Blowing in the Wind

I have looked into wind turbines both as a high-end custom residential builder, and as a homeowner, and the practicality of it is laughable. These “free electricity” systems, whether they be solar or wind, all suffer from the same two problems: efficiency and greed.

The cost examples you gave in your article (Harvesting wind power, June 2009, pg. 30) closely match the information I have received from several different manufacturers, and they are pathetic. Why you even bothered to print the article after you got those numbers is a little confusing, since you aren’t a magazine that specializes in greening everything.

Think about it: $10,000 to save 20 percent on a home’s electric bill. OK, and just to make your argument better, I’ll give you that your magic bean/windmill will never wear out, break or need any service. Since the average residential electric bill is about $100/month, your 20 percent savings gives you $20 a month. Wow! You’ll only have to wait … 500 months to recover your initial investment.

But I forgot to include those great government tax credits for the purchase (eyes rolling), so the cost was only $7,000 which means you’ll recover your investment in only 350 months! Remember too that this is only the case if you never spend a dime on maintenance or replacement. I’ve been told to expect about 15 years maximum out of a wind turbine before a major maintenance or replacement issue arises.

The greed problem stems from the fact that all of these manufacturers raise their prices to account for the government subsidies, so the profit margin works out to be roughly the same as Coke or Pepsi. A 2,000 percent profit is fine when your final cost is $1 on a bottle of pop, but not when you’re spending $10,000.

Here are a few easier and cheaper ways to save money on your electric bill:

1) Get Gilligan to pedal one of those energy-producing bikes the professor built out of bamboo and coconuts;
2) Give me $10,000 and I’ll come by your place once a month for the next 15 years, smack you in the head with a Wiffle ball bat, and hand you $40;
3) Panhandle at the [train] station once a month. You only need $21 to turn a profit;
4) Buy season tickets for the Cubs, and four times a season sell one of them for double the cost. It’s not like you’d miss anything.

OK, just kidding, but I think you get the point. I realize you were just trying to present some alternatives in your article, but something that has a practical benefit, like passive solar water heating, is far more profitable than windmills or solar electric.