October
The windiest states in the nation are:
-North Dakota
-Texas
-Kansas
-South Dakota
-Montana
Which I don’t need to tell you if you live there!
Other states that have locations that are pretty windy are Rhode Island, Wyoming (the area around Caspar and Cheyenne), the area around Erie, Pennsylvania, and areas around Mansfield and Cleveland, Ohio to name just a few.
If you live in a chronically windy location, why not consider purchasing a small wind-turbine to provide your electricity needs?
According to the U.S. Department of Energy, it makes economic sense to have a wind turbine if the following conditions are met:
• Your average monthly electric bill is over $150
• Your property has a good wind resource
• Your home or business is located on at least one acre of rural land
• Your local zoning codes or covenants allow wind turbines
• You are comfortable with long-term investments
It makes sense to purchase a wind-turbine now, as the Federal government is currently offering a 30% tax credit to those who purchase a turbine from a dealer participating in the program, up to $4,000 for either residential or business use. The tax credit will be available until 2016.
In addition, a few states will also offer you rebates! These are: California, New Jersey, New York, Illinois and Massachusetts.
In California, for example – the state with the most expensive electricity bills in the nation – the cash rebate is for qualified purchases of small wind systems up to 30 kW. The CEC (Cal. Energy Commission) rebate for wind (effective January 1, 2006) is $2.50 per watt for the first 7,500 watts and then $1.50 per watt for additional wattage up to the limit of 30 kW.
If you live in a remote area, and are “off-grid,” with no electric lines running up to your home, a wind turbine may be just the ticket.
In order to find out if you live in a location that is windy enough to make a wind turbine worthwhile,
Every state and local government that is windy enough to make wind turbines worthwhile will have its own rules and regulations on whether or not residential home owners, or businesses, can build wind turbines. Check with your local government to find out what the rules are in your area.
The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) maintains a list of U.S. manufacturers and suppliers of wind turbines for use in residential, farm, and commercial/industrial applications.
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Great suggestion. I’m curious what percentage of people in the windiest states have their own wind turbines, and how that compares to the states with rebates….
Why don’t you check out the options for building your own wind turbine, it’s amazingly effective, I have already done it and am very pleased with mine.
My neighbors - http://www.buildyourownwindturbine.com teach people in Ireland to build their own, it’s cool, fun to do and really great to have no utility bills coming in.
Yeah I agree with you. In places where its windy enough., its better to really have a wind turbine. Wind turbines is a great used to power your home, and at a fraction of the cost of conventional power sources.
Thank you for suggesting.
It’s true that having wind turbines is great if you’re in an area that’s windy enough. However, most places average around 12mph winds, and many of the wind turbines on the market show how much power they’d generate at an average of 25 mph winds.. which can mislead lots of people. To really be able to limit utility bills, you’d need a really large turbine and have steady high winds, otherwise it’s likely not going to be cost effective.
I guess if wind turbines don’t work, consider solar panels. I live just outside of Las Vegas and its INCREDIBLY windy, but Im not sure if it’s windy often enough…hmmm.