InfoOnlineNow.com

Power and fuel costs are rising, and many people are looking to stop depending on energy companies. Wind power generators are a source of free power and are becoming much more readily available. They are expensive to buy, but luckily there is another option.

You can construct your own wind power generator into your home quite easily. A good idea is to have the tower about 200-300ft from any obstacle or at least 20ft higher. Around North America the average wind speed is about 9m/s which will provide a lot of power.

Wind power is a great source of renewable energy. It is much cheaper than solar power per Watt, as a wind turbine can generate 1000W while a single solar panel generates around 100 in daylight.

To turn the rotational energy of the turbine into electricity, the actual power generator is the DC motor. You will have to pick one up or order one - they can cost $50 on up depending on size.

You will also need to buy a tower, or improvise one. Recycling towers is a good idea - people that have old TV towers they don't use any more may actually pay you to take them away. You will also need some great engineering blueprints to get you started on your project.

Some people have built their own 500 watt turbines using homemade wind blades, a bought DC motor, recycled TV tower and grid connector. These systems can be made for under $300 if you do it right, and done in less than a week. On the other hand, kits can be bought for several thousand dollars and ready made turbines can be bought for as much as $3000-$6000.

The basics of wind power generators have been around ever since the old windmills you still see at farms across the plains and prairies. Now you can find plans on the Internet for building your own system, or buy components or kits that contain what you need to know.

If you have a bit of land or a rooftop to place it on, some PVC, a DC motor and something to make a tower out of, you can put together a wind power generator with basic tools quite easily.