 Make: D.I.Y. Vol 5: Electric Wind Turbine, Free HDTV, Water Rocket, Treehouse US $11.99 
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 6 pcs Schottky Blocking 6A Amp Diode DIY Solar Panel Cell Wind Generator Turbine US $5.85
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do domestic wind turbines bought from diy stores live up to all the hype?
Hey Katae, Huge is correct on the location criteria. Any wind turbine will have difficulty making power below the tree top level, and higher is definitely better. We have had 3 different turbines here over the last 15 years. The first was a home brew I cooked up, ran for almost 4 minutes before it disintegrated. The second was an inexpensive unit made for a sailboat. We ran it for 2 years, but it burned up regulators every 6 months like clockwork. Our current one was built in Duluth, it's a heavy model made for strong winds, and it's had a few small issues, but continues to power our home part of the year.
When you mention, "All the Hype?" I'm not sure what you mean. In my experience, I've had a hard time getting anyone to even tell me about wind turbines. It took some research, but we found some publications and sources to learn about the different models and manufacturers. We didn't experience a lot of hype about it. I would guess that most any small wind turbines you can buy off the shelf at a farm supply store or similar location are probably good enough units for home use, but most people that have problems with them are having issues with the tower they install to put it on. When we decided to convert our home over to wind and solar power years ago, we did almost all the work ourselves, except for the tower. We ended up hiring a guy near us that does towers for a living. He sold us a used one in sections, then helped us put it up. His expertise was well worth the extra money. Not that you can't install one yourself, but you need to educate yourself a bit, beyond reading the instruction manual that might come with one.
There is an excellent periodical that really gets into the nuts and bolts of these things, it's called, "Home Power Magazine." I'll list the link below. It doesn't cost much, and most issues, they take something related to renewable energy, like solar panels, inverters, wind turbines and so on, and list each one available to buy along with all its specs, warranties, power handling, and so on. They did one on home sized wind turbines a year or two ago. If you subscribe online, you'll have access to all their archived articles and you can read about wind turbines yourself. There are also two people I would consider guru's on the subject. Mick Sagrillo has been building and installing wind turbines for over 30 years, he writes articles and teaches courses on wind power in Wisconsin today. You can find some of his work online. Paul Gipe has written several books on the subject, including, "Wind Power for Home and Business." I suggest getting it at the library and reading it.
Don't ask the salesperson at the DIY store for advice, unless he has one running at his place and he's willing to show it to you. And I would shy away from getting answers from strangers online that don't have a working wind turbine in their yard either. In my years growing my own electrons here, one thing I've discovered you can find in abundance in the renewable energy field is misinformation. Seems like everyone has heard something, read something, or seen something on TV, but nobody actually has a solar array or turbine at their house, yet they're willing to give out advice to you and let you try it. If you take the time to subscribe to Home Power, read the books and articles you can find, and possibly try to make one of the renewable energy fairs in your area, you'll have a great deal more than an answer to your question. In the end, you might decide not to get involved at all, and that's fine, but at least you'll be well informed. Good luck, and take care, Rudydoo
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