Wind Generator Made In USA?

76 Posts
Aug 23, 2011 04:05 pm
Wind Generator Made In USA?

I purchased and installed a Soutwest Windpower Air-X 400w 24vdc wind generator a few years ago, as part of a solar/wind hybrid system for my garage.  I really like it, especially on the cold, windy, cloudy days that make up a good part of winter life in the midwest.

We're finally getting ready to make the bigger step of taking the house off-grid.  My plan was to use a set of three wind generators- two AIR-Breeze, and one AIR-X, all mounted atop an outbuilding that will also house the other alternative energy components.

My concern is that I THOUGHT the Southwest Windpower generators were made in the USA.  I've seen evidence to the contrary, though, recently, and would like some clarification.  Are the AIR series gennies made in the US?  Are there any USA-made alternatives (looking for 1kw or less, so they can be roof-mounted- don't want to have to mow around towers with guy wires!).
 
65 Posts
Aug 23, 2011 07:13 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

I just re-confirmed with Southwest Windpower and yes, indeed, their turbines are still made in good 'ol USA (Arizona, to be exact). Smiley What you might be catching on to are the hordes of cheap Chinese knock-off's of Southwest Windpower's Air series of turbines. You'll see many that go under different brand names and look just like the AirX/Breeze's. In fact, even when you search in Google for AirX or Air Breeze, some of these knock-off's come up instead.

There are no quality wind generators that I'm aware of that are still made in the USA. You can get some alternator's on a stick on ebay that may be largely assembled in the USA though. Wink

Sneak preview: SWWP is about to come out with a version of their Air's that will have a lifetime warranty. Just wait til next month (Sept, 2011) - might be worth it to get that unit (the Air40 and then there will be a version of the AiR Breeze that will also have a lifetime warranty). We should have them in stock sometime that same month as well.

AltE
"Making Renewable Do-able" (tm)
http://www.altEstore.com/
 
76 Posts
Aug 24, 2011 10:54 am
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Well, you know what R&D stands for in China, right?
Receive and Duplicate!

Look up "air-x china" or similar in a search engine, and you'll find various importers selling the knock-offs, even using SWWP's own descriptions and images!

I'm glad to hear the GENIUNE ones are made right here in the USA.  Now, it's time to size up everything I need, build the parts list, and see what we come up with.

What I am considering on the outbuilding is 3 poles.  Two Breeze models (one at each end) and the AIR-X in the middle, mounted higher.

We'll be building the system next summer at the earliest, so there's plenty of time to wait for the newer models from SWWP.
 
26 Posts
Aug 30, 2011 11:20 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

I've been very pleased with my Bergey XL.1.  I think they're made in Oklahoma.  I've had it since 2008 and it has performed well, especially in the winter.  It is a perfect complement to my solar.  I only had one problem with it and I think that's because it was struck by lightning... a sacrificial resistor wire was fried (saving the stator).  I cranked down the tower with my portable power drill, took out the fried wires, and had warranty-covered new ones in within a week. 

I would definitely choose a single larger turbine rather than three small ones, as it will be more efficient, less noisy, need less replacement parts, and have less redundant mounting/wiring costs.  Also, you should avoid mounting wind turbines to buildings because they can generate significant vibration and noise, and damage to the structure may not be covered by home insurance.  Structures are also usually too low to the ground to avoid turbulence and may actually create turbulence themselves.  And unless you have no trees, you should get a tower at least 60-80 feet tall.  100' would be even better.  Your results will improve the higher your turbine is from the ground.
 
97 Posts
Sep 1, 2011 12:34 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Hi Travis.  I would agree with Thomas that mounting wind turbines on a building may be unsatisfactory from a structural and noise standpoint.  I tried mounting one on the side of a garage, and found the noise rather unsettling.  The mounting brackets tend to loosen up from vibration and perhaps a shock absorbing mount would offer some relief from these problems.  I am using SWWP Whisper 200's on guyed poles and am very pleased with the performance of them for the last 4 years.  I chose SW over Bergey at the time, because SW offered a 48v wiring option that matches my battery backup system for off grid operation.  I do however prefer the redundancy of three smaller turbines over one big turbine....If you have turbine failure, it will likely not affect all three at once, and you will still have two operational turbines to get by as you repair the third one.  I also had a lightning strike on one turbine which destroyed an insulator on the brushes, and it seems that lightning only strikes one turbine at a time, so I was still able to run on the other two before springtime and the opportunity to repair the defective one. (SWWP was very helpful and speedy in sending me a replacement part)  If you oversize your wind generator capacity, you could probably get by with a shorter turbine mast and not have such a large ground footprint for the cable anchors.  I am using 40 foot masts and have no problems with the reduced output, since I am using one more turbine than required to satisfy my electrical consumption needs.  I wish you good fortune in your project.  :-)  Jon C.
 
26 Posts
Sep 1, 2011 02:53 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

I'm not sure about the logic of having multiple turbines for redundancy unless you have exceptional wind all the time and very little sunlight.  Otherwise, I would use solar for redundancy and a gas or propane generator for emergency.  In my off-grid setup, I have the 1kW Bergey and 1.5kW of solar along with a small 1kW propane generator (only for battery charging, not house loads). 

Usually, when it's sunny there's little wind and vice versa, so this tends to provide a predictable output across seasons and between day and night.  E.g. on a sunny day, it is dead calm at noon, but a breeze picks up in the evening.  And summers (other than storms) tend to be calm, but winds roll in with autumn and last the winter.

So it seems to me that, unless you already have these other complimentary systems in place, for the extra cost of mounting and wiring redundant turbines, your money would be much better spent on alternative sources including solar, microhydro if you have it, and some kind of on-demand (probably fossil fuel) emergency solution.  These will help you not only if your turbine is compromised at some point, but also whenever there is insufficient wind.

When my turbine was down for a week, I did not have my emergency generator yet (didn't know I needed it until then) and it was unusually overcast (usually we don't get 7 straight days of clouds).  It was also very, very cold, so my batteries struggled to hold the charge and I actually almost lost them.  Would a redundant wind turbine or two have helped here?  Perhaps a little, if there was sufficient wind.  But I'll tell you what, when you're in fear of losing $3,000 worth of batteries, praying for enough wind to make up for your out-of-commission turbine wouldn't be a good solution.  In that case, an on-demand power source to keep the batteries charged and free from risk of freezing is a life saver.

Another thing is that neither the wind nor sun care if you have a bunch of guests over, and guests generally don't appreciate conservation of resources, and even if they did, you probably didn't design your system for double the number of people in any case.  That's another reason an on-demand power source is very important.  As your batteries get overdrawn, you can run the generator for an hour or so to make up for the extra load.

This all is moot of course if you're grid connected and assume the grid will always be there for you, but in that case, having redundant wind turbines is also unnecessary.
 
97 Posts
Sep 1, 2011 11:49 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Gee, Thomas, I was responding to Travis and didn't mean to refute your logic, even though you chose to refute mine.  I think that this technology is very much dependent on location and wind/solar conditions that exist in our individual areas. My whole idea in pursuing this alternative energy concept was to get away from using fossil fuels or anything burnable like propane, natural gas, fuel oil, etc., and I have accomplished that goal.  Expenditures had little to do with that goal.......Independence and freedom from conventional power sources was the primary consideration, and it is hard to put a price on that.  I am pleased that you are happy with your system, and was only sharing my experience with others.....that is what this forum is for.  I appreciate your input as well.  :-)  Jon C.
 
26 Posts
Sep 2, 2011 06:06 am
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

No offense intended.  An on-demand power source could include non-fossil fuels such as wood gas, steam engine, Stirling engine, etc.  My point was merely that given the unpredictability of wind and solar and the potential need for additional supply during special times, an on-demand source would be a more efficient use of limited resources than redundant turbine mounting and wiring.  While it's true (as I qualified originally) that this is dependent upon your individual resources (wind and monetary), as a general rule for your average case, the more different kinds of power source, the better the redundancy will be because of the law of diminishing returns.  E.g. if you have little to no wind at all during a particular period, it doesn't matter if you have 1 or 100 wind turbines.  I'm not prescribing a particular solution, but just recommending to consider all of the potential scenarios down the road.
 
97 Posts
Sep 2, 2011 09:10 am
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

No offense taken, Thomas.  Doing the same thing here.......proposing other possible scenarios.  We hear about enough systems that are not working properly, so it's always refreshing to hear about systems that actually do work.  It's senseless to argue about something that works. I use similar redundancy with regard to solar panel capacity, and battery capacity.  Works well for me.  :-)  Jon C.
 
26 Posts
Sep 2, 2011 04:21 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

My intent with my system was also to get off of fossil fuels and be totally self-sufficient, but only in the sense that I wouldn't *depend on* outside sources.  For convenience, however, I am using propane for several applications.  Each of them I could do without propane, but it would be more of a hassle.  E.g. I have a wood stove I can cook on, but my propane range is the primary cooking appliance so long as my tank is full.  I also have a gas dryer, although I could hang clothes on the line.  And I have gas backup to my heat and electric, so we don't have to skimp and be uncomfortable when renewable resources are low, although rationing is also possible if necessary.  Also, since we have trillions of cubic feet of natural gas under our feet here in Pennsylvania, and gas burns very cleanly, I feel pretty good about propane being my only utility bill other than cell phone/internet.  I fill my 100 gallon tank about twice a year, and it'll probably be once a year when I get my solar thermal system hooked up.

That said, I am always on the lookout for an alternative to propane when it is convenient.  E.g. for my refrigeration, I decided against a propane fridge and am instead using a combination of root cellar principles combined with a very efficient DC compressor. And in the back of my mind, I'm looking forward to a day when I replace my on-demand electric backup from a propane generator to a biomass generator of some kind.  I have a dozen acres of switchgrass and another two dozen of woods, so would love to use these to either produce wood gas or to burn in an external combustion generator, either steam or Stirling.  I would then push the waste heat into my solar thermal storage tank.  But that is a future project, and for now, I am glad to have the propane backup, which I only use once or twice a year.

Like most people probably, I'm doing all of this in stages as time and money allows.  Propane is a great intermediate solution between dependence on the grid and foreign oil to complete and total self-sufficiency.
 
97 Posts
Sep 2, 2011 11:36 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Awesome post there, Thomas!  You have certainly done your homework, and you are right that most of us do this piecemeal as we can afford it and learn as we go.  When people ask me about the economics of my system, they are somewhat disillusioned, as they are looking for some kind of monetary reward or payback........that's not the reason we do this......it's to do something for the planet and for our own independence and freedom, and that is the reward.  I also have switchgrass on my farm and was interested to learn that it is a great source of biofuel alcohol when properly processed.  The infrastructure here is only tailored at present for corn processing, and I really don't like to see food used as fuel.....food should be used to feed people and there is less farm land available for that as time goes on.  One can only hope that people eventually adapt to their needs for conveniences in more efficient ways  and stop wasteful consumption of non-renewable resources. I wish you good fortune in your future endeavors.  :-)  Jon C.
 
3 Posts
Sep 19, 2011 01:44 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Anyone know the status of the new SWWP AirBreeze with lifetime warranty?


"Sneak preview: SWWP is about to come out with a version of their Air's that will have a lifetime warranty. Just wait til next month (Sept, 2011) - might be worth it to get that unit (the Air40 and then there will be a version of the AiR Breeze that will also have a lifetime warranty). We should have them in stock sometime that same month as well."
 
65 Posts
Sep 19, 2011 02:52 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Anyone know the status of the new SWWP AirBreeze with lifetime warranty?

Good news there: We are actually expected them (the new Air Breezes, Air30s, and Air40s) to arrive into inventory within the next week (by 9/27/2011).

AltE
"Making Renewable Do-able" (tm)
http://www.altEstore.com/
 
3 Posts
Sep 19, 2011 09:01 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Will there be a marine version of the new Air Breeze?


Good news there: We are actually expected them (the new Air Breezes, Air30s, and Air40s) to arrive into inventory within the next week (by 9/27/2011).
 
65 Posts
Sep 19, 2011 10:40 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Will there be a marine version of the new Air Breeze?

Actually, the new Air Breeze is only offered in its 'marine-ized' form. In many ways it's just like the previous Air Breeze marine, except that (from what I heard from SWWP)the software/firmware has been further optimized, the mold for the blades has been improved and some additional improvements to the stator were made to increase lifetime.

For more detailed information, check out the Air Breeze turbine product spec pages:

http://www.altestore.com/store/Wind-Turbines/Southwest-Windpower-Turbines-Parts/Southwest-Wind-Power-AIR-Breeze-Series/c1206/

AltE
"Making Renewable Do-able" (tm)
http://www.altEstore.com/
« Last Edit: Sep 19, 2011 10:51 pm by Sascha Deri »
 
3 Posts
Sep 21, 2011 11:48 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Looks like a 30% increase in price.....

Is it too late to order one with only a 3 year warranty??



Will there be a marine version of the new Air Breeze?

Actually, the new Air Breeze is only offered in its 'marine-ized' form. In many ways it's just like the previous Air Breeze marine, except that (from what I heard from SWWP)the software/firmware has been further optimized, the mold for the blades has been improved and some additional improvements to the stator were made to increase lifetime.

For more detailed information, check out the Air Breeze turbine product spec pages:

http://www.altestore.com/store/Wind-Turbines/Southwest-Windpower-Turbines-Parts/Southwest-Wind-Power-AIR-Breeze-Series/c1206/
 
65 Posts
Sep 23, 2011 11:21 am
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Looks like a 30% increase in price.....
Is it too late to order one with only a 3 year warranty??

Yeah, we actually have a few of the 12V and 24V Breeze Marines still kicking around in inventory. You can see the qty's left on the respective product spec pages here:

12V
http://www.altestore.com/store/Wind-Turbines/Southwest-Windpower-Turbines-Parts/Air-Breeze-Electric-Wind-Turbines/Southwest-Wind-Power-Air-Breeze-Wind-Turbine-Marine-160W-12V/p6015/

24V
http://www.altestore.com/store/Wind-Turbines/Southwest-Windpower-Turbines-Parts/Air-Breeze-Electric-Wind-Turbines/Southwest-Wind-Power-Air-Breeze-Wind-Turbine-Marine-160W-24V/p6017/

AltE
"Making Renewable Do-able" (tm)
http://www.altEstore.com/
 
2 Posts
Dec 30, 2012 07:24 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Hi
Can anyone tell me if the air breeze, air 30/40 stator and electronic controller can be fitted into an early Air X turbine?
Thanks
 
May 11, 2014 09:15 pm
Re: Wind Generator Made In USA?

Are the USA made much durable and good quality rather than the other product made in other country?
 

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