries topped-off at night. 200 watt solar + this wind is better than 400 watt solar.

[@zenseidk9011]

LOL, heating a greenhouse work a 400 watt turbine. You'll probably need 3kW 24/7. But hey, it's a start. Thanks for the review! 😊

[@imaBABYru12]

I knew this video would be FUN.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

I was really just trying to charge a battery to run a heat lamp for a few hours a day. Just enough to take the chill out of the air.

[@phiddlephart7026]

Amazon ad. Its cheep now! See how easy the cap broke?

[@warnerrobins8542]

Your a smart kid. I always thought one of these might power the television. I guess not. Hey thank you for video

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

turbines need to be supplemented with solar to be effective. They also need to be run into a storage bank so you can draw power from it.

[@hmax1591]

People have been mislead by manufacturers of solar panel and wind turbines by saying the products are of some wattage value. the only thing I can think of is that the products are trying to specify how much power you can expect to be able to draw directly. Most people use solar panels and turbines to charge batteries, and that's where the confusion starts. Watts are a unit to measure energy used, that's why bulbs and other electrical equipment always tell you how much watts they use. A better indication is how many amps the solar panels or turbines produce at certain voltages. The alternator of a car is measured by how much amps it produces not watts. The voltage needed to charge a 12v battery is about 14.4 or so, to overcome internal resistance. Ohm's law tells you if you have 14.4 volts and is capable to draw 400 watts then you me making almost 28 amps. That's not bad....But too much to charge one battery. Besides those figures of the panels or turbine are determined by either direct sun or wind speed. Dude you need to study more on the subject.

[@vladimir0700]

That’s by way of saying that “renewable energy will never be able to supply the power that we currently get from fossil fuels. Over the years I’ve considered installing a pv array many times and each time concluded that it would be a pure waste of money.

[@aaronvallejo8220]

My 3.35 kw SunPower solar PV system generates 6,000 kwhrs annually. It cost me $15,000 to have installed. It brings a smile to my face every morning and will continue to do so for 30 years.

[@Naa-ee7nq]

I'm an E.Eng so I won't patronise you. One of the big problems with these wind kits is that there's a lot more you can get wrong and the set up is typically a lot more complicated than that of solar panels. Also the nature of the installation, wind, etc makes it harder to measure for the layperson. In the case of horizontal blade turbines, they are very sensitive to turbulence which means they work best in very high poles. This is not realistic in many home installations. Industrial success in wind farms is failing to translate to home usage so far.

[@michaelhansford8109]

I’m ignorant with regards to electrical engineering/ wind generator/ solar generator. But I noticed an engineer spoke up, so I’m going to ask for free advice. I need to power a barn with a couple of led light fixtures and a tv/radio. I know there are tons of variables but, how do I get this done via wind? Is it worth it or just forgo tv and use batteries

[@danielvivian3282]

@@michaelhansford8109 there is a great renewable energy distributor near where I live with a fantastic website that teaches noobs (newbies) about renewable energy options (see below). He has a great blog comparing solar to wind generation. Have a read. It will inform you so you don't have to ask for free information (you'll be part of the group that gives it instead). Best of luck! www.solacity.com/small-wind-turbine-truth/

[@jimjakosh2506]

The reason that that turbine is not putting out 400 watts is most likely it's location. It needs to be up 50-65 ft to get clean air and it will be at its optimum. Too much turbulent air down low! Check the video from Missouri Wind and solar..Jeff does a great job explaining this.

[@vtorsi610]

400 Watts? Keep dreaming.