WIND GENERATORS - A Great Alternative!

When sailing the world, a wind generator is a critical component for the serious cruiser. Because of its compact size and high output, the AIR-X Marine is the best solution to your energy needs. Used by thousands, the AIR-Marine has become the most popular small wind turbine on the market today. Today’s sailboats are very sophisticated and packed with power hungry technology which are vital for a safe cruise. Trusted by sailors everywhere and supported by West Marine and a global distribution network, you will find the AIR marine the best product on the market.

IS THE AIR-MARINE RIGHT FOR YOU?

The AIR-Marine was specifically designed for the cruiser. It is an easy to install, easy to maintain wind turbine and will provide years of maintenance free service. It is designed for 20-45’ boats and can be mounted on the stern with an optional tower kit or on a mizzen mast as shown in one of the pictures above.

Do you have a good wind site?

Most places are windy some of the time. Good wind power sites are windy most of the time. This discussion and the table below will help you decide if you have a potential for wind power. Wind powered battery charging systems can be cost effective if the average wind speed is nine miles per hour (mph) or more at the location of the wind generator. If you are using wind in combination with photovoltaic power, it may be cost effective if you have good wind only during part of the year. The power available from the wind is proportional to the cube of the wind speed. When the wind speed doubles, the power delivered is eight times as great. Most wind generators are designed to deliver maximum power at a wind speed of 30 mph. At 15 mph, they will deliver about 1/8 their rated power. A wind generator should be mounted at least 20 feet higher than any obstruction within 300 feet to avoid turbulence.

What is a wind generator?

The proper name of a wind generator is actually “Wind Energy Converter” that being a device that converts the potential energy in the wind to another form of energy. This can either be mechanical or electrical.

How does the wind generator work? 

When the wind blows, the rotor blade stops a percentage of the wind. That percentage is what is converted into energy. According to physics, the maximum amount of wind energy that can be converted is 59.3%. This is known as the Betz Limit.

Different generators designs, which is the best?

There are a number of types of wind generators. Research has been done on virtually every possible concept with the objective of producing the maximum amount of power for the lowest cost at the highest possible reliability. Conventional experimentation has found that the horizontal axis upwind or down wind design to be the best concept. The most common designs include:

1. Horizontal upwind: The generator shaft is positioned horizontally and the wind hits the blade before the tower.
   
2. Horizontal downwind: The generator shaft is positioned horizontally and the wind hits the tower first then the blade.
   
3. Vertical Axis: The generator shaft is positioned vertically with the blades pointing up with the generator mounted on the ground or a short tower.

There are two basic types of airfoils (blades) a lifting and drag type.

1. The drag style airfoil is typically what you see with an old Dutch wind mill or American water pumping wind mill. The blades are generally a flat plat which the wind hits and causes to rotate. This type of design is great for very low wind areas and will develop a lot of torque to perform an operation. However, in medium to higher winds, their capabilities to produce energy are limited.
   
2. The lifting style airfoil is what you see in most modern wind turbines and on airplanes. A properly designed airfoil is capable of converting significantly more power in medium and higher winds. Actually, with this design, the fewer number of blades the more efficient this design can be. Two European companies actually produced one bladed machines however, dynamic balance issues prevented them from becoming a commercial success.

Hybrid Systems

Wind power can be an excellent complement to a solar power system. When the sun isn't shining, the wind is usually blowing. Wind power is especially helpful to help keep batteries charged during the times of least sunlight and highest power use.

A hybrid renewable power generation system that features both wind generation and solar power modules is a superb choice for living off the grid or for grid tie systems. We carry the famous South West Wind Power line of wind generators and wind generation tools and accessories.

Towers

We do not recommend mounting wind generators on roofs. Though it is possible with wind generators of 500 watts or less output, it will be noisy. Larger wind generators could cause severe damage to the building. Freestanding towers, guyed towers or guyed poles may be used with wind generators. Wind generators can be mounted on freestanding towers designed for antennas. They require a large, engineered concrete base for support, but since they do not require guy wires, they can be installed in the smallest space. Guyed steel truss towers, also designed for antenna mounting are less costly, but require a large area for guy wire placement. A tilt-up pole tower is the most economical and the easiest to install. Wiring and mounting of the wind generator are done before the tower is erected. No climbing is necessary. The four or five inch steel tubing can be bought locally to save freight.

Wiring

It is important to avoid excessive loss of power from voltage drop in wire from the wind generator to the batteries. It is not necessary to use a wire size that minimizes voltage drop for maximum generator output. It will be more economical to choose a wire size that gives a 2% voltage drop at the average generator output for your site. The Air403 has two wire DC output. Use the wire loss chart at the back of this catalog to decide on wire size. The Whisper wind generators have 3-phase AC output that is rectified to DC at the control box. Wire size can be smaller on these machines. Use a wire designed to carry 1/2 the rated current of the generator you are using, but remember, three conductors are required. If wire size required is too costly, compare the price of a whisper HVLV machine, which has a 240 VAC output that is stepped down to battery charging voltage. This results in significantly smaller wire size, which will usually more than offset the extra cost of this machine.

Measuring Wind Speed

You can use one of the measuring devices in this section to determine wind speed. The NRG Wind Totalizer acts like an odometer in a car, giving you the total wind passage over time. Average wind speed is calculated by the user by dividing the miles of wind passage by the number of hours the machine has been running. This unit can be installed and checked weekly or monthly. If you are patient, you can measure for a year or two and get a good idea of your potential power availability. The Dwyer and Kestrel wind speed indicators are both like a speedometer, displaying wind speed at the time you are looking at it, but it does not record any information for future reference. The Dwyer and NRG can be mounted on a tower to give you an idea of wind speed where the generator will be located.

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